Steele County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,798,[1] and was estimated to be 1,767 in 2024,[2] making it the fifth-least populous county in North Dakota. The county seat and the largest city is Finley.[3]
The Dakota Territory legislature created the county on June 2, 1883, with territories partitioned from Griggs and Traill counties. It was not organized at that time but was attached to Traill for administrative and judicial purposes. It was named for businessman Edward H. Steele, who had pushed for its creation.
On June 13, 1883, the county organization was affected and Steele County was detached from Traill County; Sherbrooke, North Dakota was chosen as the county seat. In 1897 the town of Finley was founded, and by 1919 its growth had eclipsed Sherbrooke to the point that the county seat was transferred to Finley.[4][5] The county's boundaries have been unchanged since its creation.
Outline map of Steele County, North Dakota, 1911
Geography
The Sheyenne River flows south near and into the county's west boundary line. The Goose River flows southeast through the northeastern part of the county. The terrain consists of rolling hills dotted with lakes and ponds. The area is devoted to agriculture.[6] The terrain slopes to the south and east; its highest point is near its northwestern corner, at 1,562ft (476m) ASL.[7]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 715.400 square miles (1,852.88km2), of which 712.143 square miles (1,844.44km2) is land and 3.257 square miles (8.44km2) (0.46%) is water.[8] It is the 50th largest county in North Dakota by total area.[9]
U.S. Decennial Census[11] 1790–1960[12] 1900–1990[13] 1990–2000[14] 2010–2020[2]
As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the median home value in Steele County was $127,570.[15]
As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 731 estimated households in Steele County with an average of 2.37 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $80,313. Approximately 13.3% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Steele County has an estimated 59.7% employment rate, with 29.6% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 94.5% holding a high school diploma.[2]
The top five reported ancestries (people were allowed to report up to two ancestries, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (98.6%), Spanish (0.0%), Indo-European (1.4%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.0%), and Other (0.1%).
The median age in the county was 46.4 years.
Steele County, North Dakota – racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
As of the 2020 census, there were 1,798 people, 788 households, and 515 families residing in the county.[21] The population density was 2.52 inhabitants per square mile (1.0/km2). There were 1,091 housing units at an average density of 1.53 per square mile (0.6/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 96.33% White, 0.17% African American, 0.39% Native American, 0.00% Asian, 0.22% Pacific Islander, 0.28% from some other races and 2.61% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.00% of the population.[22]
2010 census
As of the 2010 census, there were 1,975 people, 864 households, and 589 families residing in the county. The population density was 2.8 inhabitants per square mile (1.1/km2). There were 1,171 housing units at an average density of 1.6 per square mile (0.6/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.57% White, 0.15% African American, 1.16% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.41% from some other races and 0.61% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.01% of the population.
There were 864 households, 24.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.4% were married couples living together, 4.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 31.8% were non-families, and 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.78. The median age was 47.7 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $44,191 and the median income for a family was $54,625. Males had a median income of $36,588 versus $25,648 for females. The per capita income for the county was $27,728. About 4.3% of families and 4.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.1% of those under age 18 and 5.1% of those age 65 or over.
Steele County was a Democratic-leaning swing county in presidential elections until 2016, when Hillary Clinton lost to Donald Trump by nearly 20 points, an almost total flip from Barack Obama's 20 point win in 2008. In 2020, Joe Biden fared even worse despite a national increase for the Democratic Party from 2016. He was the first Democrat to win without the county since John F. Kennedy in 1960, and had the lowest proportion of the county's vote of any winning Democrat since Woodrow Wilson in 1912. Since 1964 Steele County has favored the Democratic presidential candidate in 64% of elections.
United States presidential election results for Steele County, North Dakota[25]
In 1964 the county had 992 students in four schools; at the time there were five school districts but Colgate was not operating any schools as its school closed in 1964.[28]
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United States
North Dakota 
