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Pembina County, North Dakota

Coordinates: 48°46′01″N 97°32′43″W / 48.766896°N 97.545405°W / 48.766896; -97.545405
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Pembina County
County
Pembina County Courthouse before 1920
Pembina County Courthouse before 1920
Map of North Dakota highlighting Pembina County
Location within the U.S. state of North Dakota
Map of the United States highlighting North Dakota
North Dakota's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 48°46′01″N 97°32′43″W / 48.766896°N 97.545405°W / 48.766896; -97.545405
Country United States
State North Dakota
FoundedJanuary 9, 1867 (created)
August 12, 1867 (organized)
Named aftera Chippewa term
SeatCavalier
Largest cityCavalier
Area
 • Total
1,121.241 sq mi (2,904.00 km2)
 • Land1,118.535 sq mi (2,896.99 km2)
 • Water2.706 sq mi (7.01 km2)  0.24%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
6,844
 • Estimate 
(2024)
6,588 Decrease
 • Density5.889/sq mi (2.274/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Area code701
Congressional districtAt-large
Websitepembinacountynd.gov

Pembina County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,844,[1] and was estimated to be 6,588 in 2024,[2] The county seat and the largest city is Cavalier.[3]

History

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Frontier doctor Dr. Charles Boarman Harris, one of the original pioneers to settle in Pembina, was the first county physician. He delivered over 3,000 babies born in the region between 1882 and 1942.

For thousands of years, various indigenous peoples inhabited the area along the Pembina and Red rivers. At the time of European contact in the 16th century, the dominant tribes were the Assiniboine and the Lakota (or Sioux, as the French colonists called them). The Ojibwe, also known as Chippewa, a branch of the Anishinaabe-speaking language group, gradually migrated west along both sides of the Great Lakes. They developed a long trading relationship with French trappers and colonists. Throughout the Red River of the North area, French trappers married Native American women, and their descendants continued to hunt and trap. A large mixed-race population developed, recognized as an ethnic First Nations group in Canada called the Métis. The Ojibwe and Métis generally supported the French forces during the Seven Years' War in the mid-eighteenth century against Great Britain.

With the British defeat of France and takeover of its colonial territory, the Chippewa learned to deal with a new trading culture. Armed with guns by trading and having adopted the horse from the Mandan and Hidatsa, by the end of the eighteenth century the Chippewa had migrated from woodlands to the Great Plains and begun to push the Lakota west before them. By the time of the War of 1812, the Ojibwe allied with the British against the United States, hoping to forestall European-American settlers' encroaching on their territory. With the settlement of the northern boundary with Canada, the Chippewa within the Dakota Territory were forced to deal with the United States. During the first half of the nineteenth century, the Chippewa had continued conflicts with the Lakota along the Red River, finally pushing them into present-day western North and South Dakota.

Father George Belcourt, a Catholic Jesuit missionary who served them, described their territory in 1849 as the following

We understand here, that the district or department called Pembina, comprises all of the country or basin which is irrigated or traversed by the tributaries of the Red River, south of the line of the 49th parallel of latitude. The prairies' rivers and lakes which extend to the height of land of the Mississippi, and the immense plains which feed innumerable herds of bison to the westward and from which the Chippewa and half breeds [Métis] of this region obtain their subsistence, contains within their limits a country about 400 miles from north to south and more than five hundred miles from east to west.[4]

The Métis used two-wheeled ox-drawn carts to transport furs to market along the Red River Trails, between what is now Winnipeg, Canada and Mendota or St. Paul, Minnesota. They also used ox-carts to transport food and shelter during extended buffalo hunts.

Over time, the Ojibwe were persuaded to cede much of their land by treaty to the US, which in turn sold it to homesteaders. They moved to relatively small Indian reservations within their earlier territory.

The precursor to Pembina County was a county of the same name in the Minnesota Territory, extending from the Upper Mississippi River to the western boundary of the territory. When Minnesota became a state in 1858, its western boundary was set at the Red River, and the land to its west was unorganized. A new Pembina County was established as part of the Dakota Territory in 1867. At the time it was a large territory, and in 1871 it was expanded to include much of the territory in what is now eastern North Dakota from Canada to the South Dakota border.

The Dakota Territory legislature created Pembina County on January 9, 1867, from previously unorganized territory. Its government was organized on August 12 of that same year. It was named for a Chippewa term for stab or stabbing.[5] Pembina, the oldest European-American settlement in the future state, was the county seat. In 1911 the seat was relocated to Cavalier.[6][7]

The county boundaries were altered in 1871, 1873, 1881, and 1887. It has retained its present boundaries since 1887. Between 1873 and 1881, eleven new counties were created from Pembina, including Cass County and Grand Forks County. Pembina took its current form in 1887, when Cavalier County was increased in size.[8]

Icelandic State Park is located in Pembina County. The first Icelandic immigrant settlement in present-day North Dakota was in Pembina County in the late 1870s, when a colony of settlers from Iceland moved into the county from the New Iceland homesteads near Lake Winnipeg.[9]

Outline map of Pembina County, North Dakota, 1909

The first Icelandic settlements in what is now North Dakota were established in Pembina County in the late 1870s. Many of the immigrants came from New Iceland near Lake Winnipeg, along with other Icelanders who moved into the area from colonies in Wisconsin. The new settlers lived primarily in the so-called "Icelandic Townships" of Akra, Beaulieu, Gardar, and Thingwalla. The State Historical Society of North Dakota reported fewer than 3 or 4 non-Icelandic families living there in the early 1900s. Evidence of this heritage is found in several township and city names with Icelandic origins. Akra was named after the town of Akranes, near Reykjavík; Gardar was named for Gardar Svavarsson, who was reportedly the first Scandinavian to visit Iceland; and Hallsson was named for an early settler, Johann P. Hallson.[10]

Icelandic State Park was established to preserve evidence of this early pioneer heritage.[11]

Geography

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Pembina County lies at the northeastern corner of North Dakota. Its northern boundary line abuts the southern boundary line of Canada and its eastern boundary line abuts the western boundary line of the state of Minnesota (across the Red River, which flows northward along the county's eastern boundary line). The Pembina River flows eastward through the upper portion of the county, discharging into the Red River near the northeastern county corner. The Tongue River flows northeastward through the upper portion of the county, discharging into the Pembina shortly before the Pembina joins the Red River. The county terrain consists of rolling hills, etched by river drainages. The area is devoted to agriculture.[12] The terrain slopes to the east and north; its highest point is on the lower western boundary line, at 1,302 feet (397 m) above sea level.[13]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,121.241 square miles (2,904.00 km2), of which 1,118.535 square miles (2,896.99 km2) is land and 2.706 square miles (7.01 km2) (0.24%) is water.[14] It is the 32nd largest county in North Dakota by total area.[15] The lowest point in the state of North Dakota is located on the Red River of the North in Pembina Township in Pembina County, where it flows out of North Dakota and into the Canada–US border of Manitoba.

Major highways

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Adjacent counties and rural municipalities

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Protected areas

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Source:[12]

Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18701,213—
18804,862300.8%
189014,334194.8%
190017,86924.7%
191014,749−17.5%
192015,1772.9%
193014,757−2.8%
194015,6716.2%
195013,990−10.7%
196012,946−7.5%
197010,728−17.1%
198010,399−3.1%
19909,238−11.2%
20008,585−7.1%
20107,413−13.7%
20206,844−7.7%
2024 (est.)6,588[16]−3.7%
U.S. Decennial Census[17]
1790–1960[18] 1900–1990[19]
1990–2000[20] 2010–2020[2]

As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the median home value in Pembina County was $123,544.[21]

As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 2,959 estimated households in Pembina County with an average of 2.23 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $66,884. Approximately 8.9% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Pembina County has an estimated 58.5% employment rate, with 22.9% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 91.9% holding a high school diploma.[2]

The median age in the county was 45.5 years.

Pembina 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.

Race / ethnicity (NH = non-Hispanic) Pop. 1980[22] Pop. 1990[23] Pop. 2000[24] Pop. 2010[25] Pop. 2020[26]
White alone (NH) 10,188
(97.97%)		 8,978
(97.19%)		 8,058
(93.86%)		 6,947
(93.71%)		 6,096
(89.07%)
Black or African American alone (NH) 5
(0.05%)		 14
(0.15%)		 12
(0.14%)		 21
(0.28%)		 27
(0.39%)
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 50
(0.48%)		 146
(1.58%)		 121
(1.41%)		 143
(1.93%)		 133
(1.94%)
Asian alone (NH) 23
(0.22%)		 12
(0.13%)		 18
(0.21%)		 11
(0.15%)		 27
(0.39%)
Pacific Islander alone (NH) — — 0
(0.00%)		 2
(0.03%)		 0
(0.00%)
Other race alone (NH) 7
(0.07%)		 1
(0.01%)		 4
(0.05%)		 3
(0.04%)		 22
(0.32%)
Mixed race or multiracial (NH) — — 108
(1.26%)		 96
(1.30%)		 296
(4.32%)
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 126
(1.21%)		 87
(0.94%)		 264
(3.08%)		 190
(2.56%)		 243
(3.55%)
Total 10,399
(100.00%)		 9,238
(100.00%)		 8,585
(100.00%)		 7,413
(100.00%)		 6,844
(100.00%)

2023 estimate

[edit]

As of the 2023 estimate, there were 6,661 people and 2,959 households residing in the county. There were 3,496 housing units at an average density of 3.13 per square mile (1.2/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 93.0% White (88.7% NH White), 1.0% African American, 2.7% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, _% from some other races and 2.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 4.9% of the population.[27]

2020 census

[edit]

As of the 2020 census, there were 6,844 people, 3,003 households, and 1,872 families residing in the county.[28] The population density was 6.1 inhabitants per square mile (2.4/km2). There were 3,499 housing units at an average density of 3.13 per square mile (1.2/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 90.20% White, 0.42% African American, 1.97% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 1.11% from some other races and 5.90% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 3.55% of the population.[29]

2010 census

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As of the 2010 census, there were 7,413 people, 3,257 households, and 2,069 families in the county. The population density was 6.62 inhabitants per square mile (2.6/km2). There were 3,859 housing units at an average density of 3.45 per square mile (1.3/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 95.47% White, 0.28% African American, 1.94% Native American, 0.15% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.78% from some other races and 1.35% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.56% of the population.

In terms of ancestry, 33.8% were German, 21.3% were Norwegian, 10.6% were Irish, 9.5% were English, 8.0% were American, and 5.5% were Swedish.

There were 3,257 households, 24.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.2% were married couples living together, 5.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 36.5% were non-families, and 32.4% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.82. The median age was 46.7 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $48,502 and the median income for a family was $61,804. Males had a median income of $40,334 versus $29,662 for females. The per capita income for the county was $27,019. About 4.0% of families and 8.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.5% of those under age 18 and 11.3% of those age 65 or over.

Population by decade

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Communities

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Cities

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Unincorporated communities

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Townships

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American Indian reservations

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Ghost Town

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Politics

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Pembina County voters have traditionally backed the Republican Party. In only one national election since 1948 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate (as of 2024).

United States presidential election results for Pembina County, North Dakota[30]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2024 2,350 75.51% 704 22.62% 58 1.86%
2020 2,460 73.85% 786 23.60% 85 2.55%
2016 2,208 70.03% 681 21.60% 264 8.37%
2012 1,899 58.34% 1,253 38.49% 103 3.16%
2008 1,722 52.07% 1,494 45.18% 91 2.75%
2004 2,466 63.95% 1,321 34.26% 69 1.79%
2000 2,430 64.30% 1,093 28.92% 256 6.77%
1996 1,678 50.94% 1,191 36.16% 425 12.90%
1992 1,917 46.45% 1,186 28.74% 1,024 24.81%
1988 2,471 59.56% 1,616 38.95% 62 1.49%
1984 2,895 65.99% 1,367 31.16% 125 2.85%
1980 3,101 65.73% 1,239 26.26% 378 8.01%
1976 2,810 53.95% 2,274 43.66% 125 2.40%
1972 3,317 63.75% 1,801 34.61% 85 1.63%
1968 2,574 56.01% 1,686 36.68% 336 7.31%
1964 1,961 37.95% 3,198 61.89% 8 0.15%
1960 3,348 57.62% 2,460 42.34% 2 0.03%
1956 3,077 61.82% 1,887 37.91% 13 0.26%
1952 4,012 67.50% 1,891 31.81% 41 0.69%
1948 2,406 46.67% 2,666 51.72% 83 1.61%
1944 2,410 44.95% 2,903 54.15% 48 0.90%
1940 2,924 43.94% 3,711 55.76% 20 0.30%
1936 2,040 31.48% 4,139 63.86% 302 4.66%
1932 1,911 34.19% 3,636 65.04% 43 0.77%
1928 3,324 60.75% 2,141 39.13% 7 0.13%
1924 2,783 59.02% 588 12.47% 1,344 28.50%
1920 3,925 73.24% 1,405 26.22% 29 0.54%
1916 1,469 50.71% 1,400 48.33% 28 0.97%
1912 615 24.75% 975 39.24% 895 36.02%
1908 1,389 52.55% 1,185 44.84% 69 2.61%
1904 1,870 70.01% 743 27.82% 58 2.17%
1900 1,732 55.34% 1,321 42.20% 77 2.46%

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Explore Census Data". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Pembina County, North Dakota". www.census.gov. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  3. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  4. ^ About US: "Move to the Plains" Archived March 10, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, accessed June 27, 2011
  5. ^ Ojibwe People's Dictionary[permanent dead link], University of Minnesota
  6. ^ Wick, Douglas A. (1988). North Dakota Place Names. Bismarck ND: Hedemarken Collectibles. ISBN 0-9620968-0-6. OCLC 191277027.
  7. ^ "County History". www.nd.gov. State of North Dakota. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  8. ^ "Dakota Territory, South Dakota, and North Dakota: Individual County Chronologies". publications.newberry.org. The Newberry Library. 2006. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  9. ^ Johnson, Sveinbjorn (1906). Libby, Orin Grant (ed.). The Icelandic Settlement of Pembina County. Collections of the State Historical Society of North Dakota. Vol. 1. Bismarck ND: Tribune, State Printers and Binders. pp. 89–130. OCLC 01773487.
  10. ^ Williams, Mary Ann (Barnes) (1966). Origins of North Dakota Place Names. Bismarck ND: Bismarck Tribune, 1966. OCLC 431626.
  11. ^ North Dakota Secretary of State (1989). North Dakota Centennial Blue Book. Bismarck, ND: North Dakota Legislative Assembly. p. 539.
  12. ^ a b Pembina County ND Google Maps (accessed February 26, 2019)
  13. ^ ""Find an Altitude/Pembina County ND" Google Maps (accessed February 26, 2019)". Archived from the original on May 21, 2019. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  14. ^ "2024 County Gazetteer Files – North Dakota". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  15. ^ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Pembina County, North Dakota". www.census.gov. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  16. ^ "County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2024". Retrieved May 7, 2025.
  17. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 20, 2014.
  18. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. 2007. Archived from the original on December 12, 2009. Retrieved July 20, 2014.
  19. ^ Forstall, Richard L. (April 20, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 19, 1999. Retrieved July 20, 2014.
  20. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved July 20, 2014.
  21. ^ "County Median Home Price". National Association of Realtors. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  22. ^ "Pembina County, North Dakota — Population by Race". CensusScope. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  23. ^ "1990 Census of Population: General Population Characteristics North Dakota" (PDF). www.census.gov. October 6, 2022. p. 20. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  24. ^ "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Pembina County, North Dakota". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  25. ^ "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Pembina County, North Dakota". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  26. ^ "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Pembina County, North Dakota". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  27. ^ "County Population by Characteristics: 2020-2023". www.census.gov. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  28. ^ "US Census Bureau, Table P16: Household Type". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 7, 2025.
  29. ^ "How many people live in Pembina County, North Dakota". USA Today. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  30. ^ Leip, David. "Atlas of US Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
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