Oliver County, North Dakota

Oliver County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,877. Its county seat and only city is Center.

History
The Dakota Territory legislature created the county on April 14, 1885, with territory partitioned from Mercer County. It was named for Harry S. Oliver of Lisbon, North Dakota, a Republican politician and member of the Dakota Territory House of Representatives at the time. The county government was organized on May 18, with Sanger (then known as "Bentley") as county seat. The seat was moved to Center in 1902.

Oliver County is included in the Bismarck, North Dakota Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography
The northeastern/eastern boundary of Oliver County is delineated by the Missouri River as it flows southeastward after leaving Lake Sakakawea. The county terrain consists of rolling hills, mostly devoted to agriculture. The terrain slopes to the east, with the highest point a hill near its southwestern corner, at 2,382 ft ASL. The county has a total area of 731 sqmi, of which 723 sqmi is land and 8.7 sqmi (1.2%) is water. It is the fifth-smallest county in North Dakota by area.

By sheer coincidence, the county seat, Center, named for being near the geographical center of the county, has also been calculated to be the geographic center of North America.

Major highways

 * [[Image:North Dakota 25.svg|20px]] North Dakota Highway 25
 * [[Image:North Dakota 31.svg|20px]] North Dakota Highway 31
 * [[Image:North Dakota 48.svg|20px]] North Dakota Highway 48
 * [[Image:Alternate plate.svg|20px]] [[Image:North Dakota 200.png|23px]] North Dakota Highway 200A
 * [[Image:North Dakota 1806.svg|20px]] North Dakota Highway 1806

Adjacent counties

 * McLean County - northeast
 * Burleigh County - east
 * Morton County - south
 * Mercer County - northwest

Protected areas

 * Cross Ranch State Park

Lakes

 * Mandan Lake
 * Nelson Lake

2020 census
As of the census of 2020, there were 1,877 people.

2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 1,846 people, 756 households, and 554 families in the county. The population density was 2.55 /mi2. There were 905 housing units at an average density of 1.25 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 97.3% white, 1.5% American Indian, 0.2% black or African American, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 0.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 66.8% were German, 19.3% were Norwegian, 7.6% were Russian, 6.3% were English, and 4.4% were American.

Of the 756 households, 25.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.5% were married couples living together, 4.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 26.7% were non-families, and 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.84. The median age was 47.6 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $62,308 and the median income for a family was $75,069. Males had a median income of $60,592 versus $28,409 for females. The per capita income for the county was $29,348. About 6.5% of families and 9.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.0% of those under age 18 and 19.6% of those age 65 or over.

City

 * Center (county seat)

Unincorporated communities

 * Fort Clark
 * Hannover
 * Hensler
 * Price
 * Sanger (originally "Bentley"; now a ghost town)

Politics
Oliver County voters are traditionally Republican. In only one national election since 1936 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate (as of 2020).

Education
School districts include:


 * Beulah Public School District 27
 * Center-Stanton Public School District 1
 * Glen Ullin Public School District 48
 * Hazen Public School District 3
 * New Salem-Almont School District
 * Washburn Public School District 4

Center previously had a separate school district, but it merged with Stanton's in 2004.