Sargent County, North Dakota facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Sargent County
U.S. county
Sargent County Courthouse
Location within the U.S. state of North Dakota
North Dakota's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	North Dakota
Founded	April 9, 1883 (created) October 8, 1883 (organized)
Named for	H. E. Sargent
Seat	Forman
Largest city	Gwinner
Area
• Total	867 sq mi (2,250 km²)
• Land	859 sq mi (2,220 km²)
• Water	8.4 sq mi (22 km²) 1.0%
Population (2020)
• Total	3,862
• Estimate (2022)	3,795
• Density	4.4544/sq mi (1.7199/km²)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	At-large

Sargent County is a county located in the state of North Dakota in the United States. Its main town, where the county government is located, is Forman. The biggest city in the county is Gwinner.

The county is named after Homer E. Sargent. He was a general manager for the Northern Pacific Railroad Company a long time ago. Sargent County is a farming area in southeastern North Dakota. It has many small lakes, ponds, and hills. It sits between the James River and Red River valleys.

In 2020, about 3,862 people lived here. It is the 29th largest county in North Dakota by population. This county was also the first home of the Bobcat Company. This company makes farm and construction machines. They still build many skid-steer loaders at their factory in Gwinner.

A Look Back: History of Sargent County
Exploring Sargent County's Land and Lakes
Who Lives Here? Sargent County's People
Getting Around: Roads and Highways
Towns and Areas in Sargent County
Images for kids
See also

A Look Back: History of Sargent County

Sargent County was created on April 9, 1883, by the Dakota Territory. Some parts came from Ransom County. Other parts were new areas or from Native American reserves. The county was named after H. E. Sargent, a railroad boss.

At first, the county didn't have its own full government. It was linked to Richland County for court matters. It was also linked to Ransom County for other government tasks. But this changed quickly! On October 8, 1883, Sargent County got its own government. Milnor was chosen as the first county seat. However, in 1884, during the county's first election, Forman became the new county seat.

The Northern Pacific Railway built a train line into the county in 1883. It reached Milnor. By 1900, the train line went all the way across the county. More and more people moved to Sargent County. The population grew a lot, reaching its highest point in 1920 with 9,655 people.

The Sargent County Courthouse is a beautiful building. It was built in 1910 in a style called Beaux Arts. This building is so important that it is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

Exploring Sargent County's Land and Lakes

Sargent County is in the southeastern part of North Dakota. It shares a border with South Dakota to the south. The county is shaped almost like a perfect rectangle. It has a small bump in its southeastern corner. This bump helps it line up with the Lake Traverse Indian Reservation.

The county covers about 867 square miles in total. Most of this area, about 859 square miles, is land. The rest, about 8.4 square miles, is water. That's about 1% water!

Most of the county's water flows into the Wild Rice River. This river starts near Brampton in the southwestern part of the county. It flows east through the southern part of the county. It passes through Silver Lake and Lake Tewaukon. Then it continues east into Richland County. Small parts of the county in the west and north are in the James River and Sheyenne River areas.

The land in Sargent County changes a lot. The southern and western parts have many hills. These include the northern tip of the Coteau des Prairies. This is a high area along the county's southern border. As you move east, the land becomes much flatter. This flatter area is part of the Red River Valley.

The flat areas are mostly used for growing crops. Farmers grow corn, soybeans, and wheat here. The hillier parts are often used as pastures for animals like cows. The land generally slopes down towards the south and east. The highest point is about 1,365 feet above sea level on the western border. However, a rise on the eastern part of the southern border reaches about 1,729 feet.

Sargent County is in the Prairie Pothole Region. This means it has many wetlands, which are like marshy areas. Most of these are shallow ponds called sloughs. Their size changes depending on how much rain there is. But there are also several bigger, deeper lakes. Lake Tewaukon is one of the largest. It is inside the Tewaukon National Wildlife Refuge. In the western part of the county, there is a chain of lakes. The biggest of these is Kraft Lake. Many of the county's lakes have fish like yellow perch and walleye. This makes fishing a popular activity. People even go ice fishing in the winter!

Neighbors: Counties Around Sargent

Ransom County (north)
Richland County (east)
Roberts County, South Dakota (southeast)
Marshall County, South Dakota (south)
Brown County, South Dakota (southwest)
Dickey County (west)

Special Nature Spots: Protected Areas

Storm Lake National Wildlife Refuge
Tewaukon National Wildlife Refuge
Wild Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge

Water Wonders: Lakes of Sargent County

Alkali Lake
Borg Lake
Buffalo Lake
Clouds Lake
Golden Hill Lake
Kraft Lake
Lake Dell
Lake Fedge
Lake Tewaukon
Pickell Lake
Silver Lake
Sprague Lake
Storm Lake
White Lake

Who Lives Here? Sargent County's People

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1890	5,076	—
1900	6,039	19.0%
1910	9,202	52.4%
1920	9,655	4.9%
1930	9,298	−3.7%
1940	8,693	−6.5%
1950	7,616	−12.4%
1960	6,856	−10.0%
1970	5,937	−13.4%
1980	5,512	−7.2%
1990	4,549	−17.5%
2000	4,366	−4.0%
2010	3,829	−12.3%
2020	3,862	0.9%
2022 (est.)	3,795	−0.9%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2020

Quick Facts: 2020 Census

In 2020, the official count showed that 3,862 people lived in Sargent County.

More Details: 2010 Census

The 2010 census counted 3,829 people living in 1,675 households. A household is a group of people living in one home. There were 1,113 families. The population density was about 4.46 people for every square mile.

Most people in the county were white (98.0%). A small number were American Indian (0.5%), Asian (0.2%), or other groups. About 1.3% of the people were of Hispanic or Latino background.

When it came to family history, many people had German roots (51.3%). Others had Norwegian (35.9%), Swedish (11.8%), or Irish (8.4%) backgrounds.

About 27.1% of households had children under 18 living there. More than half (57.3%) were married couples. The average household had 2.26 people. The average family had 2.79 people. The average age of people in the county was 45.9 years old.

The average income for a household was $49,318 per year. For a family, it was $59,531. About 7.8% of all people in the county lived below the poverty line. This included 10.5% of kids under 18 and 10.4% of people aged 65 or older.