The Dakota Territory legislature created the county on January 4, 1873, with territory partitioned from Buffalo County. It was not organized at that date, and was not attached to another county for judicial or administrative purposes. It was named for Joseph Rolette Jr., a fur trader and political figure from Pembina. The county government was effected on October 14, 1884, with Dunseith as the county seat. In 1885 the county seat was assigned to Saint John, and in 1889 it was assigned to Rolla.
The county boundaries were adjusted in 1883 and in 1887. It has retained its present boundary configuration since 1887.[3][4]
Rolette County lies on the northern border of North Dakota with Canada. Gimby Creek and Wakopa Creek flow into the county from Canada. The terrain consists of dry rolling hills in the south, and more verdant low hills in the north and northwest, dotted with lakes and ponds.[5]
Part of the Turtle Mountain plateau lies in the northwestern part of the county. The terrain slopes to the south and east; its highest point is its northwest corner, at 2,195 ft (669 m) ASL.[6]
Rolette County has an area of 939 square miles (2,430 km2), of which 903 square miles (2,340 km2) is land and 36 square miles (93 km2) (3.9%) is water.[7]
U.S. Decennial Census[9] 1790-1960[10] 1900-1990[11] 1990-2000[12] 2010-2020[1]
2020 census
As of the census of 2020, there were 12,187 people.
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 13,937 people, 4,783 households, and 3,413 families in the county. The population density was 15.4 people per square mile (5.9 people/km2). There were 5,372 housing units at an average density of 5.95 units per square mile (2.30/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 77.2% American Indian, 20.3% white, 0.2% black or African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.1% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 48.5% were French Canadian, 7.0% were German, 6.8% were Norwegian, and 0.3% were American.
Of the 4,783 households, 44.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.1% were married couples living together, 23.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 28.6% were non-families, and 25.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.89 and the average family size was 3.39. The median age was 30.5 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $28,265 and the median income for a family was $35,523. Males had a median income of $35,595 versus $27,459 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,632. About 25.9% of families and 31.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 41.5% of those under age 18 and 24.8% of those age 65 or over.
Due to its Native American majority population, Rolette County voters are historically Democratic, more consistently so than other such counties in North Dakota. Since 1928 the only Republican to carry the county was Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952.[13] It was the only county in the state to support George McGovern in 1972 and is additionally the only North Dakota county to have supported Jimmy Carter in 1980.[14] In each of the five presidential elections from 1996 to 2012, the Democratic candidate received over 60% of the vote, with Barack Obama winning 75.1% in 2008 and 74.0% in 2012.[15][16] In 2016, Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton received 57.3% of the county's votes,[17] one of the two North Dakota counties that she carried.
United States presidential election results for Rolette County, North Dakota[18][19]
United States
North Dakota
