Retiring Guy's Digest: Population loss in North Dakota: Emmons County

Thursday, August 1, 2019

Population loss in North Dakota: Emmons County

It all started here.

Population loss as in major -- 50% or more.

Source: Wikipedia (Emmons County, Linton)

Linton is the county seat of Emmons County.

Population loss by degrees: 80-90%, 70-79%, 60-69%, 50-59%.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts

Percentage of population 25 and older with a bachelor's degree:

15.5% - Emmons County
28.9% - North Dakota
30.9% - U.S.

Percentage of population 65 and older:

27.9% - Sheridan County
15.3% - North Dakota
15.6% - U.S.

The last time Emmons County voted Democratic in a presidential election was 1976. Trump won 84.7% of the vote in 2016.

Related reading:
Telemarketing Finds a Ready Labor Market in Hard-Pressed North Dakota. (The New York Times, 2/3/1997)

''When this office opened, every fourth business place on Main Street was closed, Linton was headed to becoming a ghost town,'' said Mrs. Horner, whose husband now milks their 50 cows on his own. ''My paycheck makes our house payment and our farm payment.''

Linton call center closed. (Bismarck Tribune, 1/26/2009)

The Linton call center was started by Philadelphia businessman Hal Rosenbluth, who said he wanted to help farm families during the drought of the late 1980s. Rosenbluth said the center's work was so impressive that he expanded it and opened other travel centers in North Dakota. He sold the centers in Linton, Dickinson and Williston to American Express in 2003.