McKenzie County, North Dakota

McKenzie County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Watford City
Year Organized: 1905
Square Miles: 2,742

Court House:

201 5th Street NW
County Courthouse
Watford City, ND 58854-0000

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Named for Alexander McKenzie of Bismarck (1851-1922), credited with helping to engineer the removal of the capitol of Dakota Territory from Yankton to Bismarck that year and who later became one the North Dakota's most powerful political leaders.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

Original McKenzie County was created by the 1883 territorial legislature but eliminated in 1891 due to lack of settlement. Named for Alexander McKenzie of Bismarck (1851-1922), credited with helping to engineer the removal of the capitol of Dakota Territory from Yankton to Bismarck that year and who later became one the North Dakota's most powerful political leaders. The present county was created by the 1905 state legislature. Government organized: April 20, 1905. County Seat: Alexander, 1905-1907; Schafer, 1907-1941; Watford City, 1941-present.

Neighboring Counties:

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Cities and Towns:

- Alex	township
- Alexander	city	Incorporated Area
- Antelope Creek	township
- Arnegard	city	Incorporated Area
- Blue Butte	township
- Central McKenzie	UT
- Charbon	township
- East McKenzie	UT
- Elm Tree	township
- Fort Berthold	UT
- Grail	township
- Hawkeye	township
- Keene	township
- North McKenzie	UT
- Randolph	township
- Riverview	township
- Sioux	township
- Southeast McKenzie	UT
- Southwest McKenzie	UT
- Tri	township
- Twin Valley	township
- Watford City (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Yellowstone	township

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resources

The history of our nation was a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names given the counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of this country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."