The 2015 ACS data came out from the Census Bureau in mid-September and gave us lots to chew on for the state of North Dakota. The four counties reported in the 1 year data are Burleigh, Cass, Grand Forks, and Ward. All three counties gained population from 2014. Cass increased the most with 4,507 more people, while Burleigh increased by 2,488, Ward by 1,891, and Grand Forks increased by 778.

One of the interesting things (at least to me) is that the median age in the two largest counties actually increased from 2014 to 2015. It was inside the margin of error to be sure so it is not a statistical anomaly, but it bears watching as time passes.

So what ages were responsible for these changes? Well it was different age groups in the different counties. Ward and Burleigh notched double-digit gains in the under five years old population. Cats and Grand Forks counties both registered seven percent increases in this age group.

Let’s jump to the other end of the age spectrum. Burleigh had a forty percent increase in those eighty-five years and older, while Cass only experienced a two percent increase in this age group and Grand Forks saw an increase of twenty-nine percent. The interesting outcome was that Ward County saw a fall in those eighty-five and over by twenty-four percent!

There are other changes and interesting outcomes when you look at the gender breakdown and the population pyramids, but that will wait until the next post.

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