| Marmarth, North Dakota | |
|---|---|
| — City — | |
| U.S. Route 12 in Marmarth | |
| Location of Marmarth, North Dakota | |
| Coordinates: | |
| Country | United States |
| State | North Dakota |
| County | Slope |
| Founded | 1907 |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2.5 sq mi (6.6 km2) |
| • Land | 2.5 sq mi (6.6 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 2,710 ft (826 m) |
| Population (2010)[1] | |
| • Total | 136 |
| • Density | 54.4/sq mi (20.6/km2) |
| Time zone | Mountain (MST) (UTC-7) |
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| ZIP code | 58643 |
| Area code(s) | 701 |
| FIPS code | 38-50860[2] |
| GNIS feature ID | 1034994[3] |
Marmarth (pronunciation: /ˈmɑrməθ/ mar-məth) is a city in Slope County, North Dakota in the United States. The population was 136 at the 2010 census.[1] Marmarth was founded in 1907.[4]
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Marmarth is located at (46.294693, -103.923037).[5]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.5 square miles (6.5 km2), all of it land.
The city of Marmarth was established in fall of 1907 along the Milwaukee Road transcontinental rail line known as the Pacific Extension. The name comes from a combination of letters in the first and middle names of Margaret Martha Finch, granddaughter of Albert J. Earling, president of the railroad at the time.[4]
The city was originally laid out on the east side of the Little Missouri River, near where a post office known as Neva and a hotel had already been established.[6] However, due to problems with securing additional land on the east side of the river for a reasonable price, the city was moved to the opposite side in 1908.[7]
Marmarth grew quickly to serve the hundreds of homesteaders who flooded into the area. Because the first two decades of the 20th century were unusually wet, the new settlers reaped harvests of wheat on a scale "that promised to turn even owners of modest farms into wealthy men."[8] By 1920, Marmarth had 1,318 inhabitants.[9] An auditorium, a theater, a large train station, a newspaper, and paved sidewalks were all established during this time.[7]
By the 1920s, a combination of the end of the agricultural boom occasioned by World War I and a return to more normal (i.e., drier) climatic conditions drove many of the settlers from their farms. At the 1930 census, the city's population had declined nearly 50% from a decade earlier. This population decline has continued every census thereafter, with the number of residents in 2010 nearly 10% of the number recorded in 1920.[9]
Dakota, a fossilized Edmontosaurus, a type of duckbill dinosaur, was discovered near Marmarth in 1999 by Tyler Lyson.[10] The fossil is unique in that soft tissue, skin, and muscle were fossilized as well as bone.
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1920 | 1,318 |
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| 1930 | 721 | −45.3% | |
| 1940 | 626 | −13.2% | |
| 1950 | 469 | −25.1% | |
| 1960 | 319 | −32.0% | |
| 1970 | 247 | −22.6% | |
| 1980 | 190 | −23.1% | |
| 1990 | 144 | −24.2% | |
| 2000 | 140 | −2.8% | |
| 2010 | 136 | −2.9% | |
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As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 140 people, 66 households, and 35 families residing in the city. The population density was 55.2 people per square mile (21.4/km²). There were 101 housing units at an average density of 39.8 per square mile (15.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 99.29% White, and 0.71% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.71% of the population.
There were 66 households out of which 21.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.9% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.5% were non-families. 42.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.12 and the average family size was 2.78.
In the city the population was spread out with 19.3% under the age of 18, 5.0% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 26.4% from 45 to 64, and 18.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 109.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $29,219, and the median income for a family was $29,375. Males had a median income of $24,821 versus $20,625 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,865. There were 10.2% of families and 16.1% of the population living below the poverty line, including 20.9% of under eighteens and 7.7% of those over 64.
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