Burleigh County, North Dakota
county in North Dakota, United States
Burleigh County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 98,458, and was estimated to be 103,251 in 2025, making it the second-most populous county in North Dakota. The county seat and the largest city is Bismarck, the state capital and second-largest city in North Dakota. The county was named for Dakota Territory political figure Walter A. Burleigh.
Burleigh County is included in the Bismarck metropolitan area.
History
Burleigh County was created on January 4, 1873, by the Dakota Territory legislature, annexing territory from Buffalo County. Burleigh was not organized at the time, but the organization began on July 16, 1873. Its boundaries were altered in 1879, 1881, 1883, and twice in 1885.
Geography
The Missouri River flows south-southeasterly along the lower west boundary line of Burleigh County. The central part of the county is drained by south-flowing creeks.
“Burleigh County, North Dakota” enters the record as county in North Dakota, United States. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Burleigh, County and North can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Burleigh County, North Dakota” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Burleigh, County and North provides the most credible route into that argument.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 17, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q28283. VIAF identifies the subject as 132509224. The Library of Congress control number is n79042117. Authority coordinates are 46.980, -100.470. 5 of 6 selected statements include explicit references; 2 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2020, 2025, 1873 and 1879.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Burleigh County, North Dakota”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Burleigh County, North Dakota primary sources, Burleigh County, North Dakota archive and Burleigh research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Burleigh County, North Dakota”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Burleigh County, North Dakota” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.