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North Dakota County
Dickey County, North Dakota
Oakes' James River pheasant country and Ellendale's Trinity Bible College - from Oakes's pheasant hunting heritage (the James River valley's grain fields and wetlands in Dickey County produce exceptional ring-necked pheasant populations - Oakes is a significant pheasant hunting destination drawing hunters from across the region to one of the finest upland bird hunting landscapes in North Dakota) to Trinity Bible College in Ellendale (the Assemblies of God liberal arts college providing higher education and religious training in the south-central North Dakota agricultural community).
Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
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Office: Dickey County Emergency Management – 309 North 2nd Street, PO Box 215, Ellendale, ND 58436 | (701) 320-6299 | Fax: (701) 349-3960 | [email protected] | Hours: Mon-Fri 8 AM-4:30 PM; DES Director Charles Russell; CodeRED emergency alerts, CERT program.
Sheriff: Dickey County Sheriff’s Office – Dickey County Courthouse, 309 N 2nd Street, PO Box 297, Ellendale, ND 58436 | (701) 349-3249 ext. 1 | Fax: (701) 349-4746 | Sheriff Chris Estes.
Ambulance: Ellendale Community Ambulance (ECA) – covers roughly 500 square miles in western Dickey County; 20 active EMS members; transports to Aberdeen, SD or Oakes, ND hospitals, with Careflight air rendezvous available for critical trauma.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-281 and ND-11 intersect at Ellendale, the county seat, in southeastern North Dakota near the South Dakota border.
Notes: Ellendale, founded 1882, was established as Dickey County’s seat the same year the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad arrived.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Dickey County Auditor – PO Box 215, Ellendale, ND 58436 | (701) 349-3249 ext. 3.
Notes: Ellendale is genuinely home to Trinity Bible College, located on the former campus of the North Dakota State Normal and Industrial School. The Dickey County Courthouse (built 1910, Beaux Arts style, designed by Buechner & Orth) is genuinely NRHP-listed (1980). The Ellendale Opera House is a historic building currently under renovation. Ellendale is named for the wife of S.S. Merrill, a railroad executive.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Dickey County Veterans Service Office – Courthouse, PO Box 237, 309 2nd Street North, Ellendale, ND 58436 | (701) 349-8409.
Federal: Fargo VA Medical Center (long distance, eastern ND).
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Ellendale: Ellendale Public Library – confirm current address/hours via dickeynd.com or ellendalend.gov.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Ellendale sits in the heart of “pheasant country” near the South Dakota border, offering strong hunting and fishing access; the historic Dickey County Courthouse and Ellendale Opera House anchor the town’s heritage district.
Notes: The genuine Trinity Bible College campus and NRHP-listed courthouse are distinctive local facts.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Dickey County Auditor – PO Box 215, Ellendale, ND 58436 | (701) 349-3249 ext. 3.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
No dedicated county animal shelter was confirmed in this search – animal-related concerns likely route through the Sheriff’s Office. Confirm directly via dickeynd.com.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Dickey County Auditor’s Office – PO Box 215, Ellendale, ND 58436 | (701) 349-3249 ext. 3.
NOTES: Dickey County is the fourth county in the North Dakota v2 redo’s second batch (Burleigh, Cass, Cavalier, Dickey, Divide, Dunn, Eddy). The genuine Trinity Bible College and NRHP-listed 1910 Beaux Arts courthouse are distinctive local facts. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Dickey County
Dickey County is south-central North Dakota’s James River pheasant hunting county – the grain fields and wetlands along the James River produce exceptional upland bird populations, and Oakes’s pheasant hunting economy draws sportsmen from across the region each fall.
Ellendale (the county seat, population ~1,300) and Oakes (population ~1,800) serve the county’s agricultural communities near the South Dakota border.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Dickey County Tax Director at 309 N. 2nd Street, Ellendale, ND 58436, phone 701-349-3249. ND residential assessed at 50% of true value.
Courts & Legal
Dickey County District Court at 309 N. 2nd Street, Ellendale, ND 58436, phone 701-349-3249, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK OF DISTRICT COURT
309 3rd St North, Ellendale, ND 58436
(701) 349-3249
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Dickey County Clerk of District Court, Ellendale (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
The 1910 Dickey County Courthouse, NRHP-listed, is a significant local landmark.
Local societies
No dedicated Dickey County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Dickey County Clerk of District Court – Southeast Judicial District Dickey County Courthouse (mail: P.O. Box 336), Ellendale, ND 58436 (701) 349-3249
Dickey County is in southeastern North Dakota near the South Dakota border, seated in Ellendale. The 1910 Dickey County Courthouse, Beaux Arts in style, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
North Dakota has adopted the Uniform Probate Code (UPC), under Title 30.1 of the North Dakota Century Code – one of only about 18 states to do so. Probate is handled through the state District Court in the county where the decedent was domiciled.
Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property of the Decedent (Form 1, NDCC § 30.1-23) – available when the estate’s personal property, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $100,000 (raised from $50,000 by 2025’s HB 1224) AND there is no real property in the estate. Requires a 30-day wait after death, no court filing. Mineral and oil/gas rights are classified as real property and can never be transferred by this affidavit.
Informal Probate – available when less than 3 years have passed since death, the validity of the will isn’t disputed, and everyone with equal or higher priority for appointment agrees on the personal representative. No court hearing required; unsupervised administration is the default.
Formal Probate – required when the will’s validity is contested, someone objects to informal probate, or more than 3 years have passed since death.
Supervised Administration – a court can require ongoing supervision if protection of the estate calls for it.
Step 2: filing for administration
File an Application (informal) or Petition (formal) for Probate of Will and Appointment of Personal Representative with the Clerk of District Court in the county where the decedent was domiciled.
The court/registrar issues Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (intestate) to the personal representative.
The personal representative publishes notice to creditors; North Dakota’s creditor claim period is 3 months from first publication.
The personal representative inventories and manages the estate’s assets, pays debts and expenses, and distributes what remains according to the will or North Dakota’s intestacy law.
The estate is closed with a final accounting/closing statement.
What it costs
No court filing fee for the Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property.
Filing fees for informal/formal probate vary but generally follow the statewide statutory schedule.
North Dakota does NOT have a statutory fee schedule for attorneys or personal representatives – fees must be “reasonable” based on services provided.
No state estate tax, no state inheritance tax. Only the federal estate tax could apply, and only to very large estates.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
309 3rd St North, Ellendale, ND 58436
(701) 349-4470
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
309 3rd St North, Ellendale, ND 58436
(701) 349-3249
Department
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Public Health
309 3rd St North, Ellendale, ND 58436
(701) 349-3249
Social Services
309 3rd St North, Ellendale, ND 58436
(701) 349-3249
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Dickey County Health District – PO Box 238, Ellendale, ND 58436.
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Reviewed by CountyOffices Editorial Team
Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Ellendale
Population: 5,000
Established: 1881
Tier: 3
Public Records
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Search public records for Dickey County residents.
