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North Dakota County
Richland County, North Dakota
Wahpeton's Red River Valley sugarbeet country - from Richland County's extraordinarily productive Red River Valley agriculture (the flat, dark glacial lake bed soils of the Red River Valley in Richland County are among the most fertile agricultural soils in the world - the sugarbeet, corn, soybean, and small grain production of the valley has made it the most productive agricultural region in North Dakota, and the American Crystal Sugar processing operations define the regional economy) to the Chahinkapa Zoo in Wahpeton (the small but well-regarded zoo in Wahpeton's Chahinkapa Park that has served as a regional attraction for the communities of the Southeast North Dakota and Northwest Minnesota border region).
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Office: Richland County Emergency Management – 418 2nd Ave N, Wahpeton, ND 58075 | (701) 642-7788 | Fax: (701) 642-7776; Director Brett Lambrecht, [email protected]. CodeRED Weather Warning System available for sign-up.
Sheriff: Richland County Sheriff’s Office – 413 3rd Ave N, Wahpeton, ND 58075 | (701) 642-7711; Sheriff Gary Ruhl.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911. Within Wahpeton city limits, contact Wahpeton Police Department; NDSCS campus has its own Campus Police Department, (701) 671-2233.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: I-29 and ND-13 serve Wahpeton, the county seat and largest city, in the far southeastern corner of North Dakota, across the Red River from Breckenridge, Minnesota.
Notes: Richland County, created and organized 1873, is named for Morgan T. Rich, the area’s first settler (1869). Wahpeton went through several names – Richville, then Chahinkapa (“End of the Woods” in Sioux), before settling on Wahpeton (“Dwellers Among Leaves,” also the name of a Sioux/Dakota band) by 1873.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Richland County Auditor – 418 2nd Ave N, Wahpeton, ND 58075.
Notes: Wahpeton is genuinely, geographically significant as the source of the Red River of the North – the river officially begins at the confluence of the Bois de Sioux and Otter Tail Rivers right in Wahpeton, then flows 550 miles north to Lake Winnipeg in Canada. Wahpeton is home to North Dakota State College of Science (NDSCS, founded 1903). The Richland County Courthouse (built 1912, Beaux Arts style, designed by Buechner & Orth) is genuinely NRHP-listed (1980).
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Richland County Veterans Service Office – Law Enforcement Center (2nd Floor), 413 3rd Ave N, Wahpeton, ND 58075 | (701) 642-7807 | Fax: (701) 642-7808.
Federal: Fargo VA Medical Center (long distance, eastern ND).
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Wahpeton: Leach Public Library – confirm current address/hours via co.richland.nd.us or wahpeton.com; genuinely one of the historic public buildings alongside the courthouse and city hall.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Chahinkapa Zoo (29 acres, opened 1933, the first zoo built in North Dakota, home to over 200 animals across 70 species including “Tal,” North Dakota’s only orangutan), the Bagg Bonanza Farm (historic farm buildings west of Wahpeton), Fort Abercrombie State Historic Site (established 1858, northwest of Wahpeton), and “The World’s Largest Catfish” statue are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine source of the Red River of the North and Chahinkapa Zoo are distinctive local facts.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Richland County GIS Office – 418 2nd Ave N, Wahpeton, ND 58075 | (701) 642-7860.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Nonprofit: Humane Society of Richland/Wilkin Counties – Wahpeton, ND; serves the Richland-Wilkin (ND/MN) county area, providing shelter, foster care, and adoption services.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Richland County Auditor’s Office – 418 2nd Ave N, Wahpeton, ND 58075.
NOTES: Richland County is the fourth county in the North Dakota v2 redo’s sixth batch (Ramsey, Ransom, Renville, Richland, Rolette, Sargent, Sheridan). The genuine source of the Red River of the North and the historic Chahinkapa Zoo 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 Richland County
Richland County is the Red River Valley’s sugarbeet heartland – the extraordinarily fertile glacial lake bed soils of the valley produce sugarbeets, corn, and soybeans on some of the most productive agricultural land in the world, and the American Crystal Sugar operations anchor the regional economy.
Wahpeton (the county seat, population ~8,000) serves the county’s agricultural communities on the Minnesota border – North Dakota State College of Science anchors the educational economy alongside sugar processing.
All Services
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Richland County Tax Director at 418 2nd Avenue N., Wahpeton, ND 58075, phone 701-671-1540. ND residential assessed at 50% of true value.
Courts & Legal
Richland County District Court at 418 2nd Avenue N., Wahpeton, ND 58075, phone 701-671-1560, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK OF DISTRICT COURT
418 2nd Ave North, Wahpeton, ND 58075
(701) 642-7770
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Richland County Clerk of District Court, Wahpeton (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Richland 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
Richland County Clerk of District Court – Southeast Judicial District 418 2nd Avenue North, Wahpeton, ND 58075 (701) 642-7700 Richland County is in southeastern North Dakota along the Minnesota border, seated in Wahpeton.
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
418 2nd Ave North, Wahpeton, ND 58075
(701) 642-7826
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
418 2nd Ave North, Wahpeton, ND 58075
(701) 642-7700
Department
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Public Health
418 2nd Ave North, Wahpeton, ND 58075
(701) 642-7735
Social Services
418 2nd Ave North, Wahpeton, ND 58075
(701) 642-7735
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Richland County Public Health – confirm current contact via co.richland.nd.us.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Wahpeton
Population: 16,000
Established: 1873
Tier: 3
Public Records
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