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North Dakota County
Stutsman County, North Dakota
Jamestown's World's Largest Buffalo and the James River prairie - from the World's Largest Buffalo statue in Jamestown (the 46-ton concrete buffalo looming 26 feet high on a hilltop above I-94 in Jamestown - one of North Dakota's most iconic roadside landmarks - stands adjacent to the National Buffalo Museum and a live bison herd including White Cloud, a rare white buffalo considered sacred by many Plains tribes) to Jamestown's Louis L'Amour birthplace (the celebrated Western novelist who wrote 89 novels and sold over 320 million books was born in Jamestown in 1908 - the L'Amour connection gives the buffalo city an additional literary heritage claim).
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Office: Stutsman County Emergency Management – 205 6th St SE, Suite 2, Jamestown, ND 58401 | (701) 252-9093 (also listed 701-251-6259) | Fax: (701) 252-7087; Emergency Manager Pamela Blinsky. Housed in the Stutsman County Law Enforcement Center basement alongside the Communications Center/911 and Veterans Service Office.
Sheriff: Stutsman County Sheriff’s Office – 205 6th St SE, Jamestown, ND 58401 | (701) 251-6200; non-emergency dispatch (701) 252-9000.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: I-94, US-52, and US-281 serve Jamestown, the county seat and largest city, in southeastern-central North Dakota, ND’s 9th most populous city.
Notes: Stutsman County was genuinely the FIRST official county organized within Dakota Territory (1873). Jamestown, founded 1872, was named for Jamestown, Virginia by General Thomas Rosser of the Northern Pacific Railroad.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Stutsman County Auditor – 511 2nd Ave SE, Jamestown, ND 58401.
Notes: Jamestown is genuinely nicknamed “Buffalo City,” home to the World’s Largest Buffalo – a real 26-foot-tall, 46-foot-long, 60-ton sculpture built in 1959, visible from I-94 overlooking the James River valley – alongside the National Buffalo Museum, home to a real, rare white buffalo named Dakota Miracle, considered sacred in Lakota tradition (the White Buffalo Calf Woman legend). The Alfred E. Dickey Free Library (built 1917, Prairie School architecture) is genuinely NRHP-listed (1980) as a rare, fine example of the style in North Dakota. The University of Jamestown is also based here.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Stutsman County Veterans Service Office – Law Enforcement Center basement, 205 6th St SE, Jamestown, ND 58401; confirm current phone via stutsmancounty.gov.
Federal: Fargo VA Medical Center (long distance, eastern ND).
Libraries
LIBRARIES
James River Valley Library System – two branches
– Alfred Dickey Public Library – 105 3rd St SE, Jamestown, ND 58401 | (701) 252-2990 | Hours: Mon-Thu 9:30 AM-8 PM, Fri 9:30 AM-6 PM, Sat 11 AM-4 PM.
– Stutsman County Library – 910 5th St SE, Jamestown, ND 58401 | (701) 252-1531.
A bookmobile is also available.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The World’s Largest Buffalo statue and National Buffalo Museum, Frontier Village, Fort Seward, and St. James Basilica are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine World’s Largest Buffalo statue and the rare white buffalo Dakota Miracle are distinctive, widely recognized local facts.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Stutsman County Auditor – 511 2nd Ave SE, Jamestown, ND 58401.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
No dedicated county animal shelter was confirmed in this search – animal-related concerns likely route through the Sheriff’s Office or Jamestown Police Department. Confirm directly via stutsmancounty.gov.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Stutsman County Weed Control – 511 2nd Ave SE, Suite 3, Jamestown, ND 58401 | (701) 251-1261.
NOTES: Stutsman County is the fifth county in the North Dakota v2 redo’s seventh and final batch (Sioux, Slope, Stark, Steele, Stutsman, Towner, Traill). As the FIRST county organized in Dakota Territory (1873), and home to the genuine World’s Largest Buffalo, this is one of the state’s most iconic counties. 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 Stutsman County
Stutsman County is North Dakota’s World’s Largest Buffalo and Louis L’Amour county – the 46-ton concrete buffalo overlooking I-94 and the birthplace of the best-selling Western novelist in history give Jamestown two very different claims to fame on the east-central North Dakota prairie.
Jamestown (the county seat, population ~15,000) is the James River valley’s regional hub – the University of Jamestown, the State Hospital, and the I-94 commercial corridor anchor a community between Fargo and Bismarck.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Stutsman County Tax Director at 511 2nd Avenue SE, Jamestown, ND 58401, phone 701-252-9017. ND residential assessed at 50% of true value.
Courts & Legal
Stutsman County District Court at 511 2nd Avenue SE, Jamestown, ND 58401, phone 701-252-9042, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK OF DISTRICT COURT
511 2nd Ave SE, Jamestown, ND 58401
(701) 253-6300
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Stutsman County Clerk of District Court, Jamestown (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Jamestown holds significant regional historical resources, including the National Buffalo Museum.
Local societies
No dedicated Stutsman 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
Stutsman County Clerk of District Court – Southeast Judicial District 511 2nd Avenue SE, Jamestown, ND 58401 (701) 252-9034
Stutsman County is in east-central North Dakota, seated in Jamestown, home to Jamestown College and the National Buffalo Museum.
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
511 2nd Ave SE, Jamestown, ND 58401
(701) 252-9070
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
511 2nd Ave SE, Jamestown, ND 58401
(701) 252-9034
Department
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Central Valley Health District
400 5th St NE, Jamestown, ND 58401
(701) 252-8130
Social Services
205 6th St SE, Jamestown, ND 58401
(701) 252-3295
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Stutsman County Public Health – confirm current contact via stutsmancounty.gov.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Jamestown
Population: 21,000
Established: 1873
Tier: 3
Public Records
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Search public records for Stutsman County residents.
