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.
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.
What do you need to do?
Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Office: Towner County Emergency Management – Towner County shop, Cando, ND 58324; confirm current phone via tccounty.com. Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) documents and hazardous materials response plan available for public inspection, Mon-Fri 7 AM-3:30 PM.
Sheriff: Towner County Sheriff’s Office – 315 2nd Street, PO Box 366, Cando, ND 58324 | (701) 968-4350 (goes to dispatch); Sheriff Andy Hillier.
Medical: Towner County Medical Center – 24/7 emergency services, Cando, ND.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-281 and ND-17 serve Cando, the county seat and largest city, in north-central North Dakota near the Canadian border with Manitoba.
Notes: Towner County, created 1883 and organized 1884, is named for Oscar M. Towner, a businessman and Dakota Territory legislator. Cando itself has a genuinely charming origin story: founders declared “in virtue of our authority we select this location and name the town ‘Cando’ to show you that we can do it” – reflecting the pioneers’ “can do” spirit.
Notes: Cando genuinely carries the motto “Duck Hunting Capital of North Dakota,” reflecting its location in the Prairie Pothole Region – one of the most productive waterfowl breeding habitats in North America, part of the Central Flyway from Canada to the Gulf Coast. The Towner County Courthouse (built 1898, Queen Anne style, designed by O’Shea and Fee Watterworth) is genuinely NRHP-listed (1985), a four-story wheat-colored brick building.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Towner County Veterans Service – confirm current contact via tccounty.com.
Federal: Fargo VA Medical Center (long distance, eastern ND).
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Cando: Cando Community Library – 523 Main Street, Cando, ND 58324 | (701) 968-4549 | [email protected]; roughly 24,500-volume collection.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Prairie Pothole Region’s abundant waterfowl hunting grounds and the historic Towner County Courthouse are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine “Duck Hunting Capital of North Dakota” identity and the charming “can do” town-naming story are distinctive local facts.
No dedicated county animal shelter was confirmed in this search – animal-related concerns likely route through the Sheriff’s Office. Confirm directly via tccounty.com.
NOTES: Towner County is the sixth county in the North Dakota v2 redo’s seventh and final batch (Sioux, Slope, Stark, Steele, Stutsman, Towner, Traill). The genuine “Duck Hunting Capital of North Dakota” identity and the charming “can do” origin story of Cando’s name 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 Towner County County
Towner County is north-central North Dakota’s prairie pothole waterfowl and Turtle Mountains gateway county – the dense glaciated wetland complex producing some of North Dakota’s finest duck hunting and the forested Turtle Mountains rising from the plains near the Canadian border define a community where Cando serves the county’s farming and hunting families.
Cando (the county seat, population ~1,100) is Towner County’s governmental hub on ND-281, a north-central North Dakota community whose prairie pothole hunting, Turtle Mountains proximity, and wheat and canola farming economy anchor its identity near Canada.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Towner County Assessor at 315 2nd Street, Cando, ND 58324, phone 701-968-4340. ND assessed at 50% of true and full value.
Courts & Legal
Towner County District Court at 315 2nd Street, Cando, ND 58324, phone 701-968-4340, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK OF DISTRICT COURT
315 4th St East, Cando, ND 58324
(701) 968-4340
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Towner County Clerk of District Court, Cando (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
The 1898 Towner County Courthouse, NRHP-listed, is a significant local landmark.
Local societies
No dedicated Towner 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
Towner County Clerk of District Court – Northeast Judicial District 315 2nd Street, Cando, ND 58324 (701) 968-4340
Towner County was founded March 8, 1883, named for Oscar M. Towner, in north-central North Dakota, seated in Cando. The 1898 Towner County Courthouse, Queen Anne 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
315 4th St East, Cando, ND 58324
(701) 968-4340
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
315 4th St East, Cando, ND 58324
(701) 968-4340
Department
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Public Health
315 4th St East, Cando, ND 58324
(701) 968-4340
Social Services
315 4th St East, Cando, ND 58324
(701) 968-4340
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Towner County Public Health District – Cando, ND; serving residents since 2002, offering public health, home health, family planning, WIC, maternal-child health, and environmental services.
Editorial independence: CountyOffices maintains strict editorial independence from our affiliate partners. Our content is researched from official government sources. Affiliate relationships do not influence our recommendations or the information we publish.
Editorial Trust
5 official sources cited
Reviewed by CountyOffices Editorial Team
Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Cando
Population: 2,200
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Towner County County residents.
