Burke County is a county in North Dakota, United States, on the Canadian border in the northwestern part of the state. It had a population of 2,201 at the 2020 census and covers 1,129 square miles (2,924 km2) centred near 48°47′11″N 102°31′12″W.
Bowbells is the county seat, and its postal code is 58721. The county has six incorporated cities — Bowbells, Powers Lake, Columbus, Flaxton, Lignite and Portal — plus a dozen unincorporated communities. Burke County lies in the Central time zone; its FIPS code is 38013.
Towns & Villages in Burke County
Eighteen named places appear on maps and county records for Burke County: six incorporated cities and twelve unincorporated communities, several of them railroad-era settlements that never grew beyond a handful of buildings. “CDP” denotes a Census Designated Place; “Unincorp.” covers everything from small platted townsites to rural crossroads.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bowbells | City · seat | — | 58721 |
| Powers Lake | City | — | 58773 |
| Columbus | City | — | 58727 |
| Flaxton | City | — | 58737 |
| Lignite | City | — | 58752 |
| Portal | City | — | 58772 |
| Atcoal | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Battleview | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Coteau | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Kincaid | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Larson | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Northgate | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Perella | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Rival | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Sevenmile Corner | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Stampede | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Vanville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Woburn | Unincorp. | — | — |
Portal sits directly on the international boundary and is one of North Dakota’s busiest ports of entry into Saskatchewan; Northgate, a few miles east, is a second, much smaller border crossing. Larson, once a Soo Line depot, is now largely a ghost town, and several of the smaller entries above — Atcoal, Battleview, Coteau, Perella, Rival, Sevenmile Corner, Stampede, Vanville and Woburn — are unincorporated rail sidings or rural crossroads with no current town government.
ZIP Codes
- 58721 — Bowbells (also serves nearby rural addresses)
- 58773 — Powers Lake
- 58727 — Columbus
- 58737 — Flaxton
- 58752 — Lignite
- 58772 — Portal
The county’s smaller unincorporated communities have no ZIP code of their own and are served by the nearest of the six post office towns above.
Geography
Burke County sits on the Drift Prairie of northwestern North Dakota, gently rolling farmland shaped by the last glaciation and dotted with shallow potholes and wetlands rather than a single dominant river or lake. Powers Lake, the natural lake the county’s largest city is named for, lies near the centre of the county. The Canadian border forms the county’s entire northern edge.
Burke County borders Renville County to the east (linked at townsvillages.com/us/renville-county-north-dakota), Ward County to the southeast, Mountrail County to the south, Williams County to the southwest, and Divide County to the west.
Demographics
Burke County had 2,201 residents at the 2020 census, spread across roughly 1,104 square miles of land — a density of about 2 people per square mile, among the least densely settled counties in the state. Powers Lake and Bowbells are the county’s two largest communities. Household income data specific to Burke County was not verified for this profile; statewide, the North Dakota median household income was $76,525 (2023 ACS), a figure shaped heavily by the state’s oil-producing western counties.
Economy & Local Life
Farming and ranching are the county’s traditional base — wheat, canola and other small grains dominate the cropland, with cattle grazing on the rougher pastureland near the coteau. Burke County also has exposure to the Bakken Formation oil and gas play that has reshaped much of northwestern North Dakota’s economy since the 2000s, bringing drilling activity and related trucking and service work to the area alongside agriculture.
History
Burke County was created on July 12, 1910, and organized three days later, on July 15, 1910, carved from Ward County as North Dakota’s northwestern counties were subdivided during the state’s early-20th-century settlement boom. It is named for John Burke, North Dakota’s tenth governor, who later served as state treasurer of the United States. Like much of the region, the county filled with homesteaders and Soo Line rail sidings in the 1900s and 1910s, several of which — including Larson — declined once the branch lines that created them stopped carrying regular traffic.
Getting There
ND Highway 5 runs east–west across the county, linking Bowbells, Columbus and Flaxton, while ND Highway 8 runs north to the Portal port of entry on the Canadian border.
- Minot — about 60 miles southeast
- Williston — about 70 miles southwest
- Stanley — about 35 miles south
- Kenmare — about 25 miles east
Minot International Airport, roughly an hour’s drive southeast, is the nearest commercial airport; Minot is also the closest Amtrak Empire Builder stop.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Burke County, North Dakota?
It is in the far northwest of the state, directly on the Canadian border, bordered by Renville, Ward, Mountrail, Williams and Divide counties.
What is the population of Burke County?
Burke County had a population of 2,201 at the 2020 census.
How big is Burke County?
The county covers 1,129 square miles (2,924 km2), of which about 25 square miles is water.
What is the county seat of Burke County?
Bowbells is the county seat.
How many towns are in Burke County?
Six incorporated cities — Bowbells, Powers Lake, Columbus, Flaxton, Lignite and Portal — plus about a dozen smaller unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Burke County?
58721 (Bowbells), 58773 (Powers Lake), 58727 (Columbus), 58737 (Flaxton), 58752 (Lignite) and 58772 (Portal).
Why is Portal, North Dakota notable?
Portal sits on the international boundary and is one of North Dakota’s main highway ports of entry into Saskatchewan, Canada.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in North Dakota.