Rolla ( ) is a city in Rolette County,

North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...

, United States. It is the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Rolette County. The population was 1,223 at the 2020 census. The city contains a small park and a small outdoor pool.

History

Rolla was laid out in 1888 in part of Edward Owen's

homestead Homestead may refer to: *Homestead (building), a farmhouse and its adjacent outbuildings; by extension, it can mean any small cluster of houses * Nguni homestead, a cluster of houses inhabited by a single extended family, typically with a kraal ...

. The origin of the name Rolla is disputed, but there are three main theories. It was either derived from a contraction of the county name, which was coined by Dr. Richard D. Cowan, a local physician, it was named after Arthur Noyes's brother, Rolla, or it was named after Rolla, Missouri. A post office has been in operation in Rolla since 1888. In 1890, it was made the county seat, and in the year following on April 21 it was officially a village. The

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

was incorporated in 1907.

Mayors of Rolla

* Charles Duchesneau (1907–1908) * A. O. Graham (1908–1911) * James P. Widmeyer (1911–1916) * R. H. Butterwick (1916–1923) * R.G. Mosher (1923–1930) * C.R. Jacobsen (1930–1950) * Warren Munro (1950–1958) * R. T. Foley (1958–1960) * Charles Sobolik (1960–1962) * Elmer Larson (1962–1966) * Rudolph J. Walder (1966–1971) * Clarence Eller (1971–1978) * Donald Engbrecht (1978–1986) * Dennis Neameyer (1986–?) * Scott Mitchell (Before 2017–?)

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , all land.

Climate

Like most of

, Rolla has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Dfb''/''Dwb''), characterized by warm summers and frigid, dry winters. With an average January low of it is one of the coldest places in the contiguous United States and is comparably cold in winter to

Nome, Alaska Nome (; , , also ''Sitŋazuaq'', ''Siqnazuaq'') is a city in the Nome Census Area, Alaska, Nome Census Area in the Unorganized Borough, Alaska, Unorganized Borough of the US state of Alaska. The city is located on the southern Seward Peninsula c ...

sixteen degrees further north. As many as 48 mornings can be expected to fall to or below based on 1981–2010 data, although based on the cooler 1971–2000 data the figure was as many as 57.4 mornings this cold, and all but one morning fell to or below in January 1950 and January 1982. Unlike more westerly parts of the Dakotas, above-freezing temperatures are rare during winter: only sixteen afternoons top freezing during the three winter months, and fewer than half of all afternoons in March and November. The average window for zero temperatures is November 26 to March 13, and for freezing temperatures September 25 to May 17, allowing a frost-free season of 130 days. Snowfall is limited by the dryness of the winter climate: the most in one month being in January 1989 and the most in one season between July 1975 and June 1976; in contrast as little as fell between July 1957 and June 1958. Summers in Rolla are warm with occasional heavy rainfall from thunderstorms, although when a hot southerly flow occurs temperatures can become uncomfortably hot. The hottest temperature recorded in Rolla has been on August 7, 1949 and the hottest mean monthly maximum in August 1961; in contrast August 2004 had a mean maximum as low as and did not rise above . The wettest month by far has been June 1954 with including a daily fall of on June 7; however no other month has passed . The wettest calendar year has been 1905 with and the driest 1988 with .

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 1,280 people, 563 households, and 321 families living in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 619 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 54.1%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.1%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 40.9% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 4.2% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.8% of the population. There were 563 households, of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.3% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 16.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 43.0% were non-families. 40.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.98. The median age in the city was 36.5 years. 27.6% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.1% were from 25 to 44; 24.9% were from 45 to 64; and 17.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.3% male and 52.7% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,417 people, 599 households, and 357 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 656 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 66.83%

, 0.07%

, 28.44% Native American, 0.56% Asian, 0.21% from other races, and 3.88% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.64% of the population. 20.4% were of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, 15.8% Norwegian, 9.2% Finnish and 7.3% French ancestry. 96.5% spoke English, 1.4% Finnish and 1.4%

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

as their first language. There were 599 households, out of which 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% were

living together, 13.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.4% were non-families. 36.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 21.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 3.10. In the city, the population was spread out, with 27.8% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.7 males. The median income for a household in the city was $32,222, and the median income for a family was $41,550. Males had a median income of $25,096 versus $20,391 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $16,614. About 16.0% of families and 19.4% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 35.6% of those under age 18 and 10.6% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

* Mark Nelson, who joined the

highway patrol A highway patrol is a police unit, detail, or law enforcement agency created primarily for the purpose of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on roads and highways within a jurisdiction. They are also referred to in many countri ...

for Rolla in 1981 * Allen I. Olson, 28th

Governor of North Dakota The governor of North Dakota is the head of government of North Dakota and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's North Dakota National Guard, military forces. The Constitution of North Dakota specifies that "the executive power is ves ...

References

External links

City of Rolla information website
{{Authority control Cities in Rolette County, North Dakota Cities in North Dakota County seats in North Dakota Populated places established in 1888 1888 establishments in Dakota Territory