When was McHenry County founded?

McHenry County was founded in 1873.

What is the county seat of McHenry County?

The county seat of McHenry County is Towner.

Is there an online parcel map for McHenry County?

Yes. State of North Dakota GIS Hub (NDIT; State Parcel Program, counties as custodians) publishes a parcel map of 15,820 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.

Has McHenry County's boundary or name changed?

Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 4 changes for McHenry County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 4 later changes, chiefly involving Church County, Bottineau County and Pierce County.

Is my lot in a flood zone?

We do not have flood maps for McHenry County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

County · code 38049

McHenry CountyNorth Dakota

McHenry County is in North Dakota, with its seat in Towner, and covers 1,873.9 square miles. The county was founded in 1873 and became a county in the state of North Dakota in 1889.

Founded1873
County seatTowner
Land area1,874 sq mi + 38 sq mi water
Population5,345 2020 Census
Parcels mapped15,820 checked 14 October 2026

Open the free map Click any parcel in McHenry County: acreage, parcel id, address and who publishes the map. No sign-in.

Updated 20 October 2026

Census outline · seat marked

History

Founded in 1873

An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.

McHenry County was established in Dakota Territory in 1873, and on November 2, 1889, it became a county in the state of North Dakota. The county's boundaries were adjusted in March 1887 when McHenry gained land from Bottineau and Wynn counties while losing territory to the creation of Church and Pierce counties and the new Ward County. In 1891 and 1892, Church County was attached to McHenry for judicial purposes and then eliminated, with its remaining territory added to McHenry.

Boundary changes from the Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

1887
Gained territory McHenry gained from Bottineau and Wynn (Dakota Territory, extinct), lost to creation of Church (extinct) and Pierce. Part of McHenry reverted to Non-County Area 20, which became part of Ward on 1 May 1887.
from Bottineau from Wynn from Churchfrom Piercefrom Ward
11 March 1887 · Dak. Terr. Laws 1887, 17th sess., ch. 180/p. 376
1889
Became part of North Dakota McHenry became a county in the state of North Dakota. 2 November 1889 · U.S. Stat., vol. 25, ch. 180[1889]/pp. 676-684 and vol. 26, no. 5/pp. 1548-1549; Swindler, 7:526-527; Van Zandt, 134
1891
Changed Church (extinct) attached to McHenry "for judicial and other purposes."
Church
21 February 1891 · N. Dak. Laws 1891, 2d sess., ch. 78/p. 219
1892
Gained territory McHenry gained part of Church; Church eliminated, ending its attachment to McHenry.
from Church
8 November 1892 · N. Dak. Laws 1891, 2d sess., ch. 50, secs. 1-5, 10-11/pp. 129-132; Hall, 224-229

Land and parcels

What the maps cover in McHenry

Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.

Parcels Good enough

Lot lines and tax-map numbers for 15,820 parcels from State of North Dakota GIS Hub (NDIT; State Parcel Program, counties as custodians). Drawn for tax purposes: usually within a few feet of a survey, but not a survey.
edited 12 October 2026 · checked 14 October 2026
Address points Official

One point per address, 3,609 in all from State of North Dakota — NDGISHUB / ND Department of Emergency Services (owner NDGISHDP-DES).
edited 12 October 2026 · checked 13 October 2026
Buildings Reference

Roof outlines traced from aerial imagery from FEMA Response Geospatial Office with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Good for seeing what is on a lot; not accurate enough to set a fence from.
checked 18 October 2026

Official: from the office that keeps the record
Good enough: a reliable statewide or national copy
Fallback: a guide only; check the official record
Missing: nothing public found yet

People and land

McHenry by the Census

Population

5,345 2020 Census count

Housing units

2,818 2020 Census count

Land area

1,874 square miles

Water area

38 square miles

People per sq mi

3 population ÷ land area

Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Rules and offices

Who to ask before you build, dig or sell

Official county pages only. We link to them; we do not copy them, because they change.

Inside a city or town, permits usually come from that city rather than the county.

Zoning and code

County Planning & Zoning Commissionfrom mchenrycountynd.gov

County government

County government
The official website of McHenry County.
mchenrycountynd.com

See your own lot on these maps

Open McHenry County on Parcel Chart's free map and click your parcel. Save it with a free account; the full record of your place (site map, projects, documents) is Pro, in early access.

Open the free map no sign-in Pro early access

Questions

Common questions about McHenry County

When was McHenry County founded?: McHenry County was founded in 1873.
What is the county seat of McHenry County?: The county seat of McHenry County is Towner.
Is there an online parcel map for McHenry County?: Yes. State of North Dakota GIS Hub (NDIT; State Parcel Program, counties as custodians) publishes a parcel map of 15,820 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
Has McHenry County's boundary or name changed?: Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 4 changes for McHenry County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 4 later changes, chiefly involving Church County, Bottineau County and Pierce County.
Is my lot in a flood zone?: We do not have flood maps for McHenry County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

Nearby