WASHINGTON D.C. (KFGO-AM) - New figures from the U.S. Census Bureau show a population trend that's no suprise to anyone living in North Dakota: The last couple of years have been a good time to be an oil state.
Ben Bollender, who heads the population estimates branch of the Census Bureau, says two of the fastest growing counties in the country between 2013 and last year were the oil patch counties of Williams and Stark.
The new estimates shows the Fargo-Moorhead metro area's population grew 2 percent last year, to more than 228,000.
The census estimates also shows among small counties, with a population between 5,000 and 10,000, McKenzie County, North Dakota was tops in growth, up more than 18%. Bismarck was the fastest growing metro area outside of the south or west, ranked 22nd. In micro area's of the U.S., the two fastest growing area's between 21013 and 2014 were Williston and Dickinson.