Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 768, settled in 1902.
Ray Opera House is on the National Register of Historic Places. Ray has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Census counts: 436 in 1910, a peak of 1,049 in 1960, 740 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1913 and 3 maps from 1911 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Ray, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Jul 30, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Ray.
Expected losses in Ray break down as 39% from inland flooding and 27% from cold waves. Storm and flood damage is expected to run lower than in 90% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its public schools are run by the Nesson 2 school district. The 2 public schools in Ray teach 443 students between them.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ray Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 324 | B |
| Ray High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 119 | B− |
NCES · EDFacts
Half of commuters travel less than 25 miles. Jobs based in Ray fell to 234 in 2023, 371 fewer than in 2013. Only 6% of working residents stay in Ray for work; the rest commute out. Its typical journey to work stands at 26 minutes.
| Ray | North Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 6% | 39% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 16 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 9.8% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
62% of households live in a home they own in Ray. Typical home values rose 12% in the year to September 2026. The town’s going rate for rent is $988 a month, near the North Dakota town median ($977 a month) and below the median of U.S. towns ($1,185 a month).
| Ray | North Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 62% | 57% | 73% |
| Median rent | $988 a month | $977 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
July afternoons reach 82°, January nights drop to 2° and about 44 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
No violent or property crimes were reported in Ray in 2023. In a town this small, a few incidents move the numbers a lot, so rates aren't shown.
Ray is small, so we show counts rather than rates.
FBI crime data, 2023 · crimes reported to police
In Ray, 17% of adults smoke cigarettes, above both North Dakota’s towns (13%) and U.S. towns (14%). Among adults in the town, 24% binge drink. Two figures for adults in the town: 72% had a checkup this year, 40% have obesity.
| Ray | North Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 22% | 16% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 72% | 73% | 79% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 37% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Ray | ND |
|---|---|---|
| More smokers | 16.6% | 13.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
None within 15 miles of Ray; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Ray residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across North Dakota.
Where Ray’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
City in North Dakota, United States
Ray is a city in Williams County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 740 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Ray has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
2 notable people were born here, including Mary Sherman Morgan and Erin Oban.