We first visited Sanger in 2004 and quickly fell in love with the County House. Someone had told us it was the former post office in Sanger, but we visited again in 2013 and an area resident told us it was known as the County House — the remnant of a boarding house from the horse and wagon days. Back then, it was a two day journey between Minot and Bismarck, and the County House’s location in Sanger was a convenient stopping point for travelers to spend the night.
We watched for a decade as the condition of the County House got progressively worse until, last week, our friend Kelsey Rusch sent us a photo of the County House now.
The Sanger County House is now just a pile of lumber. If you never got to see it as it was, here are a few of our photos when it was still standing.
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Ghosts of North Dakota 
A landmark we would look for each summer on our way to the bluegrass festival at cross ranch.
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I hate seeing old buildings fall into ruins from years of neglect, disrepair & lack of use! I wish more people would scoop up these landmarks to restore them! I love learning of the history behind these old buildings & the life they once had!
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I hope someone salvaged the wood
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Yes, we’ve driven by it many times. I always get a kick out of the false-fronts evident on so many old buildings.
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Beautiful weathered wood to upcycle into something neat.
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I’m from Minnesota, but have an appreciation for your work. I’m interested in the past, and it is sad to see these remnants from the past disappear. I’ve taken photos of ghost towns in Montana, and see the same deterioration there. Many of the places I photographed 10 years ago no longer exist. It is great to have a site like this where you can look through an entire state in one place..
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Bummer!
I do remember seeing it when it was still relatively intact in the early 1980s as well as what remained of nearby Price.
I’d imagine salvaging the wood is not possible as I understand the town is within the Cross Ranch state park.
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Yes, sad to see. Saw it myself when I went there not to long ago because the weather was just so nice for this time of the year. I guess it was on its last legs and didn’t have much time left. There went another ghost town landmark that I missed out on.
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Craig says:
I’m interested in the past… It is great to have a site like this where you can look through an entire state in one place..
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Boy, I’ll second that! You folks do a tremendously important job, and do it so well! Take a bow!
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