Mandaree, ND

Mandaree is a census-designated place in McKenzie County on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, within the sovereign homeland of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation. The 2020 census counted 691 residents. North Dakota Highway 22 forms the western edge, with New Town about 30 miles northeast, Killdeer south, and Watford City west. Sakakawea Creek runs southeast to the Little Missouri. The place's present form began in 1954 after Garrison Dam's rising waters displaced families from Missouri River bottomlands and submerged communities including Elbowoods. The name blends the first parts of Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara, also called Ree.

Mandaree School District 36 includes elementary and high school, with support from the Bureau of Indian Education and North Dakota. The MHA Nation identifies Mandaree as one of six segments, and the Mandaree Celebration brings people together in summer. The reservation, tribal government, school, and creek country all meet here. Mandaree carries the consequences of Garrison Dam in its geography while maintaining its own community life, language, family ties, and future.