This report, which is designed to develop a clearer perception of the characteristics of single parents in North Dakota, describes single men and women who lived with their children but without a spouse in 1970 and in 1980. The parents' gender, marital status, race, age, income, poverty status; the number of children with whom they lived; and the mothers' labor force participation are discussed. Comparison of the data indicated that in 1980 a total of 1,300 more North Dakotan children lived in a one-parent home than in 1970. Data from 1979 showed that single mothers had median incomes well below that of two-parent family households in the state. Many single parents were impoverished in 1979, but were nevertheless usually employed. Appendices provide 12 tables, 4 figures, and comments on the data sources: the U.S. Bureau of the Census' 1970 and 1980 Public Use Microdata Samples for North Dakota. (RH)