The city is known for its many bridges over the Sheyenne River including the Hi-Line Railroad Bridge. These bridges have earned it the distinction of being called the "City of Bridges". The city has two local radio stations, KOVC AM 1490 and KQDJ FM 101.1. The local newspaper is the Valley City Times-Record. The city is also the home of Valley City State University and the home for the North Dakota High School Activities Association (NDHSAA).
As of the census of 2000, there were 6,826 people, 2,996 households, and 1,668 families residing in the city. The population density was 796.2/km² (2,062.5/mi²). There were 3,250 housing units at an average density of 379.1/km² (982.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.39% White, 0.73% African American, 0.75% Native American, 0.28% Asian, 0.19% from other races, and 0.66% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.82% of the population.
The top 6 ancestry groups in the city are German (45.5%), Norwegian (38.8%), Irish (9.1%), Swedish (5.2%), French (4.8%), English (3.8%).
There were 2,996 households out of which 23.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% were married couples living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.3% were non-families. 38.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.09 and the average family size was 2.77.
In the city the population was spread out with 18.8% under the age of 18, 15.3% from 18 to 24, 21.4% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 23.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 89.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $28,050, and the median income for a family was $41,604. Males had a median income of $30,035 versus $17,667 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,257. About 5.5% of families and 12.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.9% of those under age 18 and 12.8% of those age 65 or over.