When we take a look at our history books, we see a lot of different things have happened since territorial days here and in South Dakota.
One of the biggest events to take place was the announcement and building of railroads across Dakota Territory.
Straight line rail across the northern tier and across the southern tier made it possible for settlers to come to the area, homestead and make a living.
Had it not been for the railroad, and government subsidies to help build said steel rail, our state’s residents would have all settled near bodies of water.
Taking another step back, before the railroads existed, steamboats were the mode of travel and three ports that were popular in territorial days remain today; Fargo, Grand Forks and Edwinton, which later became known as Bismarck.
On more of a local level, I’ve discovered that numerous small communities and settlements existed in what is now Emmons County, long before the railroad reached Bismarck. That, of course, was on a small scale, but these tiny hamlets like Glencoe, Livona and Winona, were often established to trade with like minded individuals on the west side of the Missouri River, i.e., Glencoe to Cannonball, Livona to Fort Rice and Winona to Fort Yates.
Well, the railroad changed all that. Finally, people could settle wherever they wanted to include areas far removed from any lake or river. And in Emmons County, that gave rise to communities such as Strasburn, Linton, Hazelton, Hague and Braddock.
There’s no doubt the railroads, most notably Northern Pacific and the Great Northern, had a major impact on this state, as did the immigrants who rode the steel rail to come to a new home they had never imagined.
From 1880 to 1910, floods of immigrants came to North Dakota to settle, many not knowing what to expect. Some had family members already in the United States, many did not. And for those folks, life was often difficult.
We have German, Norwegian, Swedish, Icelandic, Ukrainian, British, Dutch, Danish, French, Russian, Croatian, Polish, Greek, Swiss, Italian, Hungary and many others from eastern Europe and parts of Asia.
Yes, North Dakota is a melting pot, just as the United States as a whole.
What is your heritage? Mine is German, Swiss, Danish and Ukrainian.
All those people came here for a better life and opportunity from what they had in “the old country.” Most were farmers. Others were merchants, lawyers, teachers, doctors engineers. They all contributed something to the growth of the early days of our state.
If you look at statistics, that immigration influx continued beyond 1910. The numbers of people dramatically shifted, starting in 1932. And, as a double whammy, many who settled the northern Great Plains, packed up and went west to California, Oregon and Washington, as was so well described in John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath.
Since the latest oil boom, the trend was once again reversed and although population has stabilized, the population of North Dakota has surpassed 800,000 for the first time. Fargo has become a vibrant city and Bismarck is pushing toward 100,000 in its own right.
Dickinson, Williston, Minot, Grand Forks and Watford City have all grown, while many smaller communities have also seen subtle growth.
We’re doing well, but we could do better. No doubt, oil has had its impact, but rather than putting all our eggs in one basket, we should create numerous other incentives, especially to bring young families here, just like the immigrants from Europe.
