{"id":1519,"date":"2019-01-18T04:00:59","date_gmt":"2019-01-18T04:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/?p=1519"},"modified":"2018-10-17T16:02:01","modified_gmt":"2018-10-17T16:02:01","slug":"north-dakota-the-peace-garden-state","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/north-dakota-the-peace-garden-state\/","title":{"rendered":"North Dakota – The Peace Garden State"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction:<\/h2>\n

North Dakota<\/a> is a U.S. state in the midwestern<\/a> and northern regions of the United States. \u00a0It is the nineteenth largest in area, the fourth smallest by population, and the fourth most sparsely populated of the 50 states.\u00a0 North Dakota was admitted to the Union as the 39th state on November 2, 1889.\u00a0 Its capital is Bismarck<\/a>, and its largest city is Fargo<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Fargo\"
Fargo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the 21st century, North Dakota’s natural resources have played a major role in its economic performance, particularly with the oil extraction from the Bakken formation<\/a>, which lies beneath the northwestern part of the state. Such development has led to population growth and reduced unemployment.<\/p>\n

Geography:<\/h2>\n

North Dakota is in the U.S. region known as the Great Plains<\/a>.\u00a0 The state shares the Red River of the North<\/a> with Minnesota<\/a> to the east.\u00a0 South Dakota<\/a> is to the south, Montana<\/a> is to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan<\/a> and Manitoba<\/a> are to the north.<\/p>\n

\"North
North Dakota in the United States<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

North Dakota is situated near the middle of North America with a stone marker in Rugby<\/a>, North Dakota marking the “Geographic Center of the North American Continent”.<\/p>\n

The western half of the state consists of the hilly Great Plains as well as the northern part of the Badlands<\/a>, which are to the west of the Missouri River<\/a>.\u00a0 The state’s high point, White Butte<\/a> at 3,506 feet and Theodore Roosevelt National Park<\/a> are in the Badlands.\u00a0 The region is abundant in fossil fuels including natural gas, crude oil and lignite coal.\u00a0 The Missouri River forms Lake Sakakawea<\/a>, the third largest artificial lake in the United States, behind the Garrison Dam<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Western
Western North Dakota<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The central region of the state is divided into the Drift Prairie<\/a> and the Missouri Plateau<\/a>.\u00a0 The eastern part of the state consists of the flat Red River Valley<\/a>, the bottom of glacial Lake Agassiz<\/a>.\u00a0 Its fertile soil, drained by the meandering Red River flowing northward into Lake Winnipeg<\/a>, supports a large agriculture industry.\u00a0 Devils Lake<\/a>, the largest natural lake in the state, is also found in the east.<\/p>\n

Eastern North Dakota is overall flat; however, there are significant hills and buttes in western North Dakota.\u00a0 Most of the state is covered in grassland; crops cover most of eastern North Dakota but become increasingly sparse in the center and farther west.\u00a0 Natural trees in North Dakota are found usually where there is good drainage, such as the ravines and valley near the Pembina Gorge<\/a> and Killdeer Mountains<\/a>, the Turtle Mountains<\/a>, the hills around Devil’s Lake, in the dunes area of McHenry County<\/a> in central North Dakota, and along the Sheyenne Valley<\/a> slopes and the Sheyenne delta.\u00a0 This diverse terrain supports nearly 2,000 species of plants.<\/p>\n

\"Kildeer
Kildeer Mountains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

History:<\/h2>\n

Native American peoples lived in what is now North Dakota for thousands of years before the coming of Europeans. The known tribes included the Mandan<\/a>, Hidatsa<\/a>, Crow<\/a>, and the Dakota people<\/a> including the Lakota<\/a>, Santee<\/a>, and Yanktonai.<\/p>\n

The first European to reach the area was the French-Canadian trader Pierre Gaultier, Sieur de La V\u00e9rendrye, who led an exploration and trading party to the Mandan villages in 1738 guided by Assiniboine Indians.<\/p>\n

From 1762 to 1802 the region formed part of Spanish Louisiana<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Spanish
Spanish Louisiana<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

European Americans settled in Dakota Territory<\/a> only sparsely until the late 19th century, when railroads opened up the region.\u00a0 With the advantage of grants of land, they vigorously marketed their properties, extolling the region as ideal for agriculture.\u00a0 Congress passed an omnibus bill for statehood for North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Washington<\/a>, titled the Enabling Act of 1889<\/a>, on February 22, 1889 during the administration of President Grover Cleveland<\/a>.\u00a0 His successor, Benjamin Harrison<\/a>, signed the proclamations formally admitting North Dakota and South Dakota to the Union on November 2, 1889.<\/p>\n

\"Dakota
Dakota Territory<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The rivalry between the two new states presented a dilemma of which was to be admitted first.\u00a0 Harrison directed Secretary of State James G. Blaine<\/a> to shuffle the papers and obscure from him which he was signing first.\u00a0 The actual order went unrecorded, thus no one knows which of the Dakotas was admitted first.\u00a0 However, since North Dakota alphabetically appears before South Dakota, its proclamation was published first in the Statutes At Large<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Unrest among wheat farmers, especially among Norwegian immigrants, led to a populist political movement centered in the Non Partisan League (“NPL”)<\/a> around the time of World War I<\/a>.\u00a0 The NPL ran candidates on the Republican<\/a> ticket, but merged into the Democratic Party<\/a> after World War II<\/a>.\u00a0 It tried to insulate North Dakota from the power of out-of-state banks and corporations.\u00a0 In addition to founding the state-owned Bank of North Dakota<\/a> and North Dakota Mill and Elevator<\/a>, both still in existence, the NPL established a state-owned railroad line.<\/p>\n

\"North
North Dakota Mill and Elevator 1922<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Anti-corporate laws virtually prohibited a corporation or bank from owning title to land zoned as farmland.\u00a0 These laws, still in force today, after having been upheld by state and federal courts, make it almost impossible to foreclose on farmland, as even after foreclosure, the property title cannot be held by a bank or mortgage company.\u00a0 Furthermore, the Bank of North Dakota, having powers similar to a Federal Reserve<\/a> branch bank, exercised its power to limit the issuance of subprime mortgages and their collateralization in the form of derivative instruments, and so prevented a collapse of housing prices within the state in the wake of 2008’s financial crisis.<\/p>\n

\"Bank
Bank of North Dakota<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Western North Dakota saw a boom in oil exploration in the late 1970s and early 1980s, as rising petroleum prices made development profitable.\u00a0 This boom came to an end after petroleum prices declined.<\/p>\n

In recent years the state has had lower rates of unemployment than the national average, and increased job and population growth.\u00a0 Much of the growth has been based on development of the Bakken oil fields in the western part of the state.\u00a0 Estimates as to the remaining amount of oil vary, with some estimating over 100 years\u2019 worth of oil remaining in the area.<\/p>\n

For decades, North Dakota’s annual murder rate and violent crime rate was regularly the lowest recorded in the United States. In recent years however, whilst still below the national average, crime has risen sharply.\u00a0 In 2016, the violent crime rate was three times higher than in 2004 with the rise mostly occurring in the late 2000s, coinciding with the oil boom era.\u00a0 This happened at a time when the overall US violent crime rate declined slightly.\u00a0 Workers in the oil boom towns have been blamed for much of the increase in crime.<\/p>\n

Economy:<\/h2>\n

Agriculture is North Dakota’s largest industry, although petroleum, food processing, and technology are also major industries.\u00a0 It is the fastest-growing state in U.S. by GDP.\u00a0 Its growth rate is about 8.3%.<\/p>\n

According to Gallup<\/a> data, North Dakota led the U.S. in job creation in 2013 and has done so since 2009.\u00a0 The state has a Job Creation Index<\/a> score of 40, nearly 10 points ahead of its nearest competitors.\u00a0 The state has recorded the highest personal income growth among all states for the sixth time since 2007.<\/p>\n

North Dakota is the only state with a state-owned bank, the Bank of North Dakota in Bismarck, and a state-owned flour mill, the North Dakota Mill and Elevator in Grand Forks<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Fargo is home to the second-largest campus of Microsoft<\/a> with 1,700 employees, and Amazon.com<\/a> employs several hundred in Grand Forks.<\/p>\n

\"Microsoft
Microsoft Fargo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As of May 2014, the state’s unemployment rate is the lowest in the nation at 2.6%.\u00a0 The reduction in the unemployment rate and growth in per capita income is attributable to the oil boom in the state. Due to a combination of oil-related development and investing in technology and service industries, North Dakota has had a budget surplus every year since the 2008 market crash.<\/p>\n

Agriculture:<\/h3>\n

North Dakota’s earliest industries were fur trading and agriculture.\u00a0 Although less than 10% of the population is employed in the agricultural sector, it remains a major part of the state’s economy.\u00a0 With industrial-scale farming, it ranks 9th in the nation in the value of crops and 18th in total value of agricultural products sold.\u00a0 Large farms generate the most crops.<\/p>\n

The state is the largest producer in the U.S. of many cereal grains, including barley<\/a>, durum wheat<\/a>, hard red spring wheat<\/a>, oats<\/a>, and combined wheat of all types.\u00a0 It is the second leading producer of buckwheat<\/a>.\u00a0 As of 2007, corn<\/a> became the state’s largest crop produced.\u00a0 Most of the cereal grains are grown for livestock feed.<\/p>\n

The state is the leading producer of many oilseeds, including 92% of the U.S. canola<\/a> crop, 94% of flax seed<\/a>, 53% of sunflower seeds<\/a>, 18% of safflower seeds<\/a>, and 62% of mustard seed<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"North
North Dakota Sunflowers<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Soybeans<\/a> are also an increasingly important crop.\u00a0 Soybeans are a major crop in the eastern part of the state, and cultivation is common in the southeast part of the state.<\/p>\n

North Dakota is the second leading producer of sugarbeets<\/a>, which are grown mostly in the Red River Valley.\u00a0 The state is also the largest producer of honey<\/a>, dry edible peas and beans<\/a>, lentils<\/a>, and the third-largest producer of potatoes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Energy:<\/h3>\n

The energy industry is a major contributor to the economy.\u00a0 North Dakota has both coal<\/a> and oil<\/a> reserves.\u00a0 Shale gas<\/a> is also produced.\u00a0 Lignite<\/a> coal reserves in Western North Dakota are used to generate about 90% of the electricity consumed, and electricity is also exported to nearby states.\u00a0 North Dakota has the second largest lignite coal production in the U.S.\u00a0 However, lignite coal is the lowest grade coal.<\/p>\n

Oil was discovered near Tioga<\/a> in 1951, generating 53 million barrels of oil a year by 1984.\u00a0 Recoverable oil reserves have jumped dramatically recently.\u00a0 The oil reserves of the Bakken Formation may hold up to 400 billion barrels of oil.\u00a0 North-Western North Dakota is the center of an oil boom: the Williston<\/a>, Tioga, Stanley<\/a> and Minot<\/a>–Burlington<\/a> communities are having rapid growth that strains housing and local services.\u00a0 As of 2012, the state is the 2nd-largest oil producer in the U.S., with an average of 575,490 barrels per day.<\/p>\n

\"North
North Dakota Oil Well<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Great Plains region, which includes the state of North Dakota, has been referred to as “the Saudi Arabia<\/a> of wind energy<\/a>.”\u00a0 Development of wind energy in North Dakota has been cost effective because the state has large rural expanses and wind speeds seldom go below 10 mph.<\/p>\n

Tourism:<\/h3>\n

North Dakota is considered the least visited state, owing, in part, to its not having a major tourist attraction.\u00a0 Nonetheless, tourism is North Dakota’s third largest industry, contributing more than $3 billion into the state’s economy annually.\u00a0 Outdoor attractions like the 144-mile Maah Daah Hey Trail<\/a> and activities like fishing and hunting attract visitors.\u00a0 The state is known for the Lewis & Clark Trail<\/a> and being the winter camp of the Corps of Discovery<\/a>.\u00a0 Areas popular with visitors include Theodore Roosevelt National Park in the western part of the state.\u00a0 The park often exceeds 475,000 visitors each year.<\/p>\n

\"Theodore
Theodore Roosevelt National Park<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Regular events in the state that attract tourists include Norsk H\u00f8stfest<\/a> in Minot, billed as North America’s largest Scandinavian festival; the Medora Musical<\/a>; and the North Dakota State Fair<\/a>.\u00a0 The state also receives a significant number of visitors from the neighboring Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, particularly when the exchange rate is favorable.<\/p>\n

Transportation:<\/h2>\n

Transportation in North Dakota is overseen by the North Dakota Department of Transportation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Transportation
Transportation Map of North Dakota<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The major Interstate highways are Interstate 29<\/a> and Interstate 94<\/a>, with I-29 and I-94 meeting at Fargo, with I-29 oriented north to south along the eastern edge of the state, and I-94 bisecting the state from east to west between Minnesota and Montana.\u00a0 A unique feature of the North Dakota Interstate Highway system is virtually all of it is paved in concrete<\/a>, rather than blacktop<\/a>, because of the extreme weather conditions it must endure.<\/p>\n

\"Interstate
Interstate 94<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

North Dakota’s principal airports are the Hector International Airport (FAR)<\/a> in Fargo, Grand Forks International Airport (GFK)<\/a>, Bismarck Municipal Airport (BIS)<\/a>, Minot International Airport (MOT)<\/a> and Sloulin Field International Airport (ISN)<\/a> in Williston.<\/p>\n

\"Fargo
Fargo Airport Route Map<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Amtrak’s Empire Builder<\/a> runs through North Dakota making stops at Fargo, Grand Forks, Minot, and four other stations.<\/p>\n

Intercity bus service is provided by Greyhound<\/a> and Jefferson Lines<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Public transit in North Dakota includes daily fixed-route bus systems in Fargo, Bismarck-Mandan, Grand Forks, and Minot, paratransit service in 57 communities, along with multi-county rural transit systems.<\/p>\n

Flag of North Dakota:<\/h2>\n

The design for the flag of the state of North Dakota is an almost exact copy of the unit banner carried by the state’s troop contingent in the Philippine\u2013American War<\/a>.\u00a0 It was adopted by the North Dakota Legislative Assembly on March 3, 1911, although the color was not precisely specified at that time.<\/p>\n

\"North
North Dakota Flag<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Legislation in 1943 brought the flag in line with the original troop banner, which is on display at the North Dakota Heritage Center<\/a> in Bismarck.\u00a0 The flag also resembles the Great Seal of the United States.<\/a><\/p>\n

State Nickname:<\/h2>\n

The official nickname for North Dakota is “The Peace Garden State.”\u00a0 The International Peace Garden<\/a> straddles the boundary between North Dakota and the Canadian province of Manitoba.\u00a0 The nickname became so popular that it was formally adopted by North Dakota legislature in 1957.<\/p>\n

\"International
International Peace Garden<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The International Peace Garden was opened in 1932 in front of more than 50,000 spectators to commemorate the lengthy period of peace between the two nations and claims to be the longest unguarded border in the world.<\/p>\n

The Peace Tower monument was built as part of the 50th anniversary celebrations in 1980.\u00a0 The four pillars symbolize the coming together of people from the four corners of the world.\u00a0 More than 150,000 visitors arrive to view the floral displays at the garden each year.<\/p>\n

\"International
International Peace Garden Towers<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Next Up:<\/h2>\n

In our next post we will visit North Dakota’s sister state, number 40, South Dakota.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The design for the flag of the state of North Dakota is an almost exact copy of the unit banner carried by the state’s troop contingent in the Philippine\u2013American War. It was adopted by the North Dakota Legislative Assembly on March 3, 1911, although the color was not precisely specified at that time. Legislation in 1943 brought the flag in line with the original troop banner, which is on display at the North Dakota Heritage Center in Bismarck. The flag also resembles the Great Seal of the United States.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1543,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[5,6,7,41,43,40,42],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1519"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1519"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1519\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1543"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1519"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1519"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1519"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}