History of North Dakota
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- For Elwyn B. Robinson's 1966 book coving this topic, see History of North Dakota (book).
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North Dakota was first settled by Native Americans several thousand years ago. The major tribes in the area by the time of settlement were the Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara, Sioux, and Chippewa.
By the time European trade goods were making their way through native trade routes, the Mandan had developed a notably advanced agricultural and trading society.
La Vérendrye was one of the first Europeans to explore the area. He visited the Mandan area around 1738 and was astounded by their level of development. Limited trade with European powers followed through the end of the century.
The Mandan villages played a key role in the native trade networks because of their location and permanency. Their location at the northernmost reaches of the Missouri River placed them near the closest portages to the Hudson Bay basin and thus the fastest access to French and British traders. Additionally, valuable Knife River flint was produced not far from the villages.
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[edit] Late 19th century
The railroads were the engine of settlement in the state. Major development occurred in the 1870s and 1880s. In 1861, the area that is now North Dakota was incorporated into the new Dakota Territory along with what is now South Dakota. On November 2, 1889, North Dakota and South Dakota became separate states.
[edit] 20th century
During the early 20th century, North Dakota's politics was generally dominated by the United States Republican Party. Progressive politics was not a factor in North Dakota politics until the 1910s, when a group known as the Non-Partisan League was formed, which ran Progressive candidates in the primaries against Republicans. These reformers succeeded in pushing through a well-defined socialist program, with features that remain in place to this day (i.e., a state-owned bank and state-owned mill and elevator). At least two governors were NPLers. By the 1950s, the NPL had developed into just another part of the political establishment in North Dakota. Had it not been for a group of youthful insurgents that swung the NPL into the Democratic column, the NPL would have lost touch entirely with its liberal roots.
While the governorship of the state has been held approximately the same amount of time by both parties since the Democratic-NPL party was formed in 1956, the state legislature has been dominated by Republicans. Both the North Dakota's Senators (Kent Conrad and Byron Dorgan) are members of the Democratic-NPL party as is North Dakota's sole congressman, Earl Pomeroy.
[edit] 21st century
At the beginning of the 21st century, North Dakota is experiencing demographic and economic decline. The population of the state is aging, both from a rise in life expectancy, and an exodus of younger people, particularly families. The state struggles with a lack of venture capital and high wage positions. However due to the oilfields high paying jobs are found just as easily as compared to any other place in the United States.
[edit] Robinson's Themes in North Dakota History
In his History of North Dakota, historian Elwyn B. Robinson identified themes in North Dakota history:[1]
- Remoteness
- Dependence
- Radicalism
- Economic disadvantage
- The "too-much mistake"
- Adjustment
Robinson's history is to date the only comprehensive history of the state, but his analysis has drawn fire. His assertion of a "too-much mistake" in particular, is controversial; some politicians, including Joe Satrom, blame the book for (un)inspiring a generation of leaders to lower their expectations for the state's future.
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
[edit] Bibliography
- Anderson, Kathie Ryckman. Dakota: The Literary Heritage of the Northern Prairie State. (1990), quick look at 200 authors
- Arends, Shirley Fischer. The Central Dakota Germans: Their History, Language, and Culture. (1989). 289 pp.; the state's largest ethnic group
- Berg, Francie M., ed. Ethnic Heritage in North Dakota. (1983). 174 pp.
- Blackorby, Edward C. Prairie Rebel: The Public Life of William Lemke (1963), radical leader in 1930s online edition
- Bochert, John R. America's Northern Heartland (1987), regional geography
- Collins, Michael L. That Damned Cowboy: Theodore Roosevelt and the American West, 1883-1898 (1989). Teddy was a rancher here in the 1880s
- Cooper, Jerry and Smith, Glen. Citizens as Soldiers: A History of the North Dakota National Guard. (1986). 447 pp.
- Crawford, Lewis F. History of North Dakota (3 vol 1931), excellent history in vol 1; biographies in vol. 2-3
- Danbom, David B. "Our Purpose Is to Serve": The First Century of the North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station. (1990). 237 pp.
- Danbom, David B. "North Dakota: The Most Midwestern State," in Heartland: Comparative Histories of the Midwestern States, ed. by James H. Madison, (1988) pp 107-126
- Drache, Hiram M. The Day of the Bonanza: A History of Bonanza Farming in the Red River Valley of the North. (1964), giant wheat farms with many employees
- Eisenberg, C. G. History of the First Dakota-District of the Evangelical-Lutheran Synod of Iowa and Other States. (1982). 268 pp. now part of ELCA
- Ginsburg, Faye D. Contested Lives: The Abortion Debate in an American Community. (1989). 315 pp. the issue in Fargo
- Hampsten, Elizabeth. Settlers' Children: Growing Up on the Great Plains (1991)
- Hargreaves, Mary W. M. Dry Farming in the Northern Great Plains: Years of Readjustment, 1920-1990. (1993). 386 pp.
- Howard, Thomas W., ed. The North Dakota Political Tradition. (1981). 220 pp.; essays on on Alexander McKenzie, Governor John Burke, Senator William Langer, Governor Fred G. Aandahl, Elizabeth Preston Anderson, NPL and the Independent Voters' Association.
- Hudson, John C. Plains Country Towns. (1985). 189 pp. geographer studies small towns
- Junker, Rozanne Enerson. The Bank of North Dakota: An Experiment in State Ownership. (1989). 185 pp.
- Lamar, Howard R. Dakota Territory, 1861-1889: A Study of Frontier Politics (1956).
- Lounsberry, Clement A. Early history of North Dakota (1919) excellent history by editor of Bismark Tribune; 645pp online edition
- Lysengen, Janet Daley and Rathke, Ann M., eds. The Centennial Anthology of "North Dakota History: Journal of the Northern Plains." (1996). 526 pp. articles from state history journal covering all major topics in the state's history
- Morlan, Robert L. Political Prairie Fire: The Nonpartisan League, 1915-1922. (1955). 414 pp. radical-left NPL came to power briefly
- Murray, Stanley Norman. The Valley Comes of Age: A History of Agriculture in the Valley of the Red River of the North, 1812-1920 (1967)
- Peirce, Neal R. The Great Plains States of America: People, Politics, and Power in the Nine Great Plains States (1973) excerpt and text ssearch, chapter on North Dakota
- Robinson, Elwyn B., D. Jerome Tweton, and David B. Danbom. History of North Dakota (2nd ed. 1995) standard history, by leading scholars; extensive bibliography
- Robinson, Elwyn B. History of North Dakota (1966) First edition online
- Schneider, Mary Jane. North Dakota Indians: An Introduction. (1986). 276 pp.
- Sherman, William C. and Playford V. Thorson, eds. Plains Folk: North Dakota's Ethnic History. (1988). 419 pp.
- Sherman, William C. Prairie Mosaic: An Ethnic Atlas of Rural North Dakota. (1983). 152 pp.
- Smith, Glen H. Langer of North Dakota: A Study in Isolationism, 1940-1959. (1979). 238 pp. biography of influential conservative Senator
- Snortland, J. Signe, ed. A Traveler's Companion to North Dakota State Historic Sites. (1996). 155 pp.
- Stock, Catherine McNicol. Main Street in Crisis: The Great Depression and the Old Middle Class on the Northern Plains. (1992). 305pp. online edition
- Stradley, Scot A. The Broken Circle: An Economic History of North Dakota (1993)
- Tauxe, Caroline S. Farms, Mines and Main Streets: Uneven Development in a Dakota County. (1993). 276 pp. coal and grain in Mercer county
- Tweton, D. Jerome, and Daniel F. Rylance. The Years of Despair: North Dakota in the Depression. (1973) politics of 1920s
- Tweton, D. Jerome and Jelliff, Theodore B. North Dakota: The Heritage of a People. (1976). 242 pp. basic textbook
- Wilkins, Robert P. and Wilkins, Wynona Hutchette. North Dakota: A Bicentennial History. (1977) 218 pp. popular history
- Wishart, David J. Encyclopedia of the Great Plains (2004), many articles by scholars on many topics
[edit] Primary sources
- Benson, Bjorn; Hampsten, Elizabeth; and Sweney, Kathryn, eds. Day In, Day Out: Women's Lives in North Dakota. (1988). 326 pp.
- Johan Bojer, The Emigrants (1925) ISBN 0-8032-6051-2
- Maximilian, Prince of Wied. Travels in the Interior of North America in the rears 1832 to 1834 (Vols. XXII-XXIV of "Early Western Travels, 1748-1846," ed. by Reuben Gold Thwaites; 1905- 1906). Maximilian spent the winter of 1833-1834 at Fort Clark.
- Meek, Martha, and Jay Meek, eds. Prairie Volcano: An Anthology of North Dakota Writing. (1995), short works by 50 recent authors
- Raaen, Aagot. Grass of the Earth (1950) true, highly revealing story of one Norwegian family in 1880s
- University of North Dakota, Bureau of Governmental Affairs, ed., A Compilation of North Dakota Political Party Platforms, 1884-1978. (1979). 388 pp.
- WPA. North Dakota: A Guide to the Northern Prairie State (2nd ed. 1950), the classic guide online edition
- Woiwode, Larry. Beyond the Bedroom Wall: A Family Album (1975) novel about growing up in N.D.
- Young, Carrie. Prairie Cooks: Glorified Rice, Three-Day Buns, and Other Reminiscences. (1993). 136 pp.
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