North Dakota Trivia & Tidbits - Page 2

Looking for North Dakota trivia? Try our list North Dakota little know facts, tidbits and trivia.

—In 1934, golfer George Wegener, of Portal (pop. 131), scored an international hole-in-one when he drove the ball from the ninth tee in Canada into the hole on the ninth green in the United States in Portal.

first appeared: 1/11/2009

—Lake Sakakawea State Park near Pick City (pop. 166) is a trailhead for the North Country Scenic Trail, a hiking route that even-tually will course 4,000 miles and link seven states. About 1,600 miles of the trail have been marked.

first appeared: 12/29/2008

—Depressions left by the stage station and barn that served travelers from 1877 to 1880 along the trail between Bismarck (pop. 55,532) and Deadwood, S.D. (pop. 1,380) can be seen at the Cannonball Stage Station State Historic Site near Carson (pop. 319).

first appeared: 11/30/2008

—You’ll need hiking boots to visit the state’s only recognized waterfall, Mineral Springs, tucked into the Sheyenne State Forest in Ransom County (pop. 5,890). OHIO—In 1858, Samuel Patterson established the Berlin Fruit Box Co. in Berlin Heights (pop. 685) to provide fruit and vegetable baskets to local orchards and farms. Today, a sixth generation of family members continues to make the hardwood baskets.

first appeared: 11/16/2008

—Voter turnout is never large in Pillsbury (pop. 24), but it hit a new low last June when Mayor Darrel Brudevold ran unopposed for re-election as did two candidates for alderman seats. Turnout was “zero.” Even the candidates were too busy with work to make it to the polls.

first appeared: 11/2/2008

—To encourage a new generation of shepherds, the North Dakota Lamb and Wool Producers Association is giving starter flocks of 10 ewes to children ages 10 to 18 who write winning essays about their interest in the sheep industry and who meet other requirements.

first appeared: 10/19/2008

—The oil industry is booming in the state where the Bakken shale formation is located. The formation is believed to contain the largest accumulation of oil in the lower 48 states, with several billion barrels of oil. New technology is making it feasible to extract the oil from the rock.

first appeared: 10/5/2008

—The only state-owned milling complex in the United States is the North Dakota Mill and Elevator Association in Grand Forks (pop. 49,321). In 1922, voters approved construction of a mill so farmers could process, manufacture and market their own wheat products.

first appeared: 9/21/2008

—Almost 90 percent of the state’s land is used for farming or grazing. The state has about 30,100 farms and ranches with an average size of 1,309 acres.

first appeared: 9/7/2008

—In 2003, residents of Jud (pop. 76) began transforming their community into a “Village of Murals” by painting colorful images on buildings around town. Artists since have painted more than two dozen murals on buildings of all sizes and shapes, including a grain bin that resembles a carousel.

first appeared: 8/24/2008

—In the basement of the North Dakota Heritage Center in Bismarck (pop. 55,532), workers are meticulously chipping away at a nearly complete dinosaur, including fossilized skin. The duckbilled hadrosaur found in the southwestern part of the state in 1999 is one of a few mummified dinosaurs in the world.

first appeared: 8/10/2008

—The first full-blooded Sioux Indian to be awarded the nation’s highest military award, the Medal of Honor, was Woodrow Wilson Keeble of Wahpeton (pop. 8,586). In March, the honor was bestowed posthumously to Keeble for saving the lives of fellow soldiers during a 1951 Korean War battle in which he killed 16 enemy soldiers.

first appeared: 7/27/2008

—It’s fine to sleep in school at the Old School Bed and Breakfast in Arnegard (pop. 105). Milt Hanson bought the 1914-15 brick schoolhouse in 1998 and restored it as an inn.

first appeared: 7/13/2008

—Last December, State Bank & Trust in Fargo presented full-time employees with $1,000 and part-time employees with $500 with a catch—the gifts had to be passed along to someone in need before June 30. Employees also received digital cameras to document their deeds.

first appeared: 6/29/2008

—The Fargo Kiwanis Club stacked up a Guinness World Record in February for having the world’s largest pancake feed. Pancake grillers flipped and served 34,818 flapjacks to thousands of people during the Pancake Karnival.

first appeared: 6/15/2008

—Wahpeton (pop. 8,586) is home to Wahpper, the world’s largest catfish. The 5,000-pound fish statue is 40 feet long and 12 feet tall and calls attention to excellent fishing in the Red River.

first appeared: 6/1/2008

—Mountain (pop. 133), a community with a rich Icelandic heritage, is getting some foreign aid to build its community center. A gift of $75,000 has been pledged from the Icelandic government after Prime Minister Geir Haarde learned about the project while visiting the town last year during the August the Deuce Icelandic Celebration.

first appeared: 5/18/2008

—The state’s last operating drive-in theater is Lake Park Drive-in Theatre in Williston (pop. 12,512).

first appeared: 5/4/2008

—The only American-born author to receive both the Presidential Medal of Freedom and Congressional Gold Medal in honor of his life’s work is Western writer Louis L’Amour, who was born Louis Dearborn LaMoore in 1908 in Jamestown (pop. 15,527). L’Amour published 113 books.

first appeared: 3/9/2008

—About 70 iron crosses mark graves in a Catholic cemetery near Hague (pop. 91). Treasured today as folk art, the elaborate crosses, or eizenkreuzen, were crafted by German-speaking immigrants from Russia who settled in the town. Most crosses date from the 1870s to 1930s.

first appeared: 2/24/2008

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