We’ve explored much of North Dakota in the 1900s, from the 30s to the 70s, through old photographs here so far. And we’ve even gone back a little further than that a few times. But now, we’re going to go back into some of the state’s earliest days – before it even was a state. Back in the 1850s and up until the 1890s, North Dakota was a vast land that was seen in the eyes of the settlers as a “wonderland” for farming and life. It wasn’t even North Dakota yet, as it was still connected to South Dakota as the single, large Dakota Territory.
Photography wasn’t quite as widespread then, so photographs of it are scarce, but we have compiled some of these rare photos showcasing what life was like then. You’ll notice a lot of them are double images side-by-side. These were “stereoscopic” to be viewed with a stereoscope, in order to see them with a 3D effect. You won’t get that here, but because of these popular images back in the day, many were able to be saved and preserved so we may view them here.
- A very busy and very early Bismarck. This huge crowd was all one traveling party arriving in the then budding town, in 1883.
New York Public Library
- A homesteader carries barrels of water in her wagon from a nearby spring back to the farm in Williams County.
Russell Lee/yale.edu
- Crowds gather around the Grand Hotel in Hope, ND (Dakota Territory then) for a photograph in 1861.
New York Public Library/Wikimedia
- View of a ranch near Devils Lake in 1891.
NARA/Wikimedia
- This Dakota Territory town was in its earliest stages in this photograph.
New York Public Library
- Sod houses were a very common type of home that was easier to build for early settlers in a land that was considered mostly treeless.
Russell Lee/yale.edu
- Very distant vantage point sight of Bismarck, with an interesting figure with a bison skull in the foreground. There is no skyscraper on the prairie yet, just short houses, buildings, and tents.
New York Public Library
- View of Fort Totten in the 1860s when it was still used as a fort.
Library of Congress/Wikimedia
- This postcard depicts the early threshing days in the wheat fields of North Dakota, from 1893.
British Library/Wikimedia
Check out some of the other parts of history viewed through photographs that we’ve covered:
New York Public Library
Russell Lee/yale.edu
New York Public Library/Wikimedia
NARA/Wikimedia
Library of Congress/Wikimedia
British Library/Wikimedia
The 1950s, 60s, and 70s.
From the Great Depression
During the turmoils of WWII
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