Ann Erling

11/7/2007: “I like this free liberty of the United States,” exclaimed German-Russian Henry Moldenhauer in a 1940 interview, “I like to vote for the President of my country.” His new country put new meaning behind his voice. Henry sang, he spoke, he prophesied, and he voiced his opinion about the government, something he could not have done in the Old Country.

11/6/2007: In preparation for his new life in America, Swan Peterson set fire to his belongings.

11/5/2007: Frank Zastoupil’s grandfather journeyed from Bohemia in Austria-Hungary to Russia when the Czarina Catherine the Great offered Russian land and religious freedom to new settlers. The Zastoupil family dwelled in a village surrounded by fellow Bohemians. They farmed side by side in their new country, danced polkas and waltzes, sang with great passion, and shared joyful social lives.

11/4/2007: The son of Dutch aristocracy, Frank Kiebert, a North Dakota rancher, was christened Franciscus J. Vlamingh-Kiebert and grew up in North Holland. His father was a gentlemen farmer who ruled over a country estate called Myn Lust, or “My Desire” in English. After poor investments drained their fortune, the Kieberts sailed to America in 1882, hoping to leave behind bad memories and ruined reputation.

11/3/2007: While many may dream of life fit for a romance novel, few actually experience childhood love, surprise marriage, and heart wrenching moments of being swept off one’s feet. But in the early 1900s, two North Dakota homesteaders lived a prairie romance dream.

11/2/2007: A North Dakota settler’s most deadly enemy didn’t have sharp claws, it couldn’t utter threats, it didn’t even have opposable thumbs. It was the weather. From the scorching heat of summer, to the blinding blizzards of winter, North Dakota homesteaders struggled year round to triumph over unruly conditions. Everyone faced these trials, from young Ole Melhouse, to widowed Carrie Severson; the prairie weather spared no one.

10/10/2007: Yesterday’s Dakota Datebook told the story of Bismarck’s first cemetery and the 1903 unearthing of 13 bodies, one of which may have been Bismarck saloon owner Dave Mullen. In 1873, Dave Mullen was buried in the Fourth Street Cemetery, also known as Boot Hill cemetery, leaving behind a strange tale concerning his death.

10/9/2007: In October of 1872, the newly established frontier village of Bismarck experienced its first death. Private Sharpe was buried by his comrades, receiving the first burial in Bismarck. A month later, Mrs. McDonald gave birth to the first baby in North Dakota’s future capital city, but the baby passed away soon after.

7/6/2007: What do you with a fifty-five foot, two and a half ton gorilla?

7/4/2007: On this day in 1865, the newly united United States of America, celebrated its first Independence Day after four years of civil war.