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Carole Butcher

Contributor, Dakota Datebook
  • Canada entered World War I on August 4, 1914, when the United Kingdom declared war on Germany. Canada showed solidarity to the United Kingdom by also declaring war.
  • Decades of interaction with white Americans reshaped Native culture as they adapted to horses, guns, and trade goods. Eventually, the free-ranging lifestyle of Native peoples was permanently altered as they were forced onto reservations.
  • On July 5, 1902, William Ross traveled to a farm near Willow City and broke into the home of Thomas Walsh. There, he committed what newspapers called one of the most cold-blooded murders ever committed in Bottineau County. He shot Walsh while the elderly man was asleep, then stole three horses and a wagon before fleeing south.
  • The process to ratify a constitutional amendment is complicated and time-consuming. The Archivist of the United States, who heads the National Archives and Records Administration, oversees the procedure. Congress can propose an amendment by a two-thirds majority in both the House and Senate. Alternatively, two-thirds of the states can call for a constitutional convention, though no amendment has ever been proposed in that manner. Once an amendment passes Congress, it must be approved by three-fourths of the states.
  • North Dakotans were both alarmed and annoyed by a crime spree in 1925. People kept an eye out for anyone who looked suspicious. In November, thieves visited the turkey farm of A.L. Orange, just outside of Jamestown. When neighbors returning from town noticed a suspicious car parked by the farm, they acted. The car sped off at high speed, and the neighbors followed, resulting in a high-speed chase that reached fifty miles per hour. The chasers got close enough to obtain the license plate number and a description of the getaway car. They shared the information with law enforcement, but the thieves managed to escape with nine turkeys.
  • The entire country was shocked when news came of the Battle of Little Bighorn. Two hundred sixty-eight soldiers of the 7th Cavalry were killed, including the handsome and popular Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer. With the regiment posted at Fort Abraham Lincoln, residents of Dakota Territory felt they had a personal interest in the 7th Cavalry. They were stunned when Captain Grant Marsh piloted the steamboat Far West to the dock, and they watched as the wounded were unloaded.
  • The Panic of 1907 was a severe financial crisis that foreshadowed the Great Depression. The name "panic" was fitting, as unemployment rose from 2.8% to 8%. Americans lost faith in the banking system and withdrew their money. Banks and businesses struggled, and the public became concerned about an unstable economy.
  • The Vietnam War was a polarizing and traumatic event in American history. Should we stand strong against the spread of Communism or should we allow others to chart their own course? While many Americans signed up to serve in the United States Armed Forces, other Americans marched in the streets to protest the war.
  • The United States nearly doubled in size with the Louisiana Purchase. The staggering purchase price of fifteen million dollars was actually a bargain, as it amounted to about four cents per acre. Once the purchase was finalized, the next question was: what did the United States actually buy? President Thomas Jefferson tasked Meriwether Lewis with exploring the land west of the Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean. Lewis chose William Clark as his co-leader. The Corps of Discovery set off from Camp Dubois, outside of St. Louis, Missouri, on May 14, 1804. It would be two years before they returned.
  • When the Civil War ended, Ulysses S. Grant was a national hero and a logical candidate for president. He won the election of 1868. On this date in 1872, he won a second term in an election that had major ramifications for Dakota Territory.