Christina Sunwall

3/17/2009: It was a warm, sunny morning on this date in 1862; not a cloud in sight. But inside the legislative buildings, a storm was brewing.

3/6/2009: Behind every good man stands a great woman. That's certainly the case for George Armstrong Custer, a prominent figure in the history of Dakota Territory. Whatever your opinion of the general, his wife, Elizabeth Bacon Custer, played an undeniably crucial role in his professional achievements. Like many of her peers, Libbie made it her duty to help her husband advance his career.

3/4/2009: In 1938, William Beadle was memorialized with a statue in the US Capitol Building at Washington DC. While remembered largely for his work as an educator in Dakota Territory, the statue also honors his stint as a soldier in the Civil War. It was in this role, fighting for the Union, that Beadle experienced one of his most memorable encounters.

2/28/2009: The rider gives a signal. The pen door opens and the bull charges out as the crowd looks on with bated breath.

2/25/2009: You're standing on stage with a microphone resting comfortably in hand as the crowd screams for an encore.

2/20/2009: Henry Hastings Sibley, born on this date in 1811, left his mark on the Northern Plains. After serving as Minnesota’s first governor, he participated in the US-Dakota Conflict of 1862 and led the punitive expedition against the Dakota the following year.

2/19/2009: A 1928 Time magazine article dubbed Thomas Campbell the “Henry Ford of farming.” It was a fitting tribute to the internationally renowned “Wheat King,” born in Dakota Territory on this date in 1882.

2/14/2009: After the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his name became popular for counties, towns, schools and streets. Perhaps too popular. Over the course of the 20th century, several towns in North Dakota have claimed the President’s name.

2/13/2009: If you tune in regularly to Dakota Datebook, you’ve likely heard of Smith Stimmel. Starting his career as a personal bodyguard to President Abraham Lincoln, he later moved to Fargo where he practiced law and served as president of the Dakota Territorial Council.

2/12/2009: Dr. William Jayne owed much of his political success to President Abraham Lincoln.