Jill Whitcomb

On this date in 1910, the pioneer town of Timmer established a Post Office. Located along the Northern Pacific railroad about twelve miles southeast of Flasher, the town was named after C. L. Timmerman, a Mandan banker, rancher and merchant.

9/27/2010: "Celebrate Your Freedom to Read" is the motto used in many libraries this week to promote Banned Books Week. Banned Books Week is part of the American Library Association's goal to "keep the concept of literary freedom at the forefront of Americans' minds."

7/1/2010: Some claim a shivaree is an old Appalachian custom performed in the 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots based in 16th century France. Gaelic sources claim a shivaree (or in Gaelic, a "sibh a ri") is an Old Irish custom. And others claim the word shivaree is derived from a Late Latin word that simply means "headache."

6/28/2010: The American flag was raised, and decorations of sandbags, flowers and trees were in place. More than 1,200 teenagers from the Grand Forks area entered under the arches of the Air Force Honor Guard's raised swords. And the prom of the century began.

5/6/2010: It was four years ago on this date that students, educators, curiosity seekers and the press flocked to far western North Dakota. The Badlands, with its rocky and uneven terrain, was chosen for its similarity to Mars, the Red Planet, for the unveiling of a Mars spacesuit prototype.

4/16/2010: In the late 1940s, a penny went a long way. With just five cents, a child could wander to his local grocery store and treat himself to a Hershey chocolate bar. Moms could buy Kellogg's Corn Flakes for just 12 cents a box. But it was in the late 1940s that school children across North Dakota pooled their pennies for a greater cause.

3/15/2010: The winter of 2008-2009 is remembered as bitterly cold. Sub-zero temperatures with massive snowfall. In that kind of nasty wintery weather, North Dakotans are thankful for such inventions as polar fleece, Thinsulate, and engine block heaters. But back in the 1920s, those helpful inventions that keep us so toasty and safe were not around.

3/3/2010: A leisurely drive through downtown Grand Forks showcases some of the city's most unique and interesting architecture. There is the Art Deco-style United Lutheran Church, on the corner of Chestnut Street and 4th Avenue. The old Presbyterian Church, with its Greek Revival style, looms like a castle, complete with gargoyles, at the corner of 5th Street and Belmont Road. There's also the Masonic Temple on Bruce Avenue. These Grand Forks landmarks, among many others, can be credited to one man - Joseph Bell DeRemer.

2/18/2010: In Italy, it is known as Barba di Frate. In Japan, it's a crop of some importance, and is known as okahijiki. The leaves and shoots of the Salsola genus can be used in sushi or in salads. But, regardless of culinary taste, North Dakotans think of this large flowering plant as nothing more than a pest. The Russian Thistle, or tumbleweed, has been causing havoc in our state for over 100 years.

12/14/2009: Everyone is familiar with North Dakota State University, located in north Fargo, but back in the early 1920s, the school was known as the North Dakota Agricultural College, or the "A.C." The college advertised itself as "North Dakota's Institute of Technology, designated for the training of Vocational Teachers under the Smith-Hughes Act, offering thirteen Baccalaureate curricula."