Michelle Holien

6/22/2016: The flickertail ground-squirrel has always been a common sight across North Dakota’s prairies, what with its twitching-whiskers and sharp movements, darting across pastures and road-ditches. It is famous for flicking, or jerking, its tail while running – or before zipping down a gopher hole. Although small in stature, these rodents flourished in such massive numbers that they lent the “Flickertail State” its nickname for decades. However, farmers detested flickertails because the little varmints feasted on wheat-kernels, causing big income losses.

5/18/2016: Few things can offer better excitement for a youngster in small-town North Dakota than a trip to the movie theatre for the latest in cinema extravagance. This wondrous feeling still exists in Cando thanks to the Municipal Auditorium, more commonly known to townspeople as “The Audi.”

4/18/2016: North Dakotans have not always been privileged to own cars and tractors. Before such luxuries existed, horses served as the main means of travel; and they pulled plows and hauled heavy loads on farms. Buying and selling horses was a vital part of life even after automobiles and tractors became common.

3/10/2016: Located along U.S. Highway 2 west of Devils Lake, the town of Churchs Ferry has struggled to remain intact. To passersby, at first glance, Churchs Ferry appears to be abandoned.

1/22/2016: In 1898, the city of New York grew into “Greater New York” when Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, the Bronx and Manhattan joined in one of the biggest consolidations of its time. It became the world’s second-largest city with a multitude of fascinating things happening – fine-art, architectural grandeur, booming business, flourishing museums and libraries.

12/28/2015: Durum wheat from North Dakota makes some of the world’s greatest pasta and noodles, but for decades, those oodles of noodles were made outside the state. In fact, on this date in 1911, the Grand Forks Herald touted the quality of the “Minnesota” brand of macaroni and spaghetti that was so good that even little children would “want it three times a day.”