At one time, catching frogs in North Dakota was big business.
In 1923, it was reported that a Lisbon man was making good money catching frogs and shipping them to eastern markets. He found the business quite lucrative. He said he shipped forty pounds of frog legs every day. Packed in ice, they arrived at their destinations in good condition. September, he said, was the best month to catch frogs. He planned to continue working along the Sheyenne River until it froze.
There was high demand for frog legs in upscale restaurants. A 1910 newspaper article reported that twelve and a half tons of frog legs were consumed in Detroit restaurants the previous year. It was such big business that, during the 1920s, an illegal frog-bootlegging syndicate was operating in Minnesota.
At the time, Minnesota law prohibited shipping frogs out of the state. The state fish and game commissioner said frogs were being illegally sent to eastern markets. The North Dakota Game Commissioner estimated that the state’s frog business had earned between fifty thousand and seventy-five thousand dollars in the previous year.
On this date in 1925, frogs could breathe a little easier as new frog laws were announced. With the season opening on June 1, there were plenty of questions from frog hunters trying to understand the new rules.
The period from April 1 to May 31 was now closed to hunting. Frogs had to measure at least two and a half inches from nose to the base of the spinal column. Anything smaller was off limits. And, frog hunters had to buy a frog-hunting license for fifty cents.
Frog legs are no longer common fare in American restaurants, though they remain traditional in the South. Occasionally, they appear on menus as a delicacy.
Today, about five million frogs are imported to the U.S. from Asia each year a number far short of the twelve and a half tons consumed in Detroit in 1910.
Frog hunting still takes place in North Dakota, though not at the scale seen in the early 1900s. Any resident or a member of the resident’s family can hunt frogs on their own property during open season. Anyone with a fishing license can also hunt frogs, and may take up to twenty-four frogs.
Dakota Datebook by Dr. Carole Butcher
Sources:
- Bismarck Tribune. “Frog Catching Business Pays.” Bismarck ND. 8/20/1923. Page 7.
- Bismarck Tribune. “Frog Catching Season Opens; Permits Ready. Bismarck ND. 6/4/1925. Page 1.
- Bismarck Tribune. “Bootlegging of Frogs Done in Minnesota.” Bismarck ND. 2/11/1926. Page 1.
- Hope Pioneer. “Record is Unique.” Hope ND. 9/15/1910. Page 5.
- Ecotone. “Frog legs: more than just a culinary curiosity.” https://esa.org/esablog/2010/10/11/frog-legs-more-than-just-a-culinary-curiosity/ Accessed 5/2/2025.
- LawServer. “North Dakota Code.” https://www.lawserver.com/law/state/north-dakota/nd-code/north_dakota_code_20-1_03_04-1 Accessed 5/2/2025.
