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8/1/2006: People who grew up in the German Russian regions of the state likely knew at least one person who either moved to Lodi, California, or who had relatives there. This was the result of a quest by Wilhelm Adam Hieb, who became known as “Columbus” for encouraging others to join him there.

8/4/2006: A would-be-bandit was reported to have met with a terrifying change of plans on this day in 1911 in Valley City, North Dakota. The man was thought to have been a stranger to the vicinity, merely passing through the area. He was reported to have been in the city for only a very short time, but it would not be farfetched to say that he would remember his stop in Valley City for a long time to come.

8/8/2006: For nearly 60 years, Home On The Range (HOTR) at Sentinel Butte has been helping troubled, neglected and abused children turn their lives around. This unique ranch home, on the edge of the beautiful North Dakota Badlands, gives these children calming solitude and time with nature.

8/11/2006: Walt Neuens was born in Medora on this date in 1911, and grew up in the North Dakota Badlands. Along with his brother and a friend, he began working for a Wild West show when he was just 14.

8/18/2006: George Bruington, 2002 North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame rodeo inductee, was destined for rodeo. For 73 years, he participated as a competitor, judge, pick-up man, clown and stock contractor.

8/25/2006: People from across the state and across the nation gathered in North Dakota this week in 1977 for a safari. Representatives came from Cincinnati, Los Angeles, Seattle, St. Paul and Bismarck for the big event. At least three women wore safari hats as they, and many others, roamed the plains of Ramsey County. Yet, it seemed an unlikely place for a safari, even though wild game was abundant in North Dakota. Their prey, however, was not large game, but macaroni.

9/1/2006: A large, glowing red cross was suspended from an airplane as it flew through the streets of Fargo. The plane preceded and later followed a parade of men clad in white robes and hoods. Because of a North Dakota state law that forbade concealment of faces during a parade, marchers were forced to abandon their customary masks. Following the parade, these members of the Ku Klux Klan again congregated at the Fargo fairgrounds to continue the Kass Kounty Klan konklave. In the meantime, the plane circled the fairgrounds and staged a short pageant during which three crosses were set afire. The evening meeting of the Kass Kounty Klan was open to the public and was about to begin. Awaiting their arrival were other Klansmen who had stayed and listened to the “great titan,” or district leader, Judge Wallace Campbell of Bismarck speak.

9/5/2006: It was a grandiose project, but in the midst of the Great Depression, the citizens of North Dakota, as well as the rest of the nation, were willing to do anything to alleviate the hardships of those years. The latest plan that would help provide jobs and prevent future droughts was to plant a 100-mile wide shelterbelt through the Midwest. The belt would stretch from the Canadian border to the Texas panhandle. Plans were moving forward accordingly, and it was reported today in 1935 that the state shelterbelt office was moved to Jamestown.

9/6/2006: When Jack Aldrich pulled up to the short, dark-complexioned man in Valley City one night in 1927, it was just another fare for his taxi line. The man wanted to go to a farm just outside of town, and Jack complied. Before he had even reached the farm, however, the man decided to change destinations. The man pulled a gun on Jack and instructed him to drive a short distance to a certain spot and honk his horn four times. Jack was forced to do this several times before two men finally emerged from the weeds and climbed into the taxi. Jack was blindfolded and gagged, and held hostage in his own taxi.

9/11/2006: The residents of Bowbells and the surrounding area were armed with shovels in 1908 and were determined to find buried treasure. A story from the late 1800s was revived, and according to that story, a paymaster for the Hudson’s Bay Company was robbed in Canada while delivering salaries to men at several trading posts throughout the country. The loot was rumored to be about $40,000, and was never recovered, even after the robber was captured near Big Butte, 12 miles south of Bowbells.