Lise Erdrich

Born in 1897, Carl Ben Eielson grew up in the small town of Hatton, North Dakota. In 1903 the Wright brothers invented and flew the first "flying machine." Eielson was fascinated with airplanes since childhood. In 1917, during World War I, Eielson enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Service. By the time he completed flight school, the war was over.

William Gardner was a Turtle Mountain Chippewa from North Dakota, born in 1884. He attended Carlisle Indian School in Pennsylvania and excelled in academics and athletics. He was on the famed "Carlisle Indians" football and track teams with Jim Thorpe, future Olympic legend. From 1904 to 1908, Carlisle defeated top football teams including Yale, Harvard, Princeton and Pennsylvania State.

On this date in 1876, the Battle of the Little Bighorn commenced. It was over quickly. Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer and 7th Cavalry forces met an overwhelming force of Lakota and Northern Cheyenne warriors. Custer's outfit was annihilated: 268 dead, including six Crow and Arikara scouts; 55 severely wounded, six dying soon.

On this date in 1929, Joseph Blanding was still living in the family farmhouse at the south end of Wahpeton. He gave a talk to the Wilkin County Historical Society that was later published in the local paper. Joseph came to the area in 1872 at age nine, before Wahpeton was settled.

On this date in 1899, the Wahpeton Globe noted, “The law enforcement league cleaned the gamblers and sure-thing men out of Fargo last week, and the soiled doves took flight, many of them lighting down on Wahpeton and Breckenridge. The wave of reform will soon blow over, and the old familiar faces will be seen in their accustomed places by those looking for them.”

Reeder, Wolfe, and Wasche came to Wahpeton during the boomtown years and became very wealthy. They envisioned the civilizing influence of a massive brick opera house on the corner of Dakota Avenue, the main street of the rowdy frontier town. Key to the venture were several railroad lines running daily to cities where acclaimed dramatic and musical acts were based. Entertainers and audiences could arrive and depart on tracks behind the building.

Some of us are old enough to remember making little paper baskets, filling them with candy, placing them on doorsteps, ringing the doorbell, and running away to avoid being kissed on May 1. Another local tradition was the annual May Day festival at Wahpeton Indian School.

On this date in 1952, the public was invited to a tree planting ceremony on the state capitol grounds at Bismarck. The Washington, DC Evening Star reported that North Dakotans were dedicating a tree by the Senate entrance to mark the 50th anniversary of the National Reclamation Law sponsored by Senator Henry Hansbrough. Members of the North Dakota congressional delegation and their staff participated in the ceremony.

On this date in 1908, newspapers published a proclamation by North Dakota Governor John Burk, establishing an annual Arbor Day celebration.

In February of 1898, Mrs. Ina Cooks of Detroit, Michigan, came to Wahpeton. Her purpose was to establish the 90-day residency required for divorce in North Dakota. She rented rooms and lived quietly until the court proceedings in June.