These Rare Photos Of The Pioneer Days In North Dakota Will Open Your Eyes To A Different Time
We’ve explored much of North Dakota in the 1900s, from the 30s to the 70s, through old photographs here so far. And we’ve even gone back a little further than that a few times. But now, we’re going to go back into some of the state’s earliest days – before it even was a state. Back in the 1850s and up until the 1890s, North Dakota was a vast land that was seen in the eyes of the settlers as a “wonderland” for farming and life. It wasn’t even North Dakota yet, as it was still connected to South Dakota as the single, large Dakota Territory.
Photography wasn’t quite as widespread then, so photographs of it are scarce, but we have compiled some of these rare photos showcasing what life was like then. You’ll notice a lot of them are double images side-by-side. These were “stereoscopic” to be viewed with a stereoscope, in order to see them with a 3D effect. You won’t get that here, but because of these popular images back in the day, many were able to be saved and preserved so we may view them here.
We’re aware that these uncertain times are limiting many aspects of life. While we continue to feature destinations that make our state wonderful, please take proper precautions or add them to your bucket list to see at a later date. If you know of a local business that could use some extra support during these times, please nominate them here: onlyinyourstate.com/nominate
1. A very busy and very early Bismarck. This huge crowd was all one traveling party arriving in the then budding town, in 1883.
7. Very distant vantage point sight of Bismarck, with an interesting figure with a bison skull in the foreground. There is no skyscraper on the prairie yet, just short houses, buildings, and tents.
Leah moved to North Dakota when she was 12 years old and has traveled from the Red River Valley to the badlands and many places in between. She loves small-town life and currently enjoys living on a small farm in the ND prairie. She's always had a passion for writing and has participated in novel writing challenges such as NaNoWriMo multiple times. Her favorite part about this job is recognizing small businesses that deserve a boost and seeing the positive affect her articles can have on their traffic, especially in rural areas that might have otherwise gone overlooked.
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