Author: Gowan

Are you a Good Lake or a Bad Lake?

If North Dakota were a pan of brownies cut in nine pieces, Devils Lake would be the inside corner of the upper right-hand piece. It is a problematic place in several ways, beginning with its name. The Dakota tribe that lived here before the Europeans showed up called it “Spirit Lake”, but the whites morphed that into the much less poetic Devils Lake. That moniker fit better into their opinion of the Indians I suppose.

Continue reading “Central North Dakota – Devils Lake & Fort Totten”

In my time in the state, I learned that North Dakota is about three things: Agriculture, Air Force and Indians. (It turns out there is a fourth, but more about that in another post)

The Eastern border of North Dakota is formed by the Red River and dominated by two sizable cities on its banks.  To the South is Fargo, at the intersection of the only two Interstates that cross the state. Fargo boasts the top North Dakota population of 120 thousand, about the same as Athens, GA. The economy of Fargo is based on healthcare and education. To the North lies Grand Forks, where most folks work for the government. Specifically, a lot of them work at the Grand Forks Air Force Base.

Continue reading “Nuclear North Dakota – Cooperstown to Nekoma”