Category

1875–1876; George Egbert 1876–1877; Evan S. Tyler 1877–1880; George Egbert 1880–1882; Jasper B. Chapin 1882–1883; William A. Kindred 1883–1885; Woodford A. Yerxa 1885–1886; John A. Johnson 1886–1887; Charles Scott 1887–1888; Alanson W. Edwards 1888–1890; Seth Newman 1890–1892; Wilbur F. Ball 1892–1894; Emerson H. Smith 1894–1896; Wilbur F. Ball 1896–1902; John A. Johnson 1902–1904; William D. Sweet The NDSU Archives

During the early years of Fargo, many political notables made their way through the town, including Presidents Rutherford B. Hayes and Chester A. Arthur, and former president, Gen. Ulysses S. Grant. In 1883, Grant made a stop in Fargo en route to Montana, where he was to be one of the dignitaries present for the driving of the golden spike to mark the completion of the NP mainline to the West Coast.  He offered these

Alanson William Edwards  moved from Illinois to Fargo in 1878 to establish The Republican, a new newspaper. During his early years in Fargo, he managed The Republican, but then sold it and used the proceeds to launch The Argus.  In 1891, after losing The Argus to James J Hill, Edwards launched The Forum.[1]   Although Edwards was not necessarily a reformer, the opinions expressed in both the Argus and The Forum promo

Sidewalks were one of the important issues at the top of the “to-do” list that the Fargo City Council had to stay on top of. Wet weather and sticky North Dakota clay played an important role in the urgency of addressing this issue. Most sidewalks were six feet wide, but streets like Broadway, Northern Pacific Avenue, as well as other streets with heavy foot traffic were equipped with ten-foot sidewalks.[1] In 1875 th

The Dakota Territory was the divorce capitol of the west up until 1899.  This was due to the fact that this area was believed to be a place where people could go to start a new life and the legislation echoed this belief.  The first legislation gave immediate access to divorces in 1866, but was later lengthened to three months in 1877.[1]  With the railroad running through Fargo it was easy for couples to establish r

In 2007, the Fargo Forum asked a five person panel of local historians to name the five most influential individuals in the history of Fargo-Moorhead. At the top of the list was Alexander Stern.[1]Originally from Germany, Stern moved to Fargo in 1881, and started his career in Fargo as a local retailer by opening a clothing store. In 1885, he moved this clothing store to the corner of Broadway and N. P. Avenue. He wa

George Nichols was born in Brattleboro, Vermont in 1856. He moved to Marshal, Minnesota to work in a hotel, where he stayed until he moved to Fargo in 1878 and became a clerk at the Headquarters Hotel. Working behind the desk, he became popular with the people of Fargo and did his best to talk to every man who wandered into the hotel. After many years of working at the hotel, in 1885 he took the County Deputy Treasur