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North Dakota Local Customs
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North Dakota Local Customs

red, white and blue propane - North Dakota
red, white and blue propane
by zrim
Learn the local customs of North Dakota. Tips and photos posted by real travelers and North Dakota locals.
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Down and out in North Dakota
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    • zrim
  • By zrim on August 24, 2003
  • North Dakota Page by zrim
    • a relic of the past or a vision of the future? - North Dakota
    a relic of the past or a
    vision of the future?
    by zrim
    Someone built this farmhouse out of sturdy materials, but the years of neglect and the ravages of time and weather have taken their toll. I'm sure that the original occupants had high hopes that their hard work and toil would one day reap a just reward. Unfortunately, there is not much wealth to be had farming the harsh climate of North Dakota.

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    Buffalo hide painting
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    • zrim
  • By zrim on August 7, 2003
  • North Dakota Page by zrim
    • Hidatsa art - North Dakota
    Hidatsa art
    by zrim
    Buffalo hides were painted by the men of the Hidatsa tribe (and other northern plains indian nations). The resulting artwork might portray an autobiographical story of the man's life or perhaps a dream sequence or maybe just a tribute to the spirits. One can imagine working on the tough buffalo hides all winter long as blizzards and sub-zero temperatures prevented much activity beyond the shelter of the earthlodges.

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    Looking out from an earthlodge
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    • zrim
  • Updated By zrim on August 5, 2003
  • North Dakota Page by zrim
    • it is permitted to enter the lodges - North Dakota
    it is permitted to enter
    the lodges
    by zrim
    It was a good ten degrees cooler inside the lodge than outside under the blaring mid-summer sun. The earthlodges sat cheek-by-jowl to each other with just a few feet separating the lodges. The resulting effect must have looked something like an inverted egg carton.

    Lewis and Clark camped here in 1804, but the Mandans had moved far upriver by that time and this was a deserted village.

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    Rudimentary fortifications
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    • zrim
  • By zrim on August 5, 2003
  • North Dakota Page by zrim
    • to keep thieves at bay - North Dakota
    to keep thieves at bay
    by zrim
    Reconstruction is under way on the simple pole walls that encircled the perimeter of the village. The portion shown here would have been maybe one thirtieth the size of the actual walls. The Mandans were not warriors. They plied the Missouri River with goods and were a trading society. Yet any successful town would have had to guard against attack in the middle of the night.

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    Entrance to earthlodge at On-A-Slant Village
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    • zrim
  • By zrim on August 5, 2003
  • North Dakota Page by zrim
    • Mandan earthlodge - North Dakota
    Mandan earthlodge
    by zrim
    The Mandan earthlodges were very efficient homes. The mounds of earth piled on top of the planks of wood provided excellant cooling in the summer and extraordinary protection from the harsh winter. A buffalo hide curtained the entry way and probably provided as much insulation as our modern storm doors. The earthlodges were big enough to house an extended family of up to ten people or so.

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    The short life of Fort Abraham Lincoln
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    • zrim
  • By zrim on August 5, 2003
  • North Dakota Page by zrim
    • not so old watch tower - North Dakota
    not so old watch tower
    by zrim
    This frontier calvary outpost was established in 1872. The high plains was the scene of bitter conflict between the U.S. army and the remnants of the plains indians. George Custer rode out from this fort to his demise at Little Big Horn. By 1891 the conflicts were a memory and the fort was de-commissioned. The buildings were left to rot and nothing original now stands at the sight. Even the the Custer home which is located below this escarpment is a reconstruction. During the 1870s and 1880s this high ground housed the Seventh Calvary which was a thousand men strong (Custer left the fort with a force of 850 in 1876). The guard tower seen in the photo is nothing more than a re-creation of the type of building that stood here in the 1800s--the originals laid to waste long ago.

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    Be wary of wearisome tour guides
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    • zrim
  • Updated By zrim on August 5, 2003
  • North Dakota Page by zrim
    • Becky wanted to throttle the guide - North Dakota
    Becky wanted to throttle the
    guide
    by zrim
    We were led to believe by the rangers that the only access to On-A-Slant Village was by a guided group tour. We patiently waited and were blessed with a group that included a two year old and several four and five year olds. Apparently, the tour guide had been taught to talk down to the lowest intellectual level present in the group. Therefore, we were subjected to much tiresome dialogue between the guide and the toddler. Becky grew cranky, so I nudged Becky to make a break for it when were holed up in an earthlodge with the group. We succeeded in ditching the group and explored the rest of the grounds on our own.

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    Don't doubt the patriotism of North Dakotans
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    • zrim
  • By zrim on August 23, 2003
  • North Dakota Page by zrim
    • red, white and blue propane - North Dakota
    red, white and blue propane
    by zrim
    My feeling is that the typical North Dakotan is fiercely independent and fiercely patriotic. In the hinterlands the only reasonable method of heating the home during the winter months is a large tank of propane. Most such propane tanks are a ghastly gray. This family has taken the time to show their colors--even though there are only a handful of people likely to drive by their home on any given day,

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    North Dakota Roadside Humor
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    • Stephen-KarenConn
  • Updated By Stephen-KarenConn on February 25, 2005
  • North Dakota Page by Stephen-KarenConn
    • Stephen on the Open Range - North Dakota
    Stephen on the Open Range
    by Stephen-KarenConn
    The people of North Dakota live in one of the least populated parts of the United States with some of the worst weather, but you certainly can't say they don't have a great sense of humor. Along the highways of North Dakota you will find numerous huge fiberglass sculptures of cows, prairie chickens, buffalo and other creatures - put there just for the fun of it. Also individual ranchers and farmers often make humerous monuments in their fields using bales of hay, old farm implements, or whatever they have at hand.

    I had to stop when I saw this "open range" along one secondary highway in a remote part of the state. The open range refers to the time when there were no fences and cattle roamed freely upon the range. Instead of being divided by fences, the herds were branded and the new calves sorted out with their mothers at round-up time. The open range is all but gone now in the American West, but the folks in North Dakota still know how to have a good laugh.

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  • Website: www.minot.com/~nasen/humor/from_nd.html
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    If you make poopies when being...
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    • american_tourister
  • By american_tourister on August 25, 2002
  • North Dakota Page by american_tourister
    • If you make poopies when being held by the baby sitter, make it quiet and non stinky. Otherwise she changes you and she is not very gentle. Wait for mom.

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