Timeline of Fargo, North Dakota

The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Fargo, North Dakota, USA.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

## Prior to 20th century[edit]

* 1670 – Rupert's Land, or Prince Rupert's Land, is a territory established in British North America comprising the Hudson Bay drainage basin.
* 1811 – The Selkirk Concession (a land grant issued by the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) to Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk) begins the Red River Colony colonization project.
* 1871 – A.H. Moore's house (residence) built.[1]
* 1873
* Headquarters Hotel in business.[1][2]
* Cass County established.
* January 5, 1875
* Fargo incorporated in Dakota Territory.[3]
* First Cass County Courthouse built.[1][4]
* 1876 – Population: 600.[5]
* 1880
* Fargo Daily Times newspaper begins publication.[6]
* Population: 2,693.[1]
* 1889 – Town becomes part of the new U.S. state of North Dakota.
* 1890 – North Dakota Agricultural College opens.[7]
* 1891
* North Dakota Agricultural College College Hall (Old Main) is built.
* Concordia College founded in nearby Moorhead, Minnesota.
* 1893
* June 7: Fire.[5]
* Mechanical Arts Building built on North Dakota Agricultural College campus.
* Opera house built.[1]
* 1894 – Fargo Forum and Daily Republican newspaper in publication.[6]
* 1897 – North Dakota Harness Company in business.[8]
* 1898
* Fargo Golf Club formed.[1]
* Fram Norwegian-language newspaper in publication.[6]
* Northern Pacific Railway Depot is built.
* 1899 – Cathedral of St. Mary built.[1]

## 20th century[edit]

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (December 2014)

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* 1900 – Population: 9,589;[1] county 28,625.[9]
* 1903
* Public Library built.[8]
* St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran church founded.[1]
* 1904 – Fargo Street Railway begins operating.[8]
* 1906
* The Cass County Jail is built.[10]
* State Fair begins.[8]
* Grand Theater opens.[11]
* 1908 – St. Luke's Hospital opens.
* 1912
* April: Preacher Billy Sunday visits town.[8]
* July: Sangerfest (song festival) held.[8]
* 1914 – Princess Theatre opens.[11]
* 1915 – The Ford Building is built.[12]
* 1917
* Woodrow Wilson High School built and established.
* John Miller Baer becomes U.S. representative for North Dakota's 1st congressional district.[13]
* 1920
* Pence Automobile Company Warehouse built.
* Population: 21,961;[3] county 41,477.[9]
* 1922 – WDAY radio begins broadcasting.[1]
* 1926
* June 26: Gustaf of Sweden visits town.[8]
* Fargo Theatre built.
* 1927 – August 26: Charles Lindbergh visits town.[8]
* 1928 – Regan Brothers Bakery in business.[8]
* 1929 – Veterans' Hospital built.[1]
* 1930 – Post Office and Courthouse built.[1]
* 1931
* Black Building in Downtown Fargo is built.
* Fargo Civic Orchestra established.
* 1935 – Dovre Ski Slide erected.[1]
* 1938 – Dacotah Field opens on the North Dakota State University campus.
* 1939 – June: Olav of Norway visits town.[8]
* 1940 – November 7: Duke Ellington at Fargo, 1940 Live recorded.
* 1948
* KFGO radio begins broadcasting.
* American Crystal Sugar Company factory begins operating in nearby Moorhead, Minnesota.[14]
* 1954 – Herschel Lashkowitz becomes mayor.
* 1955 – Dacotah Field is moved to the NDSU North Campus.
* 1957 – 1957 Fargo tornado.
* 1960 – North Dakota State University active.
* 1964 – Public educational KFME (TV) begins broadcasting.[15]
* 1966 – Fargo North High School and Daughters of Dakota Pioneers[16] established.
* 1969 – Red River Valley Genealogical Society founded.[17]
* 1970
* Bison Sports Arena built.
* Population: 53,365; county 73,653.[9]
* 1972 – West Acres Shopping Center in business.
* 1974 – Sister city relationship established with Hamar, Norway.[18]
* 1975 – Plains Art Museum founded.[17][15]
* 1978 – Jon Lindgren becomes mayor.
* 1983 – Greater Fargo-Moorhead Area Food Bank established.[2][19]
* 1986 – Hector Airport terminal built.[8]
* 1987 – Sister city relationship established with Vimmerby, Sweden.[18]
* 1990 – Historic Preservation Commission established.[3]
* 1992 – Fargodome stadium opens.
* 1996
* Newman Outdoor Field opens.
* Sundog company opened for business.
* Fictional Fargo film released.
* 1997 – April: 1997 Red River flood.
* 1998 – City website online (approximate date).[20][chronology citation needed]

## 21st century[edit]

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (December 2014)

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* 2000 – Population: 90,599.[21]
* 2004 – The Ed Schultz Show (radio program) begins broadcasting.
* 2006 – Dennis Walaker becomes mayor.[22]
* 2007 – Open magazine begins publication.
* 2008 – Scheels Arena, initially known as "The Urban Plains Center" is built.
* 2009 – 2009 Red River flood.[23]
* 2010 – Population: 105,549.[24]
* 2013
* Dakotah Field is renovated.
* Sanford Medical Center construction begins.
* Kevin Cramer becomes U.S. representative for North Dakota's at-large congressional district.
* 2014 – Tim Mahoney becomes mayor.
* 2016 – Bison Sports Arena is renovated and reopens as Scheels Center for the 2016-17 season.
* 2017 – Pride parade begins (approximate date).[25]
* 2020 – RDO Building is built and becomes the tallest building in Fargo at 235 feet.
* 2021 – Woodrow Wilson High School renamed to "Dakota High School"[26]
* 2023 – Lashkowitz High Rise is demolished.

## See also[edit]

* Fargo history
* List of mayors of Fargo, North Dakota

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Federal Writers' Project 1938: "Fargo"
2. ^ "Headquarters Hotel". Library.NDSU.EDU. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
3. ^ a b Wishart 2004.
4. ^ "Cass County Courthouse". Library.NDSU.EDU. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
5. ^ a b "Brief glimpse into Fargo's early history". City of Fargo. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
6. ^ a b c "US Newspaper Directory". Chronicling America. Washington DC: Library of Congress. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
7. ^ Federal Writers' Project 1938, p. 339: "Chronology"
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k NDSU Archives. "Fargo, North Dakota: its History and Images". North Dakota State University. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
9. ^ a b c "North Dakota: Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". Fargo city, North Dakota QuickLinks. State & County QuickFacts. US Census Bureau. 1995.
10. ^ "Cass County Jail". Retrieved May 6, 2024.
11. ^ a b "Movie Theaters in Fargo, ND". CinemaTreasures.org. Los Angeles: Cinema Treasures LLC. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
12. ^ "Ford Building". Library.NDSU.EDU. Retrieved April 7, 2024.
13. ^ "North Dakota". Official Congressional Directory: 65th Congress. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. 1918. hdl:2027/mdp.39015022758281.
14. ^ "Historical Timeline". Moorhead, MN: American Crystal Sugar Company. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
15. ^ a b Mike Tigas and Sisi Wei, ed. (9 May 2013). "Fargo, North Dakota". Nonprofit Explorer. New York: ProPublica. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
16. ^ "Institute Finding Aids: Local and Ethnic History". Institute for Regional Studies Archives. Fargo: North Dakota State University, Libraries. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
17. ^ a b American Association for State and Local History (2002). "North Dakota: Fargo". Directory of Historical Organizations in the United States and Canada. Rowman Altamira. ISBN 0759100020.
18. ^ a b "Fargo Sister Cities". City of Fargo. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
19. ^ "North Dakota Food Banks". Food Bank Locator. Chicago: Feeding America. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
20. ^ "City of Fargo". Archived from the original on 1998-12-12 - via Internet Archive, Wayback Machine.
21. ^ "Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000". Fargo city, North Dakota QuickLinks. State & County QuickFacts. US Census Bureau.
22. ^ "Fargo, ND, mayor known for flood fights dies at 73". Washington Post. December 2, 2014. Archived from the original on December 3, 2014.
23. ^ "Midwestern floods: Fargo's frantic efforts are the latest chapter in a long struggle". The Economist. April 2, 2009.
24. ^ "Fargo (city), North Dakota". State & County QuickFacts. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on November 1, 2014. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
25. ^ "Fargo's LGBT residents: 'Our marriage is not worth the paper it's written on". The Guardian. August 21, 2014.
26. ^ Aupperle, Katherine (2020-12-08). "Woodrow Wilson High School renamed Dakota High School". Valley News Live. Retrieved 2021-12-21.

## Bibliography[edit]

Published in the 20th century

* Federal Writers' Project (1938), "Fargo", North Dakota: a Guide to the Northern Prairie State, American Guide Series, State Historical Society of North Dakota, ISBN 9780403021833 - via Google Books`{{citation}}`: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link). + Chronology
* A Century Together: A History of Fargo, North Dakota, and Moorhead, Minnesota, Fargo-Moorhead Centennial Corporation (1975)
* Fargo-Moorhead: A Guide to Historic Architecture, R. Ramsey (1975)
* Fargo's Heritage, N. Roberts (1983)
* History and Growth of the City of Fargo: Historic Context Study, by Tim Holzkamm and Dean Dormanen, 1993. Revised and edited by David Danbom, 2001.
* Crossings: A Photographic Document of Fargo, North Dakota, C. McMullen & D. Arntson, et al. (1995)

Published in the 21st century

* "Fargo, North Dakota", CMJ New Music Monthly, July 2000
* The History and Growth of the City of Fargo, T. Holzkamm & D. Dormanen; D. Danbom (2001)
* Fargo, North Dakota: From Frontier Village to All-America City, 1875–2000, Heritage Publications (2001)
* Images of America: Fargo, North Dakota 1870–1940, D. Danbom & C. Strom (2002)
* David J. Wishart, ed. (2004). "Cities and Towns: Fargo, North Dakota". Encyclopedia of the Great Plains. University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 0-8032-4787-7.
* David B. Danbom (2005). Going it Alone: Fargo Grapples with the Great Depression. Minnesota Historical Society. ISBN 978-0-87351-546-7.
* Carroll L. Engelhardt (2007). Gateway to the Northern Plains: Railroads and the Birth of Fargo and Moorhead. University of Minnesota Press. ISBN 978-1-4529-1297-4.

## External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fargo, North Dakota.

* John Caron (ed.). "Fargo, North Dakota: its History and Images". Fargo: North Dakota State University, Libraries.
* Items related to Fargo, various dates (via Digital Public Library of America).