Dakota

K. Risjord Norman

Description

The northern plains are often ignored by the rest of the nation or, if not, are mentioned in the context of the weather, Mount Rushmore, or the Black Hills. However, North Dakota and South Dakota have a colorful past—and present—deserving of greater recognition.

Norman K. Risjord relates the remarkable histories of these two states, from the geological formation of the Great Plains to economic changes in the twenty-first century. Risjord takes the reader on a journey through the centuries detailing the first human inhabitants of the northern plains, the Lewis and Clark expedition, homesteading and railroad building, the political influence of the Progressive movement, the building of Mount Rushmore, and Wounded Knee II. Included are stories of such noteworthy characters as French explorer Vérendrye, the Lakota leader Red Cloud, North Dakota political boss Alexander McKenzie, and South Dakota Democrat George S. McGovern.

Despite the shared topography and the rivers that course through both states, the diverse reactions of the two states to the challenges of the twentieth century provide opportunities for arresting comparisons. This captivating look at the Dakotas’ geography, ecology, politics, and culture is essential reading for Dakotans and those interested in the rich history of this important region.

Purchase the audio edition.

Sujets

• Histoire
• Dakota del Sur
• Dakota del Norte
• Local history
• Regional geography
• Midwestern United States
• Indigenous peoples
• South Dakota
• North Dakota
• History of the Americas
• Dakota du Sud
• Dakota du Nord

Informations

• Publié par: Nebraska Paperback
• Date de parution: 01 janvier 2013
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780803269323
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 4 Mo

Extrait

The Story of the Northern Plains

N O R M A N K . R I S J O R D

u n i v e r s i t y o f n e b r a s k a p r e s s

l i n c o l n &  l o n d o n

©2012by the Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska. All maps were drawn by the University of Wisconsin Cartography Laboratory. All rights reserved. Manufactured in the United States of America. ∞ Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Risjord, Norman K. Dakota: the story of the northern plains / Norman K. Risjord. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn 978-0-8032-6929-3(paper: alk. paper) 1. North Dakota — History.2. South Dakota — History. I. Title. f636.r57 2012 978.3— dc23 2012026937

Set in Swift EF.

For Connie With thanks for the memories

con t en ts

 List of Illustrations | viii  List of Maps | ix  Preface | xi  1. A Sea of Wind-Blown Grass |1  2. Lords of the Northern Plains |17  3. Explorers and Fur Traders,1730–1800|37  4. Ventures under the American Flag,1800–1837|63  5. From “Desert” to Gold Mine |99  6|. Prairie Farms and Statehood 133  7. The Road to Wounded Knee |155  8. Political Prairie Fires,1890–1920|177  9. Mount Rushmore: Conceived in Prosperity,  Born of Depression |203 10. Paths to the Present |221  Notes |253  Selected Reading |257  Index |263

illust r at ions

1. “The Needles” in the Black Hills |3 2|. The James River Valley 7 3|. A Mandan-Hidatsa house 22 4|. Interior of a Mandan-Hidatsa dwelling 24 5. Buffalo on the high plains |28 6. The North Dakota Badlands |53 7.The “Mountain of Spirits” |68 8. American pronghorn |70 9. A replica of Fort Mandan |72 10|. The shallow Missouri River 76 11. The Capitol of Dakota Territory in Yankton |109 12. Deadwood in1876|122 13. “Wild Bill” Hickok |124 14|. Calamity Jane 127 15. The ranch house on Theodore Roosevelt’s Maltese  Cross Ranch |147 16. The South Dakota Badlands |167 17|. A prairie homestead in the west river country 175 18. Workers on Mount Rushmore fashioning  Washington’s nose and lips |213 19. Workers on Mount Rushmore putting the finishing  touches on Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt |218

m a ps

1|. Glacial Lake Agassiz 5 2. Paleo-Indian sites,9000bc–ad1500|10 3. Location of Indian tribes of the northern plains,  ca.1750|19 4. Location of Indian tribes of the northern plains,  ca.1800|31 5. Pierre de la Vérendrye’s route to the Mandans, 1738–39|46 6. Louis-Joseph de la Vérendrye’s route to the West, 1742–43|51 7. The upper Missouri River fur trade,1826–40|93 8. The northern plains in the mid-nineteenth  century |111 9. The Sioux reservations |159