North Dakota

Geography of the North Dakota state

Situated in the geographical center of North America, North Dakota is subject to the extremes of a continental climate. Semiarid conditions prevail in the western half of the state, but in the east an average annual rainfall of 22 in. (55 cm), much of it falling in the crop-growing spring and summer months, enables the rich soil to yield abundantly.

North Dakota is one of the most rural states in the nation; the cities and towns supply the needs of neighboring farms, and industry is largely devoted to the processing of agricultural products.

Along the banks of the Red River lies a wedge of land, c.40 mi (60 km) wide at the Canadian border and tapering to 10 mi (16 km) in the south, that is the floor of the former glacial Lake Agassiz. Treeless, except along the rivers, and without surface rocks, this flat land was transformed into the bonanza wheat fields of the 1870s and 80s, with farms ranging in size from 3,000 to 65,000 acres (1,200–26,000 hectares). 

Read more: http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/us/north-dakota-geography.html

                  http://www.theus50.com/northdakota/geography.php  

                  http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/blog/2012/06/road-trip-usa-north-dakota-geography-lesson.html

History

North Dakota was explored in 1738–1740 by French Canadians led bySieur de la Verendrye. In 1803, the U.S. acquired most of North Dakota from France in the Louisiana Purchase. 

Lewis and Clark explored the region in 1804–1806, and the first settlements were made at Pembina in 1812 by Scottish and Irish families while this area was still in dispute between the U.S. and Great Britain. In 1818, the U.S. obtained the northeast part of

North Dakota by treaty with Great Britain and took possession of Pembina in 1823. However, the region remained largely unsettled until the construction of the railroad in the 1870s and 1880s.

North Dakota is the most rural of all the states, with farms covering more than 90% of the land. North Dakota ranks first in the nation's production of spring and durum wheat; other agricultural products include barley, rye, sunflowers, dry edible beans, honey, oats, flaxseed, sugar beets, hay, beef cattle, sheep, and hogs.

The Garrison Dam on the Missouri River provides extensive irrigation and produces 400,000 kilowatts of electricity for the Missouri Basin areas.

You can find more infotmation about history of North Dakota on this sites: http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0108256.html

https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/North_Dakota_History

http://www.city-data.com/states/North-Dakota-History.html

The capital of North Dakota

Bismarck is the capital of the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Burleigh County. It is the second most populous city in North Dakota after Fargo. The city's population was 61,272 at the 2010 census, while its metropolitan population was 108,779. Bismarck was founded in 1872 and has been North Dakota's capital since it gained statehood in 1889.

Bismarck is situated on the east bank of the Missouri River, directly across the river from Mandan. The two cities make up the core of the Bismarck-Mandan Metropolitan Statistical Area.

The North Dakota State Capitol, the tallest building in the state, towers over the central part of Bismarck. The state government employs more than 4,000 in the city. As a hub of retail and health care, Bismarck is the economic center of a large portion of south-central North Dakota and north-central South Dakota.

And here is some more information about Bismarck:

http://www.bismarck.org/

http://www.city-data.com/city/Bismarck-North-Dakota.html

http://bismarcktribune.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/bismarck-city-commission-interviews-candidates-for-police-chief/article_31f96b0e-4320-11e2-8242-001a4bcf887a.html

Drew Wrigley

Drew Howard Wrigley is the 37th and current Lieutenant Governor of North Dakota. He was appointed by Governor Jack Dalrymple on December 7, 2010. Wrigley previously served as United States Attorney for the District of North Dakota (2001–2009), as Deputy Chief of Staff to Governor John Hoeven (2000), and as Chairman of the North Dakota Republican Party

 

A native of Bismarck, North Dakota, Wrigley grew up in Fargo, North Dakota, where he graduated from Fargo South High School; he is a fourth-generation North Dakotan, with roots in Burke County and Walsh County.[2] He is a graduate of the University of North Dakotain Grand Forks, ND, where he received a Bachelor's Degree in Economics. He completed his Juris Doctorate at American University inWashington, DC. After law school, he served as an assistant district attorney in Philadelphia, PA before returning to North Dakota.

You can read more here:
http://governor.nd.gov/lieutenant-governor-drew-wrigley
http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Drew_Wrigley
http://www.ndgop.org/view/elected-officials/statewide-officials/lieutenant-governor-drew-wrigley/