Day 19 - Bismarck, North Dakota

We began our touring day on a warm, sunny, a bit breezy day with our first stop at North Dakota’s modern-style Capitol building. In 1883, Bismarck became the Capitol of Dakota Territory and in 1889, it became the State Capital when N.D. became the 39^th state. The original building burned down under suspicious circumstances in 1930 and the new Capitol building was built. Our tour guide told us the history of N. D. as he took us around the spacious building, pointing out the beautiful marble and woods imported from different areas of the country.

Factoid #1: The Official State Insect is the Lady Bug. The good one, we were told. Evidently there are some lady bugs that are not so good!

Factoid #2: North Dakota state government has over a $2 billion dollar surplus!

Factoid #3: North Dakota “owns” the Guinness World Record for the most people (8,962) at once making snow angels outside the Capital Building !

“Factoid” #4: We’re hoping that N.D. will now “own” the most senior citizens (30) making grass angels on the lawn in front of the Capitol Building !

Guinness Record Book here we come!

Roger and Dick getting ready

Next we moved on to the Heritage Center museum showing N.D. prehistory with depictions of animal skeletons that roamed the area 50 million years ago with the progression of eras leading up to the early 1900s when settlement of the area took place.

Buckskin pictorial at Heritage Center

Depiction of Mandan Village

showing Lewis and Clark’s arrival 

We had a brief break with lunch at the Golden Corral, a popular all-you-can-eat restaurant.

As the day warmed up, we were grateful for the cooling breeze as we visited Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park . We toured the reconstructed home of “General and Mrs. General” Custer who lived there for the three years before Custer’s death at Little Big Horn.

Custer Home

"Mrs. General" Custer

(Elizabeth C. Bacon)

Our last stop was at “On-a-Slant-Village”, a Mandan hillside settlement of three reconstructed family-unit dwellings plus a ceremonial structure. Archeologists believe there were up to 80 dwellings in the settlement, with more village settlements up and down the Missouri River . The Mandans lived in the area from 1565 to 1781. We found it interesting that the men’s responsibilities in the village were hunting, defense of the village, and the growing of tobacco, while the women did everything else, including the cutting, hauling of the heavy logs, and building the dwellings.

Mandan Village Home                      

Interior of  Mandan Home 

Arriving back at our campground, an hour rest and an apple for dinner was sufficient as we looked forward to an Ice Cream Sundae Social.

Roger and Jonette Stones #20