Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1882-01-24
The Immigration into the northern and


Divide Between Minnesota and Dakota.
The immigration into the northern and
northwestern part of Minnesota, into
northern Dakota, and into the lately
opened eastern part OF Montana, which
was the prominent feature, to casual OBJ
servers, of the great development OF the
New Northwest in 1881, bids fair to be
more than doubled in the coming migra-
ton season of 1882. Such at least is the
expectation of all whose business con-
meets them with the growth Of the coun-
try intimately enough for them to feel
and hear the advance of the thousands
who are setting their faces and their
steps towards the golden land of promise,
where cheap lands, sure crops and the
best wheat in all the world invites both
capital and labor to the most profitable
investments of the age. There are at
hand as vet no reliable data for
estimating the gain of population by i'm
migration, the last year, in the region re-
ferred to, ,but, judging lin comparison
with former years. from the prosperity of
such towns and cities as Duluth, Fergus
Falls, Crookston, Fargo, Grand Forks,
etc., from the greatly increased produc-
ton and traffic of the country; from the
abundance of money and the rising of
property values; and from all the many
other indications of growth-we may
safely assume that not less than $4,000
people were added to the population of
Minnesota and Dakota during 1881 by
immigration But we have at hand,
through the courtesy of the st. Paul,
Minneapolis s. Manitoba company
land department, figures showing the
land sales of 1881 in limited area as
compared with all that is open to the i'm
migration of 1882, but enough to show
that not less than l25, 900 immigrants will
locate in northern Minnesota and the
Red River valley during this year-to
which great numbers must be added for
measurement of the coming increase of
traffic and the enlarged interests of our
own city and its railways, not less than
rs, 200 for the British provinces and as
many more for northwestern Dakota and
eastern Montana.
The figures referred to give q total of
about $1,000 entries and sales of wild
lands in northern Minnesota and north.
east Dakota last year, under conditions
generally requiring immediate cultivation
and early occupation. Many of these
purchasers probably one thlrd) broke up
some land last year, but the most of them
bought with the intention of waiting till
this spring before permanently taking up
their residences on the lands they have
bought. Whatever proposition can prop
erly be credited to the immigration of
last year, will be far more than made up
by the mechanics, traders, professional
people and laborers, who will flood to the
new towns, and but few of whom can be
counted among the land buyers. 1t IS not
unfair then to estimate the gain of popu-
lation in the limited region spoken of,
for the coming year, at so many families,
or about 1876 900 people.
THE STATE 8 SALES.
The State of Minnesota sold lands last
year to the amount of 80, Sl3 acres, for an
aggregate of s542, 1855, as follows;
Amt. Acres
School lands. ............ 1914 ,O97 6l,65O
University lands. .......... 1914 1,7O7
Int. improvement. ........ 1851 25,340
Agricultural College,. 22,723 4,116
The most of the school lands sold are
situated in Clay, Polk, Otter Tail, Mar
shall and Todd counties, and nearly all
the other state lands sold are north of the
Minnesota river.
RAILROAD LANDS.
Of the lands appertaining to the st.
Paul & Manitoba railroads, all of which
are in Minnesota, and most on the
east side of the Red river valley,
there were sold last year POI, 1882 acres.
The Northern Pacific Railroad company,
during the year, sold $3.50 acres in
Minnesota and lS2, 2S6 acres west of the
Red river, nearly all in Dakota. The
sales of the two companies aggregate
800, AIS acres, nearly all of which was
sold under conditions requiring imme-
diate cultivation and early occupation
The most of the sales were also in small
tracts, ranging from forty to two hun
dred acres, justifying an estimated aver
age of one family to each 40 acres-or
1883 families, equal to Il, 265 persons.
UNCLE SANS LANDS.
But much the largest sales of lands
were made during the year by the
United States. In the Red river
valley and northern Minnesota these sales
amounted to over 100000 acres of land
as follows:
In the Fergus Falls or "Park Region"
district of Minnesota, the transactions of
the year (omltting fractions) were:
Entries. Acres