Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1909-12-02
STEVENSON BOOSTS
NORTHERN MINNESOTA
Makes Strong Speech at Chicago Showing
Up the Vast Resources Of this Great
Region and the Many Advantages
it Offers the Homeseeker,

Speech of Hon. Halvor Stevenson a.
the National Farm Land Congress,
Chicago, November 18, 1909.
Gentlemen:
The northwestern part of Minnesota
which constitutes the ninth District
has an extreme length from north to
south of two hundred and twenty
four miles, and an average width
from east to west of one hundred
miles; containes over twenty thousand
square miles, or about one fourth of
the whole State.
The Red River of the, North COLI
stitutes it's western boundary while its
northern limit is the international
boundary between the United States
and Canada and extends to the
Northwest Angle" in the Lake of the
Woods, latitude 40, So, 24"' the most
northerly point in the United States
Its central portion is the water shed
between the waters that flow into
Hudson Bay and the Gulf of Mexico;
it embraces Red Lake, the largest
body of fresh water entirely located
within one state, and Lake Itasca, the
source of the Mississippi. The south
ern part is with in the Park Region,
with it's rolling prairies interspersed
with hardwood timber. The western
half is in the Red River Valley and
the northern and eastern portions are
mostly rolling, and are partly covered
with extensive forests of pine, spruce,
cedar, tamarac, poplar, maple and
birch.
This area of more than twelve mil
lion acres is still in it's infancy so far
eerned. Several millions of acres in
the eastern half were, until recently
embraced in the Indian country, and
only in the last few years been open
ed to occupation and settlement. AL
though the settlements of the Red
River Valley began with the building
Of the, first railroad thru it, in the
early seventies, yet these settlements
were confined to the country adjacent
10 the railroad, and it is only in the
last decade that the whole region has
been supplied with railroad facilities
sufficient to bring all the land within
reasonable distance Of the market, so
that even this region has been sup
piled with railroad facilities sufficient
to bring all the land within reason.
able distance Of the market, so that
even this region prepared by nature
ready for the husbandman is not full
ly occupied.
Altho in this territory there has
been rapid progress in building up it's
farms, it's towns and villages, with
churches and schools, roads and
bridges, with telephone lines and daily
mail. yet there are many neighbor.
hoods where the farms still are too
large and neighbors too far apart, SO
that more farmers would be very wei.
come. Of course, in these parts,
there are no free lands to be had, but
good farm land, either improved or
nuimproved can be bought at very
reasonable prices, say, on the average
of $500 per acre. For those who
are not able to purchase farms, there
is ample opportunity to rent on
shares or buy on the "crop payment
plan, ana il they are good farmers
they can in very few years own the
land they rent. / have known actu
ally, when the crop of grain harvested
was worth more than the price of the
land, and with the phenomenal sue
cess of dairy farming in this section
In the last few years. it is certain that
any of these farms, devoted to dairy
ing and mixed farming would pay for
itself out of the net profits in two or
three years.
What I have said above, relates to
the Red River Valley, and the Park
Region of Minnesota, but there is still
q vast region containing millions OF
acres of the most fertile soil in the
north central half of the state, which
is still now unoccupied, and where
home seekers can get government
land, either free or for nominal
price. There are hundreds Of thous
ands of acres in the recently coded
Chippewa reservation in northern
Minnesota, to be had under the home
stead law at $1.25 per acre, and some
IL subject to free entry. In the
country east Of Thief River Falls, art
hundreds Of thousands Of acres now
held In trust by the United States
Government to be disposed Of, some al
$1.25 and some at $500 for the bSne