Grand Forks daily herald., 1914-09-26
The Eden of The
Red River Valley
(By John A. Monger.)

In the early seventies Dakota was
an unbroken territory inhabited only
by wandering tribes of Indians, buf-
faloes and wild horses 1t was such
a rich territory as to attract the at
tention of the ''sooners' who came
trecking into the country from a
spirit of adventure, exploit the un-
known. and to commune with the
Goddess of Nature, in this wilderness
of lovliness These "Sooners" put
North Dakota on the map, for they
came before the railroad era, before
the territory was divided into two
states The ever changing landscape
of unsurpassed beauty was the lure
that attracted them, which is now
known to worldwide fame as the Red
River Valley Of the North, with its
canopy Of blue sky. and an atmos-
phere so clear as to unfold it's mag
niflcent splendor to the naked eye
for distance Of twenty miles, in a
health-giving altitude of s17 feet
above the sea level. This is the spot
where the now city of Reynolds is To-
Gated, and where this article is being
plated in 1891, by a syndicate of New
York millionaires, that operated un-
der the corporated title of the Rock
away company. Their first stroke Of
brilliant enterprise was the establish
ment of the State Bank of Reynolds.
making this the financial seat of oper-
alton for this whole territory. Their
next step of enterprise was the erec-
ton of the Rockaway hotel building
at the cost of s12,5O0. that could not
be duplicated today for $4,000. In
fact, it was the leading hotel of the
very heart Of the Red River Valley in
those days as it is today. This gave
prestige to what was to follow. Farm
settlers flocked to this fertile plateau
from the eastern states, and as a re-
suit Reynolds grew a pace, and the
farm lands tributary to it We're at a
premium. This was especially so
when the railroad, now the Great
Northern, was built into the territory
connecting up Fargo, Reynolds and
Grand Forks. These New York mil
lionaire investors had taken the pre-
caution to send out experts on soil
fertility and for the natural ad-
vantages that would accrue to it when
the country became settled along the
proposed lines of new railroads that
had been surveyed. They selected the
lands In the very heart of the Red
River Valley. the Ell Dorodo of farm
lands best in North Dakota. No mis-
take was made, for in esta blishing the
new town of Reynolds they selected
What ha, now been proven the best
territory. A section when fully de-
veloped, under the proganda of Better
Farming, crop rotation and smaller
farms will support city Of three
thousand population. Reynolds TODAY
holds commanding position on the
: RAILROAD map of the Great Northern
railway system being situated twenty
miles south of Grand Forks, forty
eight miles north of Fargo, one hun
dred seventy miles southeast Of Win
nipeg and three hundred and ninety
miles northeast of ST. Paul-Minne-
apolis. Two great trans-continental
lines Of service from ST. Paul-Minne-
apolis, via Willmar, Fargo, Reynolds,
Grand Forks and Winnipeg, also from
st. Paul-Minneapolis, via st. Cloud,
Fargo. Reynolds. Grand Forks and
Minot. This is the favorite spot that
has led us to exploit this statewide
filling in process. that is taking shape
IN and around Reynolds, N. D. The
United States census bureau, July
bulletin, 1914, credits North Dakota'e
increase in population since 1910
census OF making an increase of 122,-