The Bemidji daily pioneer., 1915-06-23
BEMlDJI PRAISED .
ASCITY FUTURE
"The Northern Minnesota" Devotes
Double Page to This City-Best
Type of H fling Community.
EVERYONE
OPPORTUNITIES
Booster Magazine Says "No4
ductive Soil for Diversified e.
Can Be Found" in Any State.

Located in the heart of one ot
the best undeveloped farming regions
in America, with excellent railroad
facilities, cheap water power, big
saw mills and numbering activities
Bemidji has grown in a few years tc
be Minnesotas biggest little city
1t is a city embossOmed in the West
set like jewel in the billoWy folds
Of natures green, luxurious drapery.
1t is a city with such natural attrac-
tions as to give it fame as a summer
resort, fame that will spread as its
beauties become more widely known u
So speaks the "Northern Mime
sOta,' that splendid little magazine
published at Duluth by Guy w. Small
il! the interest Of this section Of the
state, in two column illustrated ar
ticle concerning Bemidji, in the June
number. The article gives a short
review of Bemidji's history from the
time that Chief Bemidji from his wig
wan, saw the coming Of the palefaces
The story tells of Bemidji enterprise
and the part it has played in the
city's progress and refers to the ad-
vantages which are to play so prom
inent a part in the future prosperity
Of Minnesota. In part the story
says:
Sixty miles or more from the near
est railroad, Chief Bemidji thought
he was safe from their encroach-
ments, but that day with the beau
tiful autumn haze hanging over the
lake he saw seven white men invade
his country. They were Tams Bixby,
Harris Richardson, Henry Hutchn-
son, A. G.. ClausOn, w. J. Hilligoss,
Louis LOhn and F. A. Silver, and they
had purchased the present townsite
of Bemidji. One year later the little
colony of palefaces had grown to 200
souls. Today it is a lively, bustling
little city Of more than 1000 or more
Reasons for Growth.
Few cities just grow Of themselves
There must be some reason for build
ing city on any location. Some are
based, like Los Angeles, on their eli
mate. Some, like Des Moines, are
simply huge farming communities.
Some, like Pittsburg, are great manu-
featuring centers. Some, like Chi
cagO or St. Louis, or Kansas City or
Winnipeg, are great distributing
points. Some, like Duluth or New
Orleans, are shipping points.
Has Them All.
Bemidji has all of these reasons
for being, unless it is possible the
last mentioned one. 1t has the North
ern Minnesota climate to begin with,
and scoffers to the contrary, there is
none better in the world. It is not
a climate for lotus eaters and idlers.
1t is a vigorous, healthful climate for
the full-blOoded man who wants to
do a days work. The cool breezes
of summer, followed by the long,
mild days Of golden autumn, offer at
fractions that make those of Califor-
MIA seem insipid. Ask any Mime
sotan who has lived in California
which he prefers Added to the in
comparable climate, is the most beau
tiful location any city can boast.
Situated on the shores of the beauti-
full lake of the same name, it is in
deed the city beautiful.
Thus climate and topography have
made Bemidji above all else a liVabie
city, and that should be the first es-
sential. Climate and topography
can be capitalized, and Bemidji is
capitalizing hers.
A Productive Soil.
Des Moines can claim no advan-
tages over Bemidji as center Of an
agricultural region. Surrounding Be-
midi are 10000 acres of undevelOped
land. For centuries it has been en-
riched by forest mould until rich
black loan has accumulated above
the clay formation soil. No more
productive soil for diversified crops
can be found, and the farmers of I'LL
nois, Iowa, Nebraska and Southern
Minnesota are realizing that they
can sell their high priced land, move
to Northern Minnesota and for a
fraction of what they realized, pur.
chase just as much and just as gooo
SOIL
Every settler who moves to the
rich farming district surrounding
Bemidji, increases this city's import
ance as distributing point. Its
prestige as the center of this grow
ing empire is already too we'll estab
lished to be taken away from it. Foul
great railroad systems centering il
Bemidji, give it this prestige. The
Great Northern, the 500, the North
ern Pacific and the Minnesota, Rec
Lake e Manitoba. Bemidji was once
a frontier lumber town. AS the cen
b. ter of the great pine forest of North
ern Minnesota, it had it's reason fol
being in the lumber industry. There
is still enough lumber tributary tt
keep Bemidji's saw mills busy for {
quarter of a century to come, but laI