Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1915-02-13
farm Land
IN STATE IS
!. ON THE RISE
NEARLY SIXTEEN MILLION
ACRES TAKEN UP IN STATE
BY SETTLERS. ..
JUST Bare Remnant LEFT
Only Government and School
Lands Are All That Now
Remain.

The records of the department or
the interior at Washington show that,
July /, 1890. there was vacant gov
ernn .ent land in the state of North
Dakota, subject to homestead entry
with an area of 16,703,S2O acres.
Twenty1four years later, July l, 1914
the same records disclosed the fact
that only 672,949 OF these same acres
remained. The total land area of the
state is 44.736,477 acres, or approxl'
mately 10000 square miles.
Thus in less than a quanter OF a
century nearly 100000 acres have
been taken up by actual settlers un-
der the United States land laws and
passed into private ownership, leav-
ing but the picked over remnant OF
less than 100000 acres to represent
the free government lands of the
state. No more pregnant facts could
be given than these to demonstrate
that hereafter the seeker for a home
in North Dakota will have to make
his selections from decided lands and
not from the free domain.
Agricultural Lands.
Figures certified 70 Commissioner
r. F.. Flint of the state department of
agriculture by the various county aud
itors indicate that the actual farm
,creage in the state for 1914 was
23,314,885 acres OF which 15,112,596
acres are actually under the ploW
Assuming that five percent OF the to-
tai land area of 44,736.477 is unfit for
cultivation and that the proportion OF
cultivated area TO farm area in 1914
represents the full amount that can
be cultivated under our present sys-
tenn of agriculture. making allowances
for pasture and meadow land. then
there remain in the state some 12,428,-
992 acres which can be cropped with
out disturbing the, proportional bal
ance above referred to.
- Room For More.
According to figures collected at
the same time as those quoted the
average farm in North Dakota con-
tains 1874 acres (including land not
under plow) Thus the total avail
able area of arabic land would be
19,174,769 acres, which would permit
of the establishment Of 57,409 farms
of 334 acres and an addition of nearly
100000 to the population without in
any way restricting the elbow room of
the farmer
In addition to the government land
open to entry with an acreage of 672,-
949 acres there are also available.
1,703,142 acres of institutional and
common school lands yet unsold and
which is offered at public auction at
such times as the board of university
and school lands deem advisable. The
remainder of the arabic land of the
state not contained in farms would
thus appear to be held in private
hands or on reservations and sum-
mary would be as follows:
Government land ...... 672,949 acres
School and Institutional lands ......
1,703,142 acres
Privately owned or on reservations
16,79S,678 acres
Total ................ l9,l74,769
OF the above the two latter items
are undoubtedly composed of the
choicest lands in the state and it is
reasonable to suppose that they are
more or less available to the prospec-
tive purchaser. The smaller item Of
government land is less desirable, be-
ing generally classed as agricultural
grazing" or agricultural, rough,
grazing"
Prices Going Up.
From the foregoing figures it will
be apparent that the prospective
homeseener in North Dakota will eth.
er have to be satisfied with quite in
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