By Kylie Blanchard, Staff Writer
Today marks the 122nd anniversary of North Dakota's statehood. In honor of this day, I did a little digging into the newly released 2011-2013 North Dakota Blue Book and found some interesting information on our state's beginnings:
"On March 2, 1861, President James Buchanan signed the bill creating the Dakota Territory, which originally included the area covered by both Dakotas as well as much of Montana and Wyoming. Beginning about 1877, efforts were made to bring Dakota into the Union as both a single state and as two states. The latter was successful, and on November 2, 1889, both North and South Dakota were admitted.
Since President Benjamin Harrison went to great lengths to obscure the order in which the statehood proclamations were signed, the exact order to which the two states entered is unknown. However, because of alphabetical position, North Dakota is often considered as the 39th state."
The name Dakota was taken from the Sioux Indian language which means "friend" or "ally." (And many will tell you this rings very true of our state and its residents.) Along with "Friendly," the Blue Book also explains the many nicknames North Dakota has collected since officially becoming a state.
The "Roughrider State" honors Theodore Roosevelt's time in the Badlands; the "Flickertail State" refers to the characteristic tail flick of the many ground squirrels across North Dakota; and the "Peace Garden State," which was formally adopted as the state's nickname by the 1957 Legislature, honors the International Peace Garden between North Dakota and Manitoba.
All of this information and much, much more can be found in the 2011-2013 North Dakota Blue Book, which was officially released on Monday in a ceremony in the state capitol's Memorial Hall. The latest edition of the Blue Book profiles "North Dakota Fossil Resources," but the core of this biennial publication has remained the same since 1995.
The book contains information about the state not readily found in other publications such as statistical data and information about the state's symbols and awards, elected officials, agencies, judiciary, legislative, federal-state relationships, education and elections.
Fifteen editions of the Blue Book are also now available online through both the homepages of the North Dakota Secretary of State, www.nd.gov/sos, and the State Historical Society of North Dakota, www.history.nd.gov. The Blue Book also includes a DVD and sells for $20 at the Museum Store at the North Dakota Heritage Center, online at www.history.nd.gov or by calling 701-328-2666.
So, today, celebrate North Dakota by grabbing your copy of the 2011-2013 North Dakota Blue Book (and maybe even a piece of birthday cake) and learning even more about our great state, its great people and its bright future.
Happy Birthday North Dakota! For 122 years old, you are looking pretty good!
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