Casselton, North Dakota
| Casselton, North Dakota | |
|---|---|
| City | |
 Location of Casselton, North Dakota |
|
| Coordinates: 46°54′0″N 97°12′38″W / 46.90000°N 97.21056°WCoordinates: 46°54′0″N 97°12′38″W / 46.90000°N 97.21056°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | North Dakota |
| County | Cass |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1.90 sq mi (4.92 km2) |
| • Land | 1.87 sq mi (4.84 km2) |
| • Water | 0.03 sq mi (0.08 km2) |
| Elevation | 935 ft (285 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 2,329 |
| • Estimate (2015) | 2,521 |
| • Density | 1,245.5/sq mi (480.9/km2) |
| Time zone | CST (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP code | 58012 |
| Area code(s) | 701 |
| FIPS code | 38-12700 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1028294 |
| Website | casselton.com |
Casselton is a city in Cass County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 2,329 at the 2010 census. making it the twentieth largest city in North Dakota. Casselton was founded in 1876. The city is named in honor of George Washington Cass, a president of the Northern Pacific Railway, which established a station there in 1876 to develop a town for homesteaders. Casselton is the hometown of five North Dakota governors.
Casselton had its origin in 1873 when the Northern Pacific Railway sent Mike Smith to plant cottonwood and willow trees in the area to serve as windbreaks along the right-of-way. They planned to harvest the trees for lumber to use as railroad ties, but the experiment failed for a number of reasons.
In 1874, Emil Priewe and his wife joined Mike Smith at the station. The Priewe's son, Harry, was born on March 28, 1875 in a sod shanty, the first child born in the developing village. Others came to settle and by 1880, the town had a population of 376, according to the official census. A school was organized in 1876 and the town was incorporated as a village in 1880.
The hamlet was variously called "the Nursery", "Goose Creek" and "Swan Creek", named for the stream that meandered through the area. In 1876, the railroad established a station called Casstown, after George Cass, the railroad president. When the post office was established on August 8, 1876, the name Casselton was designated.
During the 1870s, George Cass and Peter Cheney traded their railroad stock for 10,000 acres (40 km2) of land near Casselton and decided to develop the property as one large farm, rather than dividing the land into small tracts. They employed Oliver Dalrymple, of southern Minnesota, to head the operation. These Bonanza farms became highly successful and proved that the prairie was very suitable for agriculture.
Various means were used to attract immigrants from Europe and migrants from the East looking for a piece of land or the chance to become tradesmen and professionals. Casselton's population reached 1365 in 1885.
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Wikipedia