Red River valley

The Red River Valley is a region in central North America that is drained by the Red River of the North; it is part of both Canada and the United States. Forming the border between Minnesota and North Dakota when these territories were admitted as states in the United States, this fertile valley has been important to the economies of these states and to Manitoba, Canada.

The population centers of Moorhead, Minnesota, Fargo and Grand Forks, North Dakota, and Winnipeg, Manitoba developed in the valley as settlement by ethnic Europeans increased in the late nineteenth century. Completion of major railroads, availability of cheap lands, and extinguishing of Indian land claims attracted many new settlers. Some developed large-scale agricultural operations known as bonanza farms, which concentrated on wheat commodity crops.

Paleogeographic Lake Agassiz laid down the Red River Valley Silts. The valley was long an area of habitation by various indigenous cultures, including the historic Ojibwe and Métis peoples. The river flows north through a wide ancient lake plain to Lake Winnpeg. The geography and seasonal conditions can produce devastating floods, with several recorded since the mid-20th century.

French fur traders had relations with First Nations and Native Americans throughout the Great Lakes region. They often lived with the tribes and married or had relations with native women. By the mid-17th century, the Métis, descendants of these Frenchmen and Cree tribes people (in addition to other First Nations peoples), settled in the Red River valley. The Métis established an ethnicity and culture, as many continued a tradition as hunters and traders involved in the fur trade. They also were farmers in this area.

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