Editing Grand Forks, North Dakota (section)

==History==
{{Main|History of Grand Forks, North Dakota}}
[[File:Downtown Grand Forks, ND circa 1912.jpg|thumb|left|Downtown Grand Forks, {{circa|1912}}]]

Prior to settlement by Europeans, the area where the city developed, at the forks of the Red River and Red Lake River for thousands of years, had been an important meeting and trading point for [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]]. Early French explorers, fur [[Trapping|trappers]], and traders called the area ''Les Grandes Fourches,'' meaning "The Grand Forks". By the 1740s, French fur trappers relied on ''Les Grandes Fourches'' as an important [[trading post]]. This was French colonial territory.<ref name="history"/>

The United States acquired the territory from British [[Rupert's Land]] with the [[Treaty of 1818]], but indigenous tribes {{which|date=January 2021}} dominated the area until the late 19th century. After years of warfare, the United States made treaties to extinguish the land claims of the [[Ojibwe]] and other {{which|date=January 2021}} Native American peoples. When a U.S. post office was established on the site on June 15, 1870, the name was changed to the English "Grand Forks".<ref name="history"/> [[Alexander Griggs]], a steamboat captain, is regarded as "The Father of Grand Forks".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.prairiepublic.org/programs/datebook/bydate/03/1003/102603.jsp |title=Dakota Datebook, October 20, 2003: Griggs and Grand Forks |access-date=June 8, 2007 |work=North Dakota Public Radio |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070930155618/http://www.prairiepublic.org/programs/datebook/bydate/03/1003/102603.jsp <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = September 30, 2007}}</ref> Griggs' steamboat froze in the Red River on a voyage in late 1870, forcing the captain and his crew to spend the winter camping at Grand Forks. Griggs [[plat]]ted a community in 1875, and Grand Forks was officially incorporated on February 22, 1881.<ref name="history"/>

Thousands of settlers were attracted to the [[Dakota Territory]] in the 1870s and 1880s for its cheap land, and the population began to rise.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}} Many established small family farms, but some investors bought thousands of acres for [[bonanza farm]]s, where they supervised the cultivation and harvesting of wheat as a commodity crop. The city grew quickly after the arrival of the [[Great Northern Railway (U.S.)|Great Northern Railway]] in 1880 and the [[Northern Pacific Railway]] in 1887.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://grandforkshistory.com/index_files/page0002.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070709064623/http://www.grandforkshistory.com/index_files/page0002.htm |archive-date=July 9, 2007 |title=Historic Grand Forks |access-date=June 8, 2007 |work=Grand Forks County Historical Society}}</ref> In 1883, the [[University of North Dakota]] was established, six years before North Dakota was admitted as an independent state born from the [[Dakota Territory]].<ref name="und"/> Grand Forks was the site of one of the deadliest tornadoes in North Dakota's history, then called an "inland hurricane," in 1887.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Jackson |first=William |title=North Dakota Tornadoes Twisters and Cyclones |publisher=Valley Star Publications |year=2024 |isbn=979-8-89480-378-4 |location=Dickinson, ND |publication-date=2024 |pages=14–15}}</ref> The storm killed at least six people.<ref name=":0" />

During the first half of the 20th century, new residential neighborhoods were developed south and west of [[downtown Grand Forks]]. In the 1920s, the [[public ownership|state-owned]] [[North Dakota Mill and Elevator]] was constructed on the city's north side.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ndmill.com/history.cfm |title=History |access-date=June 8, 2007 |work=North Dakota Mill and Elevator |archive-date=November 13, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201113153224/https://www.ndmill.com/history.cfm |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1954, Grand Forks was chosen as the site for an [[United States Air Force|Air Force]] base.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://public.grandforks.amc.af.mil/documents/History2003.pdf |title=History of the Grand Forks Air Force Base |access-date=June 5, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060319162551/http://public.grandforks.amc.af.mil/documents/History2003.pdf |archive-date=March 19, 2006 }}</ref> [[Grand Forks Air Force Base]] brought thousands of new jobs and residents to the community. The military base and the University of North Dakota became integral to the city's economy. With construction of federal highways, during the postwar years residential and business development became suburbanized, spreading to new areas as land was available.<ref name="history"/> [[Interstate 29]] was built on the western side of the city, and two enclosed shopping malls—[[Grand Cities Mall|South Forks Plaza]] and [[Columbia Mall (Grand Forks)|Columbia Mall]]—were built on the south side.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.und.nodak.edu/dept/library/Collections/og1242.html |title=Grand Forks, Mayor's Office |access-date=June 5, 2007 |work=University of North Dakota |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071219205828/http://www.und.nodak.edu/dept/library/Collections/og1242.html |archive-date = December 19, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[File:1997 Red River Flood Grand Forks.jpg|thumb|right|The Red River in flood in April 1997]]

The Red River had a history of seasonal flooding, aggravated by the broad ancient lake bed that formed the [[Red River Valley]]. The [[1997 Red River flood]] caused extensive damage in the city. Fargo was upstream from the bulk of the flood waters that season, and [[Winnipeg]] had built an extensive system of flood control structures in the 1960s. In 1997, Grand Forks suffered the most damage of any major city in the Red River Valley. During the height of the flooding, a major fire destroyed 11 buildings in the downtown area. The government began developing a new [[levee]] system to protect the city, which was completed 10 years later. It required the relocation of numerous residents, as some neighborhoods were emptied for this construction.

The floodplain bordering the Red River was later converted into a large park known as the [[Greater Grand Forks Greenway]]. This provided new recreation space for city residents on both sides of the river, as well as space for future floodwaters to be absorbed naturally by trees and other plants, without damage to infrastructure.

New public and private developments have continued to expand Grand Forks's footprint since the 1997 flood. Two new, large sports venues opened in 2001: the [[Alerus Center]]<ref name="alerus"/> and the [[Ralph Engelstad Arena]].<ref name="rea"/> Six years later, the [[Winnipeg]]-based [[Canad Inns]] hotel chain added a 13-story hotel and waterpark connected to the Alerus Center.<ref name="canad">{{cite web |url=http://www.canadinns.com/grandforks/
|title=Grand Forks |access-date=June 5, 2007 |work=Canad Inns |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070601022917/http://www.canadinns.com/grandforks/ |archive-date = June 1, 2007}}</ref> Grand Forks also surpassed pre-flood level population, area employment, and taxable sales in 2007.<ref name="postflood">{{cite web|url=https://www.minneapolisfed.org/pubs/fedgaz/06-09/cover.cfm |title=High and dry |access-date=June 8, 2007 |work=Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071220003246/http://www.minneapolisfed.org/pubs/fedgaz/06-09/cover.cfm |archive-date=December 20, 2007 }}</ref>