Rumors about Bismarck city treasurer George Reed began circulating on this date in 1887. It was reported that he was thousands of dollars short in his accounts and he was nowhere to be found. It seemed he had departed for parts unknown along with city money.

On today's Dakota Datebook, we'll hear about the traditions for getting ready for winter from Angeline Fourth Iron Road, Elder from Standing Rock.

Wildfires are not new to North Dakota. With the vast expanses of grass, fires can spread easily. On this date in 1900, the Washburn Leader lamented the numerous fires that swept through the western part of the state in recent months. The concern centered around the destruction of farmland and crops, but the flames also struck businesses like the Little Missouri Horse Company barns in March of 1900.

Bismarck was home to a number of historical characters in its early years. One of them was photographer D.F. Barry. He is remembered for his photography of Native Americans, frontier forts, battlefields and military officers. His subjects included Sitting Bull, Gall, Rain-in-the-Face, Red Cloud, Buffalo Bill Cody, Annie Oakley and General George Crook.

On this date in 1877, there was a great deal of anticipation in Bismarck as a new stagecoach line prepared to set off the following morning. The gold fields of the Black Hills beckoned, but travel to Deadwood was on foot or on horseback.

In this episode of Dakota Datebook, we'll hear Demus McDonald, enrolled member of the Spirit Lake Dakota Nation, talk about the medicine wheel.

On this date in 1925, the University of North Dakota's student newspaper, The Dakota Student, ran this article about the university library: “At one time classed as one of the largest collections of its kind in the country, the collection of Scandinavian literature in the University library now consists of 4,500 volumes, and includes all kinds of Norwegian, Icelandic, and Swedish books and magazines, according to A. D. Keator, librarian.”

In August 1907, General Sir Robert S. S. Baden-Powell of England organized the Boy Scout Movement, to motivate, teach skills, and give agency to local boys. It didn’t take long for this idea to spread across the world. In the spring of 1910, a newspaper reported that the Young Men’s Christian association scouts had formed in Springfield, Massachusetts “Clad in khaki suits, golf hose, belts, and rakish slouch hats.”

It was on this date in 1970 that 600 Kent State students gathered to protest having National Guard on campus. Told to “disperse,” activists threw rocks, and guardsmen used tear gas. The protesters still didn’t leave; and the 100 National Guard troops retreated. Feeling threatened, 28 guardsmen fired their rifles, leaving nine protesters wounded and “four dead in Ohio.”

Starkweather gophers beware! Around this time in 1915, the businessmen and farmers of Starkweather North Dakota declared war on their rodent neighbors. Meeting at the Schweitzer hardware store, the group put together a plan to initiate “a vigorous campaign against gophers.”