Golva

History

Golva is surrounded by Lone Tree Township. The homesteaders that arrived in the area between 1900 and 1910 found only one tree in the area. That tree was standing about one mile (1.6 km) east of modern-day Golva till it died around 1980. According to the Homestead Act, the homesteaders got if they lived on the land for 7 years. In western North Dakota, they were also given another if they planted trees on the land, so there are now trees around most farmsteads in the area. The last living homesteader from the Golva area, Mrs. George (Emma) Geary, died in 1978, still owning her homestead and the house on it, although she had left the homestead in 1958 after breaking her hip. The doctors told her, due to the seriousness of the break, she would be bedridden for the rest of her life. Being a true pioneer, she responded "The hell I will". She walked with one crutch and lived alone until shortly before her death at 89. Her neighbor for over 40 years, Eva Weinreis, wrote an autobiography entitled A Note On the Tea Kettle about her life and coming from Aberdeen, South Dakota in 1906 with her husband, Peter Weinreis, to homestead two miles (3 km) west of Burkey, North Dakota and two miles (3 km) south of modern-day Golva. The book told of the early history of the Golva area. Golva was founded in 1915, when the Northern Pacific Railroad line came down from Beach, North Dakota. It was originally supposed to be the county seat of Golden Valley County and got the name Golva from the first three letters of Golden and first two letters of Valley, the name having been suggested by the original townsite owner, A.L. Martin. The "Golden Valley" name comes from the rolling valleys of golden wheat just before harvest. Prior to 1915, most of the local businesses were in Burkey, situated…

Geography

Golva is located at (46.735099, -103.986172). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Western Meadowlark

  Sturnella neglecta Audubon, 1844 · Aves
  171
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  130
• Horned Lark

  Eremophila alpestris (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  121
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  107
• Ring-necked Pheasant

  Phasianus colchicus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  86
• Brown-headed Cowbird

  Molothrus ater (Boddaert, 1783) · Aves
  78
• Eastern Kingbird

  Tyrannus tyrannus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  73
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  72

Largest nearby schools

• GOLVA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
  Elementary · Golva · 28 students · 9.3:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.6 — 2026-08-13
  2 km SE of Amidon, North Dakota
• M 2.6 — 2014-05-06
  12 km NNW of Knife River, Montana