Minot

Sister cities

• Skien
• Moose Jaw

History

Minot came into existence in 1886, after the Great Northern Railway laid track through the area. A tent town sprang up overnight, as if by "magic", giving Minot its first nickname, the Magic City; in the next five months, the population increased to over 5,000, further bolstering the nickname. The town site was chosen by the railroad to be placed on the land of homesteader Erik Ramstad, who was convinced to relinquish his claim and became one of the city leaders. The town was named after Henry Minot (1859–1890), a Great Northern investor, ornithologist, and friend of Hill. Its Arikara name is niwaharít sahaáhkat, and its Hidatsa name is maagada'ashish ("Plum Coulee"). The city was incorporated on July 16, 1887. The Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad (Soo Line) later built a line from Valley City to Canada. While initially their plan was to cross the Souris River at Burlington, local interests and arguments convinced them otherwise; landholders along the new route donated the right-of-way, and the Soo Line reached Minot in 1893. In 1898, a tornado destroyed the timber Gassman Coulee Bridge near Minot. A passenger train, just three minutes away from crossing the bridge when it collapsed, was able to stop just in time to avoid disaster. The tornado picked up Andy Botz's home and hurled it to the ground, killing his wife, breaking Botz's shoulder, and slightly injuring the two Botz children who were in the house. The 1950s saw a large influx of federal funding into the region, with the construction of Minot Air Force Base (1956–1957) north of the city, and Garrison Dam (1947–1953) on the Missouri River, about south. In 1969, a severe flood on the Souris River devastated Minot in April. Afterward, the Army Corps of Engineers straightened the…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of , of which is land and is water. The elevation of the river at the city center is approximately above sea level. The valley sits below the surrounding plains; the elevation at the Minot International Airport on North Hill is . The city has several small horseshoe-shaped oxbow lakes within its limits near the river, created by the Mouse's meandering course. The population of Richardson's ground squirrels is extremely high in the inner-city area where there are fewer predators to hunt them. This has been known to cause issues with the squirrels tearing up fields with their tunneling, and causing minor property damage by hollowing out areas beneath structures. Minot is commonly divided into three major sections: North Hill, the Mouse River Valley and South Hill. North Hill is the area roughly north of Eleventh Avenue North and Northwest Avenue. South Hill is a broad area south and west of Valley Street and Fifth Avenue South. West of Sixth Street West, South Hill dips sharply to the southwest. South Hill's limits are less clearly defined than North Hill's. Though the neighborhood levels out past 16th Street South, the name South Hill is generally applied to all areas south up to the city limits. Neighborhoods in the Mouse River Valley include Bel Air, Downtown, Eastwood Park, Oak Park and West Minot. The city is laid out on a grid-based street system. Streets run north–south and avenues run east–west. Streets are numbered by their block distance east or west of Main Street. Avenues are numbered north and south of Central Avenue. There are four city quadrants (NW, SW, SE, NE) to designate the location of any address. Main Street addresses are designated North and South. Central Avenue addresses…

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  787
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  783
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  739
• Common Grackle

  Quiscalus quiscula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  609
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  597
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  539
• House Sparrow

  Passer domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  516
• White-breasted Nuthatch

  Sitta carolinensis Latham, 1790 · Aves
  479

Largest nearby schools

• CENTRAL CAMPUS SCHOOL
  Other · Minot · 1,085 students · 14.3:1 ratio
• MAGIC CITY CAMPUS HIGH SCHOOL
  High · Minot · 933 students · 15.8:1 ratio
• JIM HILL MIDDLE SCHOOL
  Middle · Minot · 840 students · 14.2:1 ratio
• ERIK RAMSTAD MIDDLE SCHOOL
  Middle · Minot · 689 students · 14.7:1 ratio
• LEWIS AND CLARK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
  Elementary · Minot · 528 students · 14.3:1 ratio
• EDISON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
  Elementary · Minot · 461 students · 18.4:1 ratio
• JOHN HOEVEN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
  Elementary · Minot · 433 students · 16:1 ratio
• LONGFELLOW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
  Elementary · Minot · 412 students · 13.3:1 ratio