Hometown Histories
The Kennedy Land and Town Company, which engaged in this kind of industry, convinced the St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railroad to build its proposed train station in the already-existing village of Kennedy instead of at a proposed location two miles north.
“Red River Reds” are a nickname for these.
What are potatoes?
This cleaning tool, which was originally developed to clean saucepans but can also be used to spiff up whitewall tires and chrome bumpers, gets its name from the Spanish words for “shiny” or “brilliant.”
Brillo pad
This toy was accidentally invented in 1943 when a naval engineer dropped a tension spring on the floor.
What is a slinky?
This musical couple were both high school teachers before becoming hit hymn writers and performers.
Who are Bill and Gloria Gaither?
In 1948, a National Guard pilot was flying over Fargo and encountered this unexpected phenomenon. He was ordered to keep the encounter quiet.
What is a UFO?
Potatoes are classified as this type of plant.
What is a tuber?
This knife brand was founded in 1930 to supply heavy-duty, commercial-grade knives to the professional butchers and meatpackers working in the Chicago Union Stockyards. Because the knives had to withstand hours of slicing through dense meat and bone every day, they were engineered for extreme durability.
What is Chicago Cutlery?
Johnny Cash famously recorded a live album in 1968 inside this location, which features in one of his songs.
What is Folsom State Prison?
Invented by an electrical engineer in 1913, this rugged, green temperature-regulating container originally used charcoal dust as insulation. This ensured it would never shatter on jobsites—or when it was dropped out of airplanes during WW1 and WW2.
What is a Stanley thermos?
Nels Hultgren founded Jupiter Township in 1883. He named the township for the planet Jupiter, a notable planet for people with this occupation, which he shared before he came to Kittson County.
What is a sailor or sea captain?
When potatoes were introduced to Europeans, they were reluctant to eat them. 18th-century French agronomist Antoine-Augustin Parmentier convinced this historical figure to wear potato blossoms in her hair, setting off a major fashion trend.
Who is Marie Antoinette?
Marketing genius Brownie Wise bypassed store shelves entirely for this product, which became popular in the 1950s.
What is Tupperware?
In 1978, Hollywood went trucking with this hit movie, named after the C.W. McCall song by the same name.
What is Convoy?
Randy Travis, Aretha Franklin, and Johnny Cash all recorded their own unique versions of this coffee brand's famous jingle.
What is Folger's Coffee?
This author passed through Detroit Lakes on a road trip with his poodle in 1960. He specifically mentioned the town in his book Travels with Charley.
Who is John Steinbeck?
In 1972, this nation suffered a massive crop failure and negotiated a secret deal to buy grain from the US, which caused crop prices to skyrocket.
What is the Soviet Union?
Companies like Betty Crocker developed baking mixes in the 1960s. After initial trials, they removed this ingredient from the boxed mixes so that home cooks could still feel the psychological satisfaction of baking.
What are dried eggs?
In 1957, LIFE magazine declared this North Dakota-born television host and accordionist to be "the most popular musician in U.S. history."
Who is Lawrence Welk?
In the 1930s, Arctic explorer Admiral Richard Byrd brought 2.5 tons of this candy on his expedition to the South Pole.
What are NECCO wafers?
One year before Grandma was born, this jazz legend performed at the Crystal Ballroom in Fargo. The live recording of this performance is considered one of the greatest live jazz recordings of all time.
Who is Duke Ellington?
This was the average horsepower of a tractor in the 1960s.
What is 60 to 80 horsepower?
This was one of the three colors available for fridges, ranges, and rotary phones from General Electric and Frigidaire in the 1970s.
What is Avocado Green, Harvest Gold, or Coppertone Brown?
This is just one of the three country music stars who organized the Farm Aid concert in 1985, which raised money for farmers who were losing their land due to high interest rates and the change in global supply after a grain embargo.
Who is Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, or Neil Young?
During WWII, production of Fiestaware's popular orange-red color was entirely halted when the U.S. government seized the manufacturer's supply of this element, which made up 14% of the fiery glaze’s weight, to redirect it to a secret wartime project.
Uranium