A Short History And Origin Of Wahpeton

By Harold Meyer


Wahpeton is a known city in the south east part of North Dakota. It is located specifically in the Richland County which runs somewhere along the Bois de Sioux River and is also Otto Tail River. The cool thing about this city is that it has a very rich history that dates back all the way to the 1700s. If one would want to know more about this quaint city in Dakota, here are a few things that are interesting to note.

The actual founding of the city was sometime during the year 1869. Although the city itself was founded during this time, it was in 1767 that the area was first discovered by a European by the name of Jonathan Carver. Carver was tasked to look for the Northwest Passage but his travels paved way for more Europeans to flock to the area.

After the Civil War, the small city was commissioned by the United States Government to be developed. This project was spearheaded by JW Blanding, who was the first person to discover that the Dakota land was fertile and good for growing crops. He and is family then decided to migrate over to Dakota and have a home in that land.

While there were many developments being made to the land by the government in Dakota, it was only in 1869 when the town had an actual community inside. The first settler was actually Morgan Rich in which he attracted other settlers who decided to make a community named Richville in his honor.

In 1871, the community changed the name of Richville to Chahinkapa which happens to mean end of the woods because it was near some forest areas around the area. From there, the small community evolved into Chahinkapa county. It was from this time that the county further developed and expanded with the many people contributing to its improvement as a county.

Further down the road, the county was renamed again to Richland County and then to the name it has today. The name actually came from the tribe name of local Dakota Indians which is Wakhpetonwan which actually means leaf dwellers. The local Indians lived near Lake Mille Lacs and were some of the very first residents in the area until settlers came.

In 1872, development of the county sped up with a set of new railroads built to cater to travelers. Because of this railroad, the local economy grew as many freight deliveries and travelers came into the county. Aside from visitors, the railroads made it much easier for even the immigrants to move in and occupy the village, resulting in more settlers.

Today, this city is booming having several large manufacturing plants located in it. Further development of the city was implemented when the voters approved of a one and a half percent tax that goes directly to improving the city. Because of that, this city is a great attraction for a lot of tourists and wonderful home for the residents as it is very livable and beautiful.




About the Author: