EMPTY NORTH DAKOTA - And The Surprising Small Towns I Found There 

Sounds pretty good!

Nice! $200K wouldn't buy the lot my house sits on. What a bargain!

I live in New Zealand this house is quite impressive i'd live there. love these videos

Sounds great until you try paying that mortgage with an $16 / hr job at the beet plant.

Note that the median family income for people living in the city limits of Hillsboro is $42K.

You're right!

I waived with my pointer finger in the air and nodded because I don't know him.

Yes, it would have been "What choo lookin at?"

My favorite wave in those parts would be "hand on top of steering wheel, index finger extended" wave. It is a classic wave -- good for strangers, friends, and family.

Yep, and I waved back!

Kindness and civility rule!

@@fumanpoo4725 Especially when everybody has guns. 🙂

Not one piece of litter or graffiti!😊

Not amazing. It's expected.

that is not ecological - eliminates flowers, insects, butterflies etc...like the rest of the place it is car dominated asphalt and concrete waste land - the hatred of organic life is palpable

@@edgregory1 I guess it’s expected where I am also but I guess it depends a lot on society and income maybe, a lot of towns around me (I’m in the country now Thank God) the town I grew up in 1/2 or more of the houses are now falling apart or down and look like the slums. needless to say those neighborhoods look like jungles. People have no pride anymore. That’s why I say it’s amazing. Those places remind me of how my hometown used to be. 🥰

​@@daydays12Turn that frown upside down!😂

Slainte!

"my father refused to ever step in snow again." When youve had enough youve had enough.

My grandparents lived in Montana. They were also Germans from Russia.

Same here I love cold weather

🙂

Yes a Q&A would be really interesting!

I remember him saying in an earlier video that he and Nicole met in a bar that they both worked at before.

Oh great idea!! Y didn't I think of that?🤔😁

All that info is available in an earlier Q&A video.

We're working on that. :)

It was the 1970's. Your ancestors chose to go to North Dakota and the dust bowl never really affected that area like other areas. What drove people out was crop prices and the Depression. I am a University of North Dakota grad with a history degree, geography degree and a master's in human geography from there. What you are talking about is what I studied. You say your dad's family went to Michigan? Usually people went west not east. Considering during the 30's it was not like Detroit was booming.

They are going to use the pyramid to store computer data. The problem will be keeping workers. There is nothing to do out there like Austin or the Bay Area. And the weather is brutal most of the time.

@@erikthorne I spent many hours with my grand mother asking questions about her childhood out there in ND. I asked her "How did you end up in Flint?" She told me. She said the dust bowl in Nekoma was horrible. She described what happened. Crops failed, animals starved, and dirt everywhere blowing into peoples homes. There was no way to make money so you can say it was economics that drove them away but they were also pushed along hard by the dust bowl conditions. Her brother had a job in the auto factories in Flint Michigan and he got them in there over a period of a couple years. I never thought to ask her how he did that (I realize it was the depression) and my Great Uncle who did that was long gone. I have a really neat book my uncle Melvin (my grammas brother) got at a class reunion called "Nekoma - the first 100 years" It tells the story of how Nekoma was founded and the people. My family is in the book. I still had family there into the 1990's.

@@jppagetoo I will put it very simply your grandma was feeding you BS. I have written research papers on the subject and all four sets of my great-grandparents were farming with 30 miles of Nekoma going back to the 1890's. I still own farmland there.

@@erikthorne OK. I have no reason to doubt her story other than your assertion. Maybe she felt it was worse than it was? Possible, she was a very young woman and peoples memories are far from perfect. I can't ask anymore, all of the Nekoma part of my family are gone (my gramma was born in 1917 and died in 2012 and she was the last of the Swanson children). According to the Nekoma book, all but 2 of the family left Nekoma by the end of 1936 (ish). If she was gone by '36 that meant she was at most 19 when she came to Michigan. Surprisingly the Nekoma book discusses the early sod busting and the miltary base eras quite a bit but large swaths of decades the are left undiscussed. I quote from the Nekoma book "Crowded on three sides by settlement the pre-Nekoma area was part of a VEE shaped formation shunned by settlers due to it's reputation for frequent and early frosts." So the area was a more difficult place to grow anything. So add in some drought and the area was likely a tough farming proposition in the 1930's. How big was that VEE? I don't know. Was it dust bowl bad? I don't know, but it there is evidence that this little town had a handicap that other nearly communities did not. BTW: This book was written by the residents of Nekoma and published in 1980. The authors are given but I do not know much about them. The family histories in the book were related by the families. They are first hand accounts.

I guess I should be ashamed to say I've never heard of a Carnegie Library. The man, yes, but not his libraries.

@@TinkerTailor4303 History my friend.... Andrew was a hard man but a helluva philanthropist!!

We have a carnage library in Morrilton Arkansas

We have a Carnegie building in Minot, ND

Actually, those libraries were used to control what you read and change the Country.

I'm huge on weather, I assume it's dry year round out there? I'm from/live in Houston TX and we're humid 80% of the year it sux lol

​@@713tilidierippimpc5 They get their fair share of blizzards and severe thunderstorms. We get some of that here in Northern Wisconsin too.

@@713tilidierippimpc5 I live in Fargo. It does get up into the 80's and 90's in the summer, but you're right, it's dry and breezy. I rarely turn on my air conditioner.

@belle6219 makes me wanna move up there. Houston is wayyy too humid and I've lived here all my life. Can never get used to it. Plus it makes our food go bad way quicker than in drier regions smh

@@713tilidierippimpc5 🥵

Right!

You sound as if "empty" is a bad thing..??..

@@atatterson6992 Thats Texan for "I agree with you"

Oh how I envy you Janet... Enjoy your peace :)

I noticed Doolittles Grill had walleye on the menu. I was hoping one of you 2 would order it. I live in Knoxville and in the south the only sure way to eat walleye it seems, is to first catch one in the lake. I HAVE heard of walleye being sold in the grocery stores occasionally but have yet to see it for myself. Northern restaurants seem to have more varieties of delicious fish on their menus, including bluegill for instance.Take advantage of it lol.

Wow, thank you, R Henry!!!

Thank you!!

Keep them away. They’ll ruin it.

I loved NOrth Dakota for its history. My son was called to Grand Forks Air Force Base. We visited few towns around. We love them there. I will love to live there when retired from Lutheran deaf ministry. My stress relieved when visited there. I asked my son if he would settle down. He would not. Too cold! I understand. North Dakotans, enjoy your life as I am impressed.

It facinates me that Americans consider early 1800s old , I'm from England and our local church is 1080 . 😊

great insight, thanks

Amen to that. I grew up there and now live in LA. After 50 years in California I freeze if it gets below 60.

Steve Wallis would agree.

Thank you, Mike!

And that is why it is a good place to live.

If your region or community can keep out "most people", it's moving in the right direction.

I'm totally fine w8th it. Please do stay wherever you are, thank you.

Thats why Canadians go to Florida

I went to school in Fargo,ND. Ran track for NDSU. We had -70 degree weather with the windchill and our coach would drive us to the town north of the city and force us to run back to town.

Higher in crime? In ND?

Brutal winters vs. Crime ridden hell hole Give me the brutal winters

Quant and charming? Yeah right. I've lived in North Dakota my whole life. Neighbors don't even talk to each other.

You don't understand the winter till you experience them. Best 7 months of the year... And yes, lutefisk, torso, and lefse are a must!!

What the heck is lutefisk,torso and lefse???

Lutefisk is fish that has been fermented using lye. It's smell is off putting and it's texture is questionable. And taste is acquired. Lefsa is a thin doughy pastry with cinnamon sugar and butter. The other I cannot help with, but knoephla soup is amazing!

@@jons.14 Almost sounds Macedonian.

Oh, Joe and Nick, i love your channel. Thx for the tours.

So prices must be low?

your tax subsidizes your life.

@@tomfields3682 Nothing is cheap. Gasoline prices are very high. A gallon is approximately 3.8 liters. In the Netherlands, the cheapest price around Amsterdam is €2.19 per liter. So multiply that by 3.8 and you get about $8.30 per gallon. Fortunately, we are not dependent on a car. In the Netherlands and the rest of Europe, all shops can be reached safely on foot or by bicycle. The prices in the stores are not low. Everything is getting more and more expensive. Vegetables, meat, hygiene items, clothing. But we have a subsidy culture in the Netherlands. If, according to the Dutch government, you have insufficient income, you will receive extra money. FREE!!! That is why so many so-called "refugees" come to the Netherlands. The Netherlands is an expensive country. But with €22,000.00 per year you can live well here and even save money thanks to all the government help.

Short Answer: Even though the taxes are lower in the US as opposed to the Netherlands, we don't get much return for our money unlike the Dutch. (I was in the Netherlands for 2 weeks last October, btw). Since the end of WW2, Dutch voters have voted to create a lucrative social safety net (and willingly taxed themselves to finance this). By comparison, the social safety net in the US has always been comparibly weak. Historically, the Netherlands also has strong labor unions with many members; US labors unions have never been too big, and are now only 6% of the workforce. The Dutch also have greatly benefited by the US "security umbrella" since WW2, but this situation will likely change in the future (even if Pres. Biden wins) since US public support for continuing to underwrite 71% of NATO"s budget is dropping precipitously. From my conversations with Dutch people in October, it seems the Dutch public is oblivious to this inevitability. While the Dutch have excelent English language skills, it might be prudent for them to either dramatically increase their defense spending, or quickly start learning Russian. No joke.

I guess his investments weren't being met by shipping it overseas and the gas prices locally were too low.

@@dopeMike_ actually during that oil boom things were OK when we were using our own oil it was not until we were using mideast oil when prices went up

Did you notice the correlation between those people you saw and talked with in ND, compared to the big city people you see but can't talk with? I do.

I'm from Houston be glad there's not 100% humidity everyday lol and we're flat as hell smh. Why I love taking road trips to see diff landscapes and feel dif climates

If you can take a bit of cold weather…..

I thought the cold was supposed to keep the riff raff out. I guess not

All the out of staters who came for the oil boom.

​@marge3157 Your right on with that.

I laughed when he said that, too. The winters here are brutal.

I spent 10 years in Maine. I prefer Phoenix winters.

I'll take 2 feet of snow instead of an 8 foot storm surge.

Well, the winter is the longest season in that part of the country. And you have sub 0 temps for weeks at a time in January and February. You don’t go outside unless you need to. Summers are beautiful though, just short.

It's not that dramatic. We go outside. We have jobs. Sure, we don't go traipsing around in shorts and flip flops(although some do) during winter. When it's -20 or -30 with 30mph winds, it is most certainly cold AF. And most people keep a winter kit in the car because, yes, you can get stranded if the weather gets ugly. But if you don't like massive cities and prefer a chill (no pun intended) place to live without having a million people stacked on top of each other, it's glorious.

He has. He showed us the woodchipper at the end.

I agree. Looked super delicious 😋!

You are sadly misguided. Small towns like that are exactly where you find plates like that. You really need to get out more.

@@atatterson6992 Sorry didn’t mean to offend. I am from CA and we no longer have that type of meal much anymore, more into ethnic variations. Maybe you need to get out more.

@@denisefreeman2123 Thanks, but I'll pass on the ethnic variations. I'm a comfort food kinda guy as well as an Americana kinda guy. I miss the culture I grew up with, as did my parents, and their parents, and their parents, and theirs.. ad infinitum. Its a shame we're the only ones not allowed to revere, appreciate and respect our culture. We're instead expected to embrace "ethnic variations" and many of us are over it. Thanks anyways.

Settlers that stayed there were tough, determined homesteaders and that blood is still in these folks veins! IMO 😁

Topic of Personal Freedom, North Dakota is Rank# 31 out of the 50 States.

We should all move there!

About the same actually...

why not minot freezin is the reason

It is. I was born in No Dak lived in WA as a kid and Oregon as an adult. I would go back in a heart beat.

You should visit Grand Forks -- a very modern town and well designed.

Conservative you mean. You’re just a boomer

Thanks 👍

Perhaps that is one cause of the low crime rate. Criminals are often on the move.

Where are you from?

@@robertwatkins364 Florida/Texas

@@1951Roy We are less crowded here, than you those states. I'm glad to visit with anyone, but some of their politics scare me.

​@@robertwatkins364 What politics?

@@daltonbrasier5491 Liberals!

Thank you!

I would happily go through the winters in exchange for the safety, security and extremely high quality of life.

@@atatterson6992This is not how all of ND is though. Born and raised and still live in ND. Cost of living is not like this everywhere and either is the income. And we have brutal winters. Takes a unique person to deal with -30 to -70 wind chills 7-8 months of the year along with feet of snow. And where I live, highest crime in the state. So no, not all of ND is how this video was portrayed.

Exactly. Such a foreign concept today in big cities.

Joe and Nics Culinary Guide of The United States

If nice homes are going for $200k there’s not a lot of people moving there

Too damn cold for me though and probably for most people. 🥶

The problem is, more people move to ND, they will attract the bad people that will spoil the ambiance that attracted people there in the first place. Crime, graffiti, drug addicts, bums. Then people won’t wave, doors will be locked, people will be fearful.

Most people freak out because winter is 7-8 moths of the year. That's why less than a million people live in the state.

I guess the criminals are so cold they can't go out and Rob anybody😂😂

"Cold weather keeps the riff raff out." Shout be the state motto...

Certainly keeps homelessness in check! 🥶

good point about the crime rate

Minneapolis would disagree.

😃

Congrats on your achievements! You need to back for the Homecoming at MSU, you may see some of your classmates! MSU looks like a nice campus.

@@1962JULY Yes, it would be lots of fun too!Thank you! Darealdeal

Same in Oregon.

That I absolutely do not doubt. LoL 😂

That would suck

Not over here just north of Baudette Minnesota! April,just a bit in early April!

Global warming.

Pshhhhhhh leaves out Florida...

@@dopeMike_ OK and FL too ;)

Yeah, completely random and unexpected!

I had to rewind a couple times just to make sure I heard correctly LOL!

And I don't think the cold is the worst weather. It is the many blizzards every winter.

Any time!

Thank you!