Classroom

Last remodeled in 1985, the Grand Forks Central High School is one of the two main public high schools in Grand Forks, alongside Red River High School. The current building serves to accommodate the ever increasing attendance at the school as well as provide facilities for activities, such as the Olympic size swimming pool on the northern side of the property. Being in the packed downtown Grand Forks, the expansion of the school has been requiring more land and forcing businesses to relocate ever since its inception in 1882. Most of this article will discuss the current architecture of the school and its facilities, but will also take a look into previous iterations of the school and its history relating to the greater Grand Forks area.

Grand Forks Central High School

This tour highlights sites in Grand Forks that were affected by the 1997 flood. Certain sites require driving though most can be walked.

The city of Grand Forks purchased 36 acres of land for $6,000 from E.J. Lander in 1909. Those 36 acres were originally meant to be used for residential development, or as a possible site for the University of North Dakota, however, the site would eventually become Riverside Park. Before the pool was built in 1911, there was a naturally formed pond that was called “the mudhole” by the locals. In the 1920’s, Riverside Park was used as a tourist campsite. At that time the park included baseball diamonds, tennis courts, a playground, and a pool.As part of the Works Progress Administration, the Riverside Park pool was replaced with a newer issue, and a bathhouse was also installed. The Riverside Park pool provided relief from the sweltering summer heat for the residents of Grand Forks during the tough years of the Great Depression.During the historic 1997 flood, Riverside Park along with most of Grand Forks was destroyed. In response to the 1997 flood, the city of Grand Forks constructed a flood wall and levee system to prevent future flooding. The levee sits at a river gauge of 60 feet and is 10 feet across. The 10-foot width of the levee allows the city to add clay to the top of the levee, should the need ever arrive. Riverside Park sits on both sides of the flood protection system. The side that is still susceptible to flooding is referred to as the “wet” side, and the part on the other side of the levee is the “dry” side. The Riverside Park Pool is on the wet side of the flood wall and is constantly at risk of damage during the annual flood season in early spring. City officials in Grand Forks are currently debating whether to continue to provide maintenance to Riverside Pool, as it is on the wet side of the flood wall and is susceptible to flooding. Riverside Park today continues to be a go-to source for recreation among the citizens of Grand Forks. Today, the park offers several amenities such as tennis courts, a seasonal hockey rink, softball fields, basketball court, restroom facilities, and plenty of parking.

Riverside Park has provided the people of Grand Forks with recreational opportunities for over a century. The main attraction of the park is the swimming pool and bathhouse, first created in 1911. Before it was a cement cast swimming pool, the Riverside Park swimming pool was a naturally formed pond called “the mudhole” by the local population. The park also provides amenities such as tennis courts, frisbee and footgolf course, a seasonal hockey rink, cross-country skiing in the winter, and restroom facilities.

Riverside Park

The Sister of St. Joseph of Carondelet commissioned the design of this hospital by George and Walter Hancock. This Classical Revival style hospital was constructed in 1907 by Dinnie Brothers for $100,000. In 1913, a Nurses' Residence, also Classical Rival style was deisgned by W.J. Edwards and constructed by Thomas Birge just south of the Hospital so that the buildings were connected by a passageway. Both building facades are symmetrical and both are three-stories tall on raised basements. The hospital is about 50 feet by 110 feet and the Nurses' Residence is about 50 feet by 75 feet.&nbsp;St Michael’s was a teaching hospital and both building were used until the hospital moved to new facilities in 1951.&nbsp; The original roofs on both were replaced in 1953 and the complex was sold to the Sisters of St. Francis and renamed St. Anne's Guest Home. The retirement home accommodated over 100 residents. Unfortunately, in 1978 the State Fire Marshall informed that Sisters that the building no longer met state fire codes and would have to close. In 1981, they moved to a new location leaving the building vacant until 1994.&nbsp;Major interior renovations were undertaken and in 1995, Riverside Manor, a 38 unit Senior Housing complex that has a congregate dining room opened. A devastating flood in Grand Forks in 1997 resulted in more interior rehabilitation as well as construction of a flood wall that became in integral part of the Red River side (east side) of the building. Completed in 2007, the Greater Grand Forks Greenway&nbsp;provides flood protection to the citizens of Grand Forks as well as providing recreational opportunities.

St. Michael's Hospital and Nurses' Residence is a property in Grand Forks, North Dakota that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995. It was also known as St. Anne's Guest Home and denoted 32GF14, it was built or has other significance in 1907 and in 1913. It was designed and by George Hancock and constructed by the Dinnie Brothers. It includes Classical Revival architecture. The property is now "Riverside Manor;" St. Anne's relocated to North 17th Street in the early 1980s.

St. Michael's Hospital and Nurses' Residence

<div>The Fire Hall Theatre was originally the first fire department in Grand Forks. When the fire department in Grand Forks was in operation it had seven firemen that were not volunteers but paid
staff; the fire chief's first name was August. The fire department had "state of the
art equipment."1&nbsp;Both fire stations started out with horses, but slowly traded
them in for machines until it was all trucks in 1929. The fire department was
closed in the early 1970s due to it being too close to the train tracks. The problem was
if there was a train on the tracks they wouldn’t be able to pass the train to
get to a fire. Then the secondary fire department took over as the main fire department. The
Greater Grand Forks Community Theatre was founded in 1947 as a non- profit
organization "to provide entertainment."2 From the time they were established to 1983
they performed wherever they could, in churches, performance halls, and hotels.
That changed when they bought the fire hall for $3500 from the city wrecking crew.
The group remodeled the fire department building by turning the horse stable and truck
area into the stage, seating area, and lobby area, the break room into the
dressing room and make up room. They also kept the spiral stair case that goes
from the stage up to the prop storage and leads to the dressing room and the
costume room. During the great flood of
1997 the Fire Hall Theatre had a&nbsp;lot of water damage, and some feared that it would
be demolished. They didn’t know how bad the damage was because they couldn’t
visit it. Thanks to fundraisers in the spring they were able to open again in
September after some recovery time. There are three main programs at the theater.
The community theater main stage, spotlight players, and theater workshops for
youth. The main stage is the plays and musicals they put on during the year and
any and all are welcome even if you have no experience. The time you put in is
voluntary, the people in the plays rehearse for 5 weeks and put on the play for
3. The spotlight players are for the theater’s young performers. The performers
range from ages 6 – 16. They do a musical in the fall to let the young performers
gain experience, they also put on one in the summer for performers ranging from
6 – 14. The theater workshops for the youth are where the theater puts on “Play
Days” for children in grade 1-8 at the Fire Hall Theatre&nbsp;during the school
year. They play theater games, create characters, and create a play in a day.</div>

On
some travel websites like TripAdvisor a lot of people say that the Fire Hall Theater gives you an intimate experience.3 With the stage and the first row of
seats maybe being four feet apart. Most on this website gave it a five-star
review, said the performances were good, and that it is meant for everyone.
Sometime the actors will walk through the crowd too. The theater sits 108
people. They put on 7 to 8 plays and musicals a season, along with other
activities like the theater workshops, helping 2nd act singers, and
helping an elderly musical theater group, 65 and older, who perform at
different events.There
is a tale that a ghost might haunt the Fire hall Theater. Many people have
heard footsteps upstairs with no one else in the theater. The people there will
sometimes see shadows on the other side of the theater when no one else is
there. Some think it may be one of the firemen that haunts the building. The
ghost doesn’t seem violent and is actually very helpful when props go missing.4

&nbsp;

What was once the first Fire Department in Grand Forks North Dakota is now a theater. It was built in 1905 and acted as headquarters when the second fire department was built and occupied in 1908. The fire department was then bought by the Greater Grand Forks Community Theatre in 1982 and produced its first show Dracula in 1983 after some remodeling.  The theater is rumored to be haunted.  

Fire Hall Theatre

The&nbsp;Grand Forks Herald&nbsp;is a daily&nbsp;broadsheet&nbsp;newspaper, established in 1879, published in&nbsp;Grand Forks, North Dakota,&nbsp;United States. It is the primary daily paper for northeast&nbsp;North Dakota&nbsp;and northwest&nbsp;Minnesota. Its average daily circulation is 34,763 on Sundays and 31,524 on weekdays. It has the second largest circulation in the state of North Dakota. The&nbsp;Grand Forks Herald&nbsp;won a&nbsp;Pulitzer Prize for Public Service&nbsp;for its coverage of the&nbsp;1997 flood&nbsp;but the prize was bittersweet, as the&nbsp;Herald&nbsp;building had not only been inundated but, ironically, burned to the ground in the midst of the floodwaters. Despite losing its offices during the flood, the&nbsp;Herald&nbsp;never missed a day of publication. Temporary offices were set up at the&nbsp;University of North Dakota&nbsp;and at a nearby elementary school. Papers were distributed free of charge to flood "refugees" in neighboring towns. Following the&nbsp;flood, the newspaper rebuilt its office building in&nbsp;downtown Grand Forks. Its distinctive features are a tall clock tower and the symbolism built into the structure, as well as parts of the old building that survived the fire. A new printing facility was also built in an&nbsp;industrial park&nbsp;in the western part of Grand Forks. Knight Ridder&nbsp;sold the&nbsp;Herald&nbsp;to&nbsp;The McClatchy Company&nbsp;on June 27, 2006. McClatchy had already arranged the sale of the&nbsp;Herald&nbsp;to&nbsp;Forum Communications, owner of&nbsp;The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead&nbsp;and&nbsp;WDAZ-TV&nbsp;in Grand Forks. Today, the&nbsp;Herald&nbsp;is one of many regional newspapers published by Forum Communications.<div> </div>

Serving Grand Forks since 1879, the Grand Forks Herald is both one of the oldest papers in North Dakota and the state's second largest circulation. Beyond the city of Grand Forks, the paper also serves northeast North Dakota and northwest Minnesota. Although the paper's headquarters was destroyed by the 1997 flood and fire, the paper still won the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for its coverage of the same flood and fire. The building was rebuilt, this time with a clock tower and symbols dealing with the flood. 

Grand Forks Herald Building

*Information about the Federal Building was provided by historians of the General Services Administration (GSA) "The building was among the first monumental civic buildings in Grand Forks. Originally completed in 1906, the building was envisioned to be a majestic Post Office and Federal Courthouse at a time when Grand Forks was achieving increasing prominence in the agricultural hub of the Red River Valley. The city's existing post office, housed in an 1870s log cabin, had become obsolete and rising political and business influences demanded a more monumental and permanent post office and courthouse. The new Federal building was sited at the north corner of Fourth Street and First Avenue in the downtown business district.James Knox Taylor,&nbsp;Supervising Architect&nbsp;of the U.S. Treasury Department, was responsible for the building's Beaux-Arts Classical design. The building inspired similar architecture for the adjacent enclave of Classical Revival buildings, including City Hall and Central High School.In 1936, the demand for more space prompted the construction of a three-story addition to the rear of the building, designed by&nbsp;Louis A. Simon&nbsp;of the Supervising Architect's Office. The addition harmonized modern infrastructure with the original architecture by using like materials and details. The new configuration included passenger elevators and a light well to illuminate the first-floor work areas. In 1964, when the U.S. Postal Service moved out of the building and into a new, larger facility, interior renovations remodeled the first floor into offices, adding a new stair tower to the north side of the building.In 2002, the building was renamed after Federal District Judge&nbsp;Ronald N. Davies. Judge Davies served in the municipal courts in Grand Forks from 1932–40, and was appointed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower as the U.S. District Court Judge of North Dakota. Most notably, Judge Davies presided over the&nbsp;Stromsodt v. Parke-Davis and Company&nbsp;case in 1966, a case that involved a damage suit against one of the nation's largest pharmaceutical manufacturers.The Ronald N. Davies Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse reflects James Knox Taylor's mannered use of classicism to create an imposing architectural statement of the Federal Government's presence in Grand Forks. The building is a three-story, rectangular, masonry structure of yellow brick and limestone detailing that creates one of the most prominent displays of&nbsp;Beaux-Arts Classicism&nbsp;in the city. Federal Government architects embraced classicism during the early twentieth century as a method of symbolizing democratic ideals of government and power. The distinctive style is exemplified in the building's symmetry, central emphasis, and classical ornamentation. On the facade, the most elaborate decorative features are reserved for the centralized three-bay section. Like the secondary elevations, the facade is composed of three horizontal zones. A rusticated base of alternating bands of limestone and brick courses is differentiated from the smooth limestone walls of the upper stories, which form the middle zone. The upper stories are articulated fenestration framed by colossal&nbsp;Tuscan order&nbsp;pilasters. The third zone is defined by the entablature, including a blank frieze surmounted by a heavy dentil molding, projecting cornice, and balustraded parapet, composed of alternating balusters with raised panels. A large festooned cartouche at the parapet is a crowning feature of the central bay's vertical axis.Refined Beaux-Arts embellishments accentuate the facade's key features. The main entrance is prominently centered and framed by a segmental arch bedecked by a keystone and festooned swags, and banded pilasters, which support an 'audience balcony' above.The interior public spaces are monumental in scale and classical in detail. The first-floor entry lobby, while reduced in size from its original configuration, retains its 16-foot ceiling, featuring a cast-plaster cornice, moldings, soffits, and modillions. Marble adorns the walls and window sills. A central marble staircase with a richly ornamented cast-iron balustrade ascends from the first-floor lobby to the upper floors. The second- and third-floor finishes are generally unchanged from their original condition, consisting of white marble wainscoting and green marble base and trim. Second- and third-floor public corridors have coved ceilings with cast-plaster&nbsp;picture moldings&nbsp;at the spring line.The courtroom - with monumental proportions - represents a dignity apropos of its function as a Federal courthouse. Its coffered, 24-foot ceiling features dentil molding, modillions, and plaster acanthus leaves and buds that grace each coffer's perimeter. The walls are divided by wood wainscoting surmounted by raised plaster panels with molding surrounds. Windows extend upwards from the wainscoting and are partially trimmed on three sides with cast-plaster acanthus leaves matching those on the ceiling. From its earliest period, the courtroom has been carefully preserved. When the judge's bench and jury boxes were relocated from the east to the west wall in 1936, the alterations to the wainscoting, plaster ceiling details, and the wall panels were painstakingly matched to existing 1906 finishes.Because few older buildings in the city's central business district have survived unmodified, the Ronald N. Davies Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse stands as an unusual example of a monumental structure essentially unaltered. As it has for the past century, the building today represents the Federal presence and stands as a visual focus and historic architectural antecedent in downtown Grand Forks."

The Ronald N. Davies Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse is a historic post office and federal office building located at Grand Forks in Grand Forks County, North Dakota, United States. It is a courthouse for the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota. Also and historically known as U.S. Post Office and Courthouse, the building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places under that name. This 1905 building has been remodeled and expanded many times during its over 100 year history. Although suffering damage from the 1997 Red River flood, it survived enough to not have to be demolished. The building is named after Judge Ronald Davies. He was instrumental in 1957 in essentially overriding the decisions by Pulaski County's (Arkansas) Court by nullifying their injunctions and demanding the Little Rock School Board integrate their schools.

Ronald N. Davies Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse

The&nbsp;Telephone Co. Building&nbsp;in&nbsp;Grand Forks,&nbsp;was built in 1904. It was listed on the&nbsp;National Register of Historic Places&nbsp;in 1982. It includes&nbsp;Early Commercial, "Vernacular-Classical Detail", and other architecture.Along with&nbsp;Wright Block, the&nbsp;Clifford Annex, the&nbsp;Dinnie Block, and&nbsp;Golden Square, the Telephone Co. Building was one of many "commercial vernacular brick buildings with classical revival details" that were built during a major building boom, with high quality brickwork.&nbsp;It was built in 1904 by the Northwestern Telephone Exchange Company, which later became&nbsp;Northwestern Bell.&nbsp;This replaced a previous exchange that was located on the fourth floor of an office building, which had some accessibility problems. A 1901 author pointed out that the cable ran into the office from a nearby pole and was unsightly, and that the wiring inside the building was not very orderly either. The building was rather crowded. The company was in the process of buying a lot for the new exchange building.The building was damaged by the 1997 Red River flood but later repaired. Used as a place for businesses&nbsp;today.&nbsp;

Constructed during the "building boom" that took place in Grand Forks during the 1890s and early 1900s, this building was a replacement for a previous telephone company building. Built in 1904, this larger building was able to be more suffiencent in its accessibility and containment of its equipment, since the previous building was too small. Being to small the large telephone pole and wires stuck out in the skyline like a sore thumb. 

Telephone Co. Building (Grand Forks, North Dakota)

The&nbsp;First National Bank&nbsp;is a five story building&nbsp;that was built in 1914–15 and listed on the&nbsp;National Register of Historic Places&nbsp;in 1982. It was built for the Scandinavian-American Bank, but has been identified as the First National Bank building since 1929.When it was founded, the Scandinavian-American Bank had its offices in the Metropolitan Opera House n Grand Forks. The new bank building was constructed in 1914–15 and occupied in 1915. When the bank later obtained a charter as a&nbsp;national bank, it took the name Northwestern National Bank. In 1929, it merged with the First National Bank, and the combined bank located in this building.&nbsp;First National Bank failed in 1933, during the&nbsp;Great Depression, but was replaced by a new First National Bank entity that later became&nbsp;Alerus Financial&nbsp;in 2000.The building is located on a corner lot, approximately 90 by 100&nbsp;ft in size, at the intersection of DeMers Avenue and North Fourth Street. It is considered an excellent example&nbsp;of the use of&nbsp;Classical Revival architecture&nbsp;in the context of a large commercial building.&nbsp;The two sides that face the street have two-part&nbsp;facades&nbsp;in which the lower two stories are fronted by rusticated&nbsp;ashlar&nbsp;piers built on top of polished&nbsp;granite&nbsp;blocks and the three upper stories are faced with red&nbsp;brick. The top of the building is decorated with a stone&nbsp;cornice.The property was included in a 1981 study of the historical resources of&nbsp;downtown Grand Forks.&nbsp;It was damaged by flooding and fire in the&nbsp;1997 Red River Flood; it is the only building on the block that was not demolished as a result of flooding and fire

Originally home to the Scandinavian-American Bank, this 1915 structure was one of the largest in Grand Forks at the time. Over 2 decades later the building changed hands to the First National Bank and was still connected with that bank until 2000. Now it is home to Alerus Financial. During the 1997 Red River flood, this building was almost destroyed by the waters and subsequent fire. However, it was one of a handful not selected for demolition (and the only one in its block). From the outside is appears the same as it did when first constructed. 

First National Bank (Grand Forks, North Dakota)

In April of 1997 the Red River in Grand Forks was flooded, causing immense damage to the homes and livelihoods of Grand Forks residents. Uncommon Heroes: The City of Grand Forks Flood Fight by Kimberly Porter and Laurel Reuter explains that dikes were formed as well as other precautions to help stop the flood, but no matter what prevention techniques used, the water was overpowering. Citizens, taking in the evacuation warnings, decided that their homes weren’t as important as their safety and they took to staying at friends and families houses away from the flood. One testimony talks about the community coming together to help one another. “And what was incredible about that too was that people were just, volunteers were just walking up and down the street asking us if we needed help."[1] Come Hell and High Water: The Incredible Story of the 1997 Red River Flood by Ryan Bakken talks about how on April 19th at around 4pm a fire broke out in the Security Building downtown. The battalion chief, Anderson said, “Even though everything was terrible because of the flood, you at least believed that the worst that could possibly happen had already happened. It hadn’t. That really sets you back.”[2] At the start of the fire, the firefighters couldn’t even focus on the breakout due to having to evacuate 40 plus civilians from surrounding apartments who hadn’t evacuated yet.  After the surrounding civilians and those in the building were evacuated, firefighters began the battle to put out the fire. The surrounding buildings were not located right next to the Security Building, a fire ember the size of a football it was noted flew onto the roof of a surrounding building, causing the fire to spread. First, they attached their hoses to the fire hydrants in the area, going through every hydrant on that block. Battalion Chief Roed suggested a chemical retardant drop which occurred at about 7-8 o’clock, about three hours after the fire had started. Around the same time, due to the water, the trucks were having a hard time maneuvering. The airport offered its services. Dropping water from one of their taller trucks. Shortly before midnight, the airport truck as well as an Air Force truck that joined later were working well. After putting the firetrucks-that were having a hard time due to the 4 feet of water on the ground causing hypothermia to about 4 firefighters-on flatbeds; they were finally able to get water on the fire from the trucks. At 3 or 4 o’clock, the fire was somewhat contained, not spreading to any more buildings. And at first light they had it mostly under control.[3] During the fire, 8 helicopters also helped by dumping buckets of water at more targeted areas, a total of 60 drops of 2,000 gallons each finally put the fire out the next day. The fire was caused by an electrical problem triggered by the flood.[4]  The citizens of downtown Grand Forks were devastated. Not only because of the horrible flood, but also because of the fire that caused immense damage to 11 buildings. In Behind the Scenes: Leadership and Decision-Making in a Natural Disaster, Eliot Glassheim explains that the search started for all the citizens living there, at one point search dogs as well as cadaver dogs were released to help the search. It took two weeks to determine that everyone that lived there was accounted for. To the surprise and elation of those searching, no one was lost. Afterwards personal accounts were shared of the fire from the citizens that stayed despite the evacuation notice until the fire started. Hulst shared “What scared us out is the fire,” she said. “It kept going. All we saw was the fire shooting up. Sparks were flying everywhere.” even the firefighters described it as “unreal, beyond my wildest imagination.”[5] Although the damage was catastrophic, not all hope was lost for Grand Forks. Everyone made it out alive as far as the search and rescue could discern and eventually Grand Forks downtown would renovate and become home for many once again.  After the 1997 flood, construction of a massive flood protection project was put in place to prevent such a disaster from ever occurring again. The incoming 2016 mayor said, “I probably have about as much worry about the repeat, massive flood through our community as I (worry about) a piano falling on my head.”[6] “Flood Protection System Gives Grand Forks Security, but Expert Says Flooding Is a Possibility” by John Hageman says the project proved useful, historically high river crests have been quelled due to the new implementation of the flood protection protocols. The flood protection was built to withstand another 1997 flood as well as unpredictable outcomes such as waves and ice blockages. Although it is physically possible for Grand Forks to flood again, the likelihood is severely diminished. People in Grand Forks have moved past that tragic event and rebuilt their lives, feeling comfortable in the new Grand Forks that has withheld strongly throughout the past 30 years.

The Security Building was constructed in 1890 by a man named George Clifford. Its pink color made it unique to Grand Forks downtown. During the building's early days, it housed businesses such as the Northwestern college of commerce, an architect's office, the Knights of Pythias, Wholesaler C.H. Robinson, UND school of law, the YMCA, and early Grand Forks city offices and federal courts. At the time of its demise the building contained a Barber shop as well as a boxing organization. In 1997, a major flood in Grand Forks caused devastation in the town; during the flood, a catastrophic fire started in the Security Building and spread to 11 other downtown buildings, causing incredible damage. How did the fire start and what actions were taken to fight the horrible fire that caused the demise of many buildings in downtown Grand Forks?

1997 Security Building fire 

St. John’s Block is located in downtown Grand Forks just west of the Red River of the North. Being in the middle of downtown it is surrounded by restaurants, art spaces, bars, shops, town square, and various other forms of entertainment depending on the time of year. Right across the Sorlie Memorial Bridge is the sister city, East Grand Forks, with more restaurant, bar, and entertainment options. This building is a part of the downtown commercial district that has many historical buildings in great shape after being rehabilitated and preserved after the flood of 1997. The city of Grand Forks has many historical buildings, but the community wants them for a better use than to be looked at, they want them to be enjoyed by both other community members and any visitors.Downtown Grand Forks is a Historic Place in itself; in 2005 the 80 acres of downtown was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Downtown can date back to 1872 when settlers first made claims on the Red River followed by the town being platted in 1875. The Saint Paul, Minneapolis, and Manitoba railway made its way to the center of downtown in 1880 which opened up even more routes for transportation and five years later, in 1885, a branch of the Northern Pacific Railway made it to Grand Forks. A few years after the railroads connected the town to others is when H. H. St. John started and completed the building that is still used today. The building has stood tall since then; it has made it through the flood and fire of 1997 and countless harsh winters and heated summers.St. John’s Block has been classified as both private and public property because of the apartments above with the office and retail spaces below. Over the years, the building has had commercial, government, industrial, and transportation uses for the city. In the past, St. John’s block housed a series of banks, office spaces, and a meeting space for the elite Pioneer Club. There have been a few different ventures that did not succeed for the building, one of the most recent being an idea for a boutique hotel. As of 2021, St. John’s Block has 26 apartments available for rent ranging from studio spaces to three bedrooms. The main floor has multiple private office spaces and below that there is a popular indoor cycling studio. In the past, the retail spaces below have been dance studios, art galleries, and small locally owned shops.The building itself can be seen as a bright reddish brick that catches your eye as you pass by. The architecture of St. John’s Block is typical of the Richardsonian Romanesque style that was popular from 1880 to 1900. These buildings are solid masonry stone or brick work with intricate sculpted shapes and individuality. The doorways and windows are usually surrounded with bigger stones, fancy patterns, or columns to emphasize them. This type or architecture is typically considered to be an art and these buildings are beautiful historical pieces to be viewed with respect. The majority of the historical buildings in the downtown area are stone and brick, this was made possible because of the clay deposits which made superior brick for beautiful buildings. St. John’s Block is one of the tallest 19th century remaining in downtown Grand Forks, there were many other buildings similar to this style, but they did not survive the flood or the acts of time.St. John's Block is a one-of-a-kind building with its changing history and unique apartments. The community has a beautiful building that they utilize very well for living, working, and retail spaces. This building has been standing tall for the last 130 years and will continue to be an image of solidity for the Grand Forks community. The newest renovation of apartments are leased out and will be occupied beginning in June 2021. As of Spring 2021, there is only one of the retail spaces being used as The Pedal cycling studio.

St. John’s Block, also been referred to as the Commercial Exchange, is a beautiful five story brick and stone building standing in downtown Grand Forks, North Dakota. It stands tall near the Red River to be seen by many; it is known for its unique stone work and rows and rows of windows. It was completed in 1891 by H. H. St. John, an agent for the Great Northern Railroad company. This building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982, almost exactly 100 years after its construction. As of 2021, the building is used for apartments, private offices, and retail spaces.

St. John's Block

The Red River of the North has flooded repeatedly through the centuries. It is highly prone to spring flooding because of its northward flow, the nearly flat former lake bed of the valley, and ice formation on the river. As spring approaches, the snow melts from south to north in the same direction as the river flow. At times high waters encounter ice on the river and back up, spreading out of the banks. The wide flatness of the terrain, formed from an ancient lake bed, and the low slope of the river also contribute to severe flooding in the region.Serious floods occurred in 1948 and 1950. The&nbsp;1950 flood&nbsp;reached a high of 30&nbsp;ft at Winnipeg and caused the largest evacuation in Canada's history: an estimated 70,000 to 100,000 people had to be evacuated. An estimated $606 million CAD (1997) of damage resulted. In the aftermath, the government of Manitoba and the Canadian federal government constructed flood safety measures.The first known records of floods along the Red River were documented in the 1770s. Severe floods have occurred throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, including in 1979.&nbsp;Residents and officials incorrectly assumed that homes that were safe in 1979 would be beyond the reach of a future flood.The Red River forms the border between&nbsp;Minnesota&nbsp;and&nbsp;North Dakota. A few sets of "sister cities" developed along opposite sides of the river.&nbsp;Grand Forks, North Dakota&nbsp;and its counterpart&nbsp;East Grand Forks, Minnesota, were the pair most severely affected by the 1997 flood.&nbsp;Fargo, North Dakota/Moorhead, Minnesota&nbsp;(Fargo-Moorhead) and&nbsp;Wahpeton, North Dakota/Breckenridge, Minnesota&nbsp;also had severe flooding. Much of the flooding accumulated not only because of the rising river levels, but also from overland flooding, as meltwater did not drain away. Temporary dikes were erected along the riverfront and around the edges of towns, but were sometimes overwhelmed.It was difficult for the cities to prepare for such an enormous flood. The&nbsp;National Weather Service&nbsp;(NWS) had forecast that the river would crest at 49 feet,&nbsp;which was its highest level during the 1979 flood.&nbsp;The cities had built dikes to this level, but the river continued to rise past it. Taken by surprise, the NWS did not upgrade its forecast until April 16, the day the river reached 49 feet.The dikes in the low-lying Lincoln Drive neighborhood of Grand Forks were the first to break, doing so early on April 18, as the river kept rising.&nbsp;Other dikes in the Grand Forks and East Grand Forks area failed that day and the next, flooding thousands of homes. During this time, Grand Forks mayor Pat Owens ordered the evacuation of more than 50,000 people, much of the population of the city. This was the largest evacuation in the United States since the evacuation of residents in&nbsp;Atlanta, Georgia during the&nbsp;Civil War.Water reached areas more than two miles inland from the Red River, requiring evacuation of all of East Grand Forks and 75% of Grand Forks. School was cancelled in both cities for the remainder of the term, as were classes at the&nbsp;University of North Dakota.&nbsp;All transportation was cut off between the two cities (and for many miles, the two states). East Grand Forks residents were evacuated to nearby&nbsp;Crookston, namely to the&nbsp;University of Minnesota Crookston. Residents of Grand Forks were given mandatory evacuation orders on April 18, and retreated to&nbsp;Grand Forks Air Force Base&nbsp;(residents stayed in airplane hangars, which were supplied with more than 3,000 cots).&nbsp;Many residents also evacuated to motels and homes in outlying communities.The river crested at 54.35 feet on April 21, and the river level did not fall below 49 feet until April 26.&nbsp;Because water drained so slowly out of the most low-lying areas, some homeowners could not visit their damaged properties until May. By May 30, the Red River had receded below flood stages everywhere in North Dakota.There was some sense of imminent threat in Grand Forks, but the cities could not prepare for such an enormous flood. The&nbsp;National Weather Service&nbsp;(NWS) had a long-standing forecast for the river to crest at 49&nbsp;feet,&nbsp;which was the river's highest level during the 1979 flood.&nbsp;The cities had been able to get their dikes to this level, but the river continued to rise past it, to the astonishment of the NWS (which did not upgrade its forecast until April 16, the day the river actually reached 49&nbsp;feet).The dikes in the low-lying Lincoln Drive neighborhood of Grand Forks were the first to break, doing so early on April 18.&nbsp;Other dikes over the Grand Forks and East Grand Forks area would fail that day and the next, flooding thousands of homes.When the dikes in Grand Forks could not keep out the flooding river, Pat Owens ordered the evacuation of over 50,000 people on April 18, which up to that time, had been the largest civilian evacuation in the United States since the evacuation of residents in&nbsp;Atlanta, Georgia during the&nbsp;Civil War.&nbsp;She later reflected on the decision saying, "...if I evacuate this city and nothing happens they're gonna impeach me. But if I don't, we're going to lose lives."&nbsp;Because all transportation was cut off between the two cities (and for many miles, the two states), East Grand Forks residents were evacuated to nearby&nbsp;Crookston, namely to the&nbsp;University of Minnesota Crookston, while residents of Grand Forks, who were given mandatory evacuation orders on April 18, went to&nbsp;Grand Forks Air Force Base.With the assistance of the National Guard and Air Force personnel, several hundred patients were evacuated from local hospitals with no injuries or loss of life during the evacuation process.&nbsp;Many residents also evacuated to motels and homes in neighboring communities. Some residents of Grand Forks criticized the National Weather Service for its incorrect prediction of the river level, as it had prevented them from securing their possessions from their homes. One resident said: "If they'd said earlier the river would hit 52 feet (16&nbsp;m), I would have moved my stuff out of my house. At 49, it was safe."The flood made national news. The most familiar footage is possibly of the fire that started on April 19 in downtown Grand Forks, surrounded by floodwaters, where eleven buildings and sixty apartments were destroyed.&nbsp;The&nbsp;Grand Forks Herald&nbsp;building was totally destroyed in the fire, along with 120 years of archives.&nbsp;Firefighters were not able to begin extinguishing the fire immediately as they had to evacuate nearly forty people in one of the nearby apartment complexes who had defied the evacuation order.&nbsp;Additionally, their tankers were unable to reach the buildings due to the height of the floodwater and the water pressure from the hoses and fire hydrants was too weak to extinguish the flames.&nbsp;The National Guard placed the fire trucks on several tractor-trailers to prevent them from flooding, which allowed the firefighters to assist in extinguishing the fire.&nbsp;&nbsp;Also, two aircraft rescue and firefighting trucks from the Grand Forks International Airport were brought in to fight the fire because their engines were higher up off the ground, and thus did not get clogged by the flood waters.&nbsp;&nbsp;The firefighters received assistance several hours after the fire started by a fire-bombing plane that dropped&nbsp;retardant&nbsp;and helicopters who made sixty drops totaling 120,000 gallons of water.&nbsp;Three of the firefighters were treated for hypothermia after treading through the cold temperatures of the flood water.&nbsp;The fire was later determined to have been caused by an electrical problem that had resulted from the large amounts of floodwater. The national attention of both flood and fire reached&nbsp;Joan Kroc, the McDonald's heiress, who anonymously (her anonymity was later revealed to the public by the&nbsp;Grand Forks Herald) donated $15,000,000 to be divided into $2,000 portions for each damaged household (though the amount some homeowners received was less due to the huge number of devastated homes; in all 7,500 households received funds).&nbsp;Additionally, another single anonymous donor gave $5 million which was distributed in $1,000 allotments.&nbsp;In November 1997, North Dakota Governor&nbsp;Ed Schafer&nbsp;reported that victims had been assisted by 50,000 relief agency volunteers who had served more than 2 million meals.&nbsp;Additionally, the communities received clothing and supplies that were donated from every U.S. state.&nbsp;&nbsp;During a concert in&nbsp;Fargo, the rock group&nbsp;KISS&nbsp;donated the money from sales of a special T-shirt to the Fargo and Grand Forks areas to assist in flood relief.All told, there was $3.5 billion USD in damages to Grand Forks and East Grand Forks, making it the eighth most expensive natural disaster in the U.S. since 1903.&nbsp;Across North Dakota and Minnesota, there were 4,500,000 acres&nbsp;of land covered in water.&nbsp;Thousands of people were relocated after the disaster. In May 1997, the Red Cross conducted a damage assessment of 8,000 North Dakota homes.&nbsp;The report indicated that 519 homes, 53 mobile homes, and 73 apartments had been destroyed by flood waters while 701 homes, 69 mobile homes, and 175 apartments sustained major damage.&nbsp;Inspectors reported that 5,959 homes, 166 mobile homes, and 497 apartments received minor damage.&nbsp;&nbsp;Over 5,200 businesses had been destroyed, damaged, or somehow affected by the winter and spring blizzards and the flood.&nbsp;In Grand Forks alone, 75% of the homes, 315 businesses, and 16 of 22 local schools had been flooded.&nbsp;East Grand Forks had over 500 condemned homes, with only eight homes not damaged by the flood.&nbsp;Grand Forks, losing only 3% of its population from 1997 to 2000, did not fare as badly as its sister city, which lost nearly 17% of its residents. Not a single person was killed in the flood itself.On April 22,&nbsp;President&nbsp;Bill Clinton&nbsp;flew over Grand Forks surveying the flooded cities. He then visited the thousands of refugees at the nearby Grand Forks Air Force Base and commented on the community's spirit, stating "Water cannot wash that away. Fire cannot burn that away. And blizzards cannot freeze that away."&nbsp;President Clinton also declared that the&nbsp;Federal Emergency Management Agency&nbsp;would compensate 100 percent of the cost of emergency work, instead of the normal 75 percent.&nbsp;He also requested that Congress approve $488 million for various counties within North Dakota, Minnesota, and South Dakota for short and long-term reconstruction efforts. In June,&nbsp;Canadian Prime Minister&nbsp;Jean Chrétien&nbsp;and President Clinton appointed the International Red River Basin Task Force containing members of both countries. The task force's purpose was to find ways to improve flood forecasting.North Dakota and Minnesota leaders initially asked the federal government for $100 million in disaster relief, but increased their projections to $500 million for Grand Forks and East Grand Forks. Pat Owens went to Washington D.C. to persuade Congress to provide the funds contained in a $5.5 billion relief bill.&nbsp;&nbsp;Although the bill was initially vetoed by President Clinton since he disagreed with additional unrelated legislation being added to the bill, he signed it on June 11.&nbsp;East Grand Forks Mayor Lynn Stauss, reflected on the government assistance to the city, saying: "This community could not have survived without the help of the state and federal government."Grand Forks received $171 million from the federal program, Community Development Block Grants, which was used for 198 projects within the city.&nbsp;One city worker estimated that 10–15% of the funds went to developing downtown Grand Forks, while the remainder of the grants were distributed to the other projects throughout the city.After the flood reached unexpected levels, Senator&nbsp;Kent Conrad&nbsp;wrote in a letter on April 30 that he was "very concerned about the capability of the National Weather Service to accurately and in a timely manner predict river levels on the Red River in North Dakota."&nbsp;Earl Pomeroy told the&nbsp;Grand Forks Herald&nbsp;that "the inability to get realistic flood numbers certainly hindered the communities' ability to prepare."&nbsp;Although the Grand Forks Corps of Engineers was also criticized for their efforts, they revealed that for the last ten years before the flood, the engineers had tried to convince citizens to approve the construction of a more extensive flood protection system.&nbsp;Additionally, the head of the river-forecasting for the weather service of North Dakota and Minnesota attributed the rise of the Red River moving faster and higher than previously expected due to the sandbag levees that residents built to protect their homes, as it narrowed the channel of the river.The 5-foot discrepancy between the actual crest and that which the NWS had predicted led to widespread anger among locals, especially since the citizens of both cities reached and even slightly surpassed the NWS's level of protection through weeks of hard work. Lynn Staus, the mayor of East Grand Forks initially complained on the NWS's predictions, "They missed it, and they not only missed it, they blew it big."&nbsp;He later commented again, saying "I am not trying to blame the weather bureau. [But] we live day by day by those predictions, and many of our people did not go out and buy flood insurance."&nbsp;Anger over the predictions was most famously expressed by a local resident's devastated home having the words "49&nbsp;feet my ass" smeared on the exterior.Over 20,000 volunteers went to Grand Forks to assist in recovery efforts.&nbsp;The Red Cross dispersed over 25,000 clean-up kits (containing bleach, cleaning materials, goggles, and other equipment) funded by the State Department of Health that owners used to clean their flood-damaged property and possessions.&nbsp;Since many possessions and appliances were contaminated by flood water,&nbsp;sewage,&nbsp;mold, and&nbsp;mildew, residents were told by city officials to paint the word "Flood" or make some other mark to prevent&nbsp;looting.&nbsp;Over 60,000 tons of flood debris was hauled to local landfills.Grand Forks' daily newspaper, the&nbsp;Grand Forks Herald, continued to publish papers throughout the flood despite having its printing facilities destroyed. Newspapers were printed in&nbsp;St. Paul, Minnesota&nbsp;and flown on a charter plane to Grand Forks for deliveries.&nbsp;For their efforts, the staff of the&nbsp;Herald&nbsp;was awarded the&nbsp;Pulitzer Prize for Public Service.Several local schools were destroyed, prompting the construction of replacements. Because construction was not finished on most of these schools until the end of 1998, hundreds of students spent a year and a half of school in temporary locations ranging from churches to&nbsp;FEMA-constructed temporary metal buildings,&nbsp;known by locals as "tin bins." Numerous city buildings were also damaged, especially in East Grand Forks, where the flood-ravaged downtown area had been home to the city hall and the public library. Both have since been replaced by new buildings,&nbsp;though not before spending a few years housed in a former elementary school and an ice rink's warming house, respectively.Both Grand Forks and East Grand Forks had to decide whether to develop the land along the river. The president of the East Grand Forks planning-and-zoning commission commented on the idea of development, "The river had been our friend for all these years. It had been like an old dog, sleeping comfortably at our feet, and then one day it jumped up and bit us. We had to decide: Do we put it to sleep or try to make amends?"&nbsp;What were once entire neighborhoods are now covered by grass and trees, part of an extensive area of parkland called the&nbsp;Greater Grand Forks Greenway.&nbsp;In East Grand Forks, this transformation is especially visible. One former neighborhood is now a large campground, the center of what is now known as the&nbsp;Red River State Recreation Area.&nbsp;The cities of today are significantly different from their pre-flood state, but many residents are pleased with this, seeing it as fulfillment of President Bill Clinton's promise that the cities would "rebuild stronger and better than ever."&nbsp;Population estimates by the Census Bureau and by the city of Grand Forks itself now show a growing community.The National Weather Service has since revised their method of forecasting spring floods. Increased technology and funding has allowed for the mapping of the entire Red River bottom, more flood monitoring gauges, and up-to-date satellite images of the river at various flood stages.The area continues to experience flooding as another major flood occurred April 2006.&nbsp;However, the Red River did not go near the level of the 1997 flood and only caused minor damage, primarily in rural areas, including water over roads and bridges. The lack of damage done to Grand Forks and East Grand Forks in particular can largely be attributed to the aforementioned improved dikes and Greenway zone.New dikes have been constructed in Fargo, Grand Forks, and East Grand Forks. Fargo initially had three different plans to choose for developing a dike, and construction of the dike was funded with $10.5 million it received from FEMA and $5.5 million from state funds.&nbsp;For Greater Grand Forks, the system of levees and new "invisible floodwalls" was completed in 2007, having cost several hundred million USD. The areas bordering both sides of the rivers has been converted into a giant park called the&nbsp;Greater Grand Forks Greenway.Since the flood, Grand Forks' recovery has been used as a model by other communities which have suffered from natural disasters. After&nbsp;Hurricane Katrina&nbsp;hit several U.S. states in 2005, Grand Forks adopted the city of&nbsp;Biloxi, Mississippi. Current Grand Forks mayor&nbsp;Michael Brown&nbsp;stated that it was important "to utilize the experience from those people who went through those disasters, like our fire chief, police chief and public works directors. So we went to Biloxi and said, 'This is what we have learned.'"&nbsp;Grand Forks leaders met with Biloxi city officials, and sent a list of contacts and a 24-page booklet that detailed how to coordinate volunteer agencies and how to interact with FEMA.&nbsp;One Biloxi city official stated that Grand Forks had "just helped us to understand what we were looking at, and gave us some direction to go in, which was really needed, with the rebuilding and the recovering."By 2007, the population of Grand Forks had resumed the same levels as before the flood.&nbsp;East Grand Forks mayor Lynn Stauss stated "We like to call ourselves the poster child of flood recovery because we think we showed how different governments working together could make it happen.<div> </div>

Following six snow storms and blizzards hitting this part of the country throughout the 1996-1997 winter, then followed up with extreme high temperatures in April and May of 1997, the Red River flooded, cresting up to over 54 feet in height, and devastated a few miles inland of the city. This 100-year flood cost millions in damage and destroyed most of Grand Forks's historic structures that were located near the river. Dikes and flood walls were soon established in preparation for future flooding, some constructed where the city's oldest buildings once stood. The flood and subsequent fire not only affected Grand Forks, but also northern and eastern North Dakota, some of western Minnesota, and lower halves of the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan.    

1997 Red River flood hits Grand Forks

Edwin “Whitey” Larson opened the Coney Island Lunchroom in 1925 at 108 Second Avenue North in East Grand Forks, Minnesota. Across the border, North Dakota state Prohibition, which began on July 1, 1890, had been effective for over thirty years and caused several saloons and bars located along the state border to relocate and continue operations in Minnesota alongside Larson’s business. Several border cities benefitted from the strategic business relocations, including Hallock, Oslo, Warren, and East Grand Forks, which hosted the immediate relocation of fourteen saloons after North Dakota’s simultaneous union admission and Prohibition. From 1880 to 1915, East Grand Forks received a majority of its revenues from three disreputable industries: gambling, liquor, and prostitution. Larson’s Coney Island Lunchroom was one of over forty saloons and gambling establishments in downtown East Grand Forks, a statistic that would draw attention from international newspapers and Ripley’s Believe It Or Not. Despite Minnesota ratifying the Eighteenth Amendment in 1919 and officially enforcing national Prohibition on January 17, 1920, Larson continued outlawed operations to earn lucrative profits from illicit sales throughout the Prohibition Era.The Coney Island Lunchroom became Whitey’s Wonderbar in 1932. Larson commissioned Samuel DeRemer, a local architect, to redesign the building in the art deco style of the times and to construct the first stainless steel horseshoe bar in the United States. Not only did Whitey’s Wonderbar visually embody the architectural trends of the Prohibition Era, but it also offered the reprehensible cultural pastimes, such as gambling, slot machines, or various card games, to the local populace. A kitchen fire forced Larson to rebuild as Whitey’s Café and Lounge a decade later, and the shutdown of the gambling industry in 1947 dealt a significant blow to Larson’s traditional operations. Upon such events, Larson concentrated on the culinary operations of his business and developed a strong reputation as a local restaurant with unique architecture, excellent customer service, and sensational dishes.Greg Stennes purchased Whitey’s Café and Lounge in 1973 and continued operations from 108 DeMers Avenue until the 1997 Red River Flood hit East Grand Forks. The Red River of the North forms the boundary between Minnesota and North Dakota, and separates several border cities in each state, such as Grand Forks and East Grand Forks. During the catastrophic natural disaster, the Red River crested just over fifty-four feet in April 1997 and slowly receded over the next month. Several properties in downtown East Grand Forks and Grand Forks were damaged in the flood, but subsequent fires completely destroyed buildings. Stennes relocated Whitey’s and its art deco architecture, including the original horseshoe bar, up the block to 121 DeMers Avenue during the city recovery and resumed operations until selling his business to a local investment group in 2010. In 2011, new owner Tim Bjerk completed a cosmetic remodel of the space, preserving the original stainless steel horseshoe bar from the Prohibition Era, and reopened 121 DeMers Avenue as Sickies Garage Burgers and Brews.Despite ending its operations permanently in 2010, the property in which Whitey’s Café and Lounge was located in is still in use today. Food Network television personality Molly Yeh purchased 121 DeMers Avenue in 2022 and opened a new combination bakery, café, and marketplace called Bernie’s. Yeh’s show, aptly titled Girl Meets Farm, chronicles how the Manhattanite-turned-farmwife combines her upscale, ethnically diverse dishes with traditional Midwestern cuisine to create new recipes for the amateur chef at home. In a similar fashion, Bernie’s offers customers familiar favorites, such as traditional Scandinavian fare or beverages from local breweries, with unique twists inspired by Yeh’s culinary experience on the East Coast and her urban upbringing. The space still utilizes the original horseshoe bar as a takeout counter, and seats over two hundred guests in areas inside and on the western patio. Yeh envisions Bernie’s to be a place for customers to “slow down and enjoy time with the people that they’re with, and really love the food."[1] Although the new eatery is a marked departure from the Prohibition-Era business first established by Edwin “Whitey” Larson, Bernie’s represents the long-standing tradition of the Midwestern communities supporting their local small businesses, as well as the aspirations of East Grand Forks for prosperity in the future.

Whitey’s Café and Lounge served food, drinks, and entertainment to the local East Grand Forks community for over eighty years. The restaurant and bar survived Prohibition, several local floods, and multiple changes in ownership for nearly nine decades, but permanently closed its doors in 2010. The building is currently home to a new local restaurant, but distinct architectural pieces from the Art Deco movement, including the original stainless steel horseshoe bar, remains a focal point of the property. Serving as a visual reminder of the city’s foundation and its scandalous economic successes, as well as its resilience against adversity, Whitey’s Café and Lounge represents both the history of East Grand Forks and the possibility of its future.

Whitey's Café and Lounge

<h1>Sacred Heart Church</h1>Sacred Heart Church was founded on August 6, 1893 in East Grand Forks, Minnesota. Prior to its founding, Catholics in the Grand Cities attended services at either St. Michael’s Church in Grand Forks or smaller services in public buildings in East Grand Forks hosted by missionaries. On August 6, 1893, a visiting priest, the Rev. P. J. Hendrick, held a service, following which a committee was formed by a group of East Grand Forks Catholics to begin planning for the construction of a church building. The men on the committee were P. J. Kelly, Jacob Lobsinger, H. P. Gies, Hugh Dunlevy, Leon Supernant, and J. T. Sullivan. The committee raised funds to purchase a small piece of land on what is today 3rd St. NW in East Grand Forks, land that is still occupied by Sacred Heart Parish to this day. Construction on the first church building began in September of 1894. The construction cost between $10,000 and $11,000 and lasted about one year. The church is described to have been 40 feet wide, 103 feet long, and 120 feet tall at the top of its spire. It was claimed at the time that the spire of the new church was the tallest point in the Grand Cities. The new church could seat between 500 and 600 people and featured stained-glass windows and a 2,020-pound bell donated by parishioners. However, in December of 1895, only a few days after the building’s dedication, a fire began in the basement and destroyed the new church building.The fire was devastating to the Sacred Heart Parish, however plans were immediately made to construct a replacement. This replacement was eventually completed sometime before 1897. There are few differences between the first church and this replacement, they were both constructed to the same dimensions, using the same materials, on the same piece of land. This replacement church was in use from its 1896-97 construction all the way to the early 1950s. Some remodeling was done during that period, however little information is available on the scope of those remodels.By the mid-1940s, Monsignor William Klinkhammer, the head pastor of Sacred Heart Parish at the time, recognized the need for both the Sacred Heart Church and School to expand its existing structures to meet the need of the growing Catholic population in the Grand Cities. As his dying wish, Msgr. Klinkhammer requested that the Sacred Heart Parish construct a new church and school building.The next pastor, Monsignor A. I. Merth, rose to his predecessor’s challenge. Monsignor Merth and a planning committee began planning the new church building beginning in October of 1947. A plan of the scope that Msgr. Merth wanted would require serious fundraising. However, Sacred Heart Parish met the goals of the fundraiser, collecting $200,000 by 1949 and $600,000 by 1950. The expansion of the Sacred Heart campus would require the purchase of more land. As a result, Sacred Heart Parish purchased part of 2nd Ave. NW, then known as Bruce Ave., from East Grand Forks. The existing church building was moved across the street in 1950 as construction began on its replacement.The new church building, which still stands today, was constructed to the northwest of the church building built in 1896. The new church began construction in June of 1950. Despite several setbacks, such as the devastating flood of 1950 and the Korean War effort, the new church was completed in 1952. Like its predecessor, the current church has undergone several remodels. Most major of which would be the alterations made to the church’s interior following Vatican II in the 1960s. Remodeling actually helped save this building from the devastating 1997 Red River Floods. The church’s interior was repainted in the winter of 1997 and the fresh paint helped prevent the muddy floodwaters from the Red damage the structure of the building. On the exterior, the church looks almost identical to how it looked in 1952, with the exception of new entry doors on the front of the building.The current church stands today in the middle of what used to be Bruce Avenue. As stated earlier, the current church would be to the northwest, only yards away, of its predecessor. The 1896 church building was moved across the street to what is now the Sacred Heart School parking lot before being sold and demolished sometime in the 1950s.<h1>Sacred Heart School</h1>Almost concurrent with the establishment of Sacred Heart Church there was an attempt to also start a Sacred Heart School. This attempt began in 1895. However, despite this school and the Sacred Heart Church being associated with one-another, the school was located in the basement of the former St. Joseph’s Hospital, which was located at the intersection of Highway 2 and Highway 220. This school was called Sacred Heart of St. Joseph’s and only operated until 1900. It would not be until 1912 that a second attempt would be made.This second attempt really begins in 1909, when Sacred Heart’s pastor, Father James Greene, suddenly died. In his will, Father Greene left Sacred Heart Parish three plots of land located adjacent to Sacred Heart Church. These plots of land would be used to construct the first Sacred Heart School in 1912. Planning began with the arrival of Msgr. Klinkhammer in July of 1911 with construction beginning that fall. The new school was completed in time for the 1912-1913 school, teaching first grade through eighth grade. The program was expanded in 1918-1919 to include ninth through twelfth grade.This building would be in use until the 1950s when, like the church, it was replaced by new facilities. Like the church, the school could not adequately handle the burgeoning Catholic population in the Grand Cities and plans were made to replace the building with a larger elementary school and high-school building. Construction on the high school began first, starting in 1951 and finishing in time for the 1952-1953 school year. The elementary students stayed in the 1912 building until their new elementary school building was completed for the 1958-1959 school year. The original 1912 building became the “fine arts” building for the high-school following its disuse as a K-12 school building.These buildings all stood for 40 more years before the flooding Red River reached them in April 1997. Both the 1912 building and the buildings constructed in the 1950s were destroyed by the flood and were demolished completely in September of 1997. Sacred Heart School students attended classes at a temporary building on Highway 2 in East Grand Forks for the 1997-1998 and 1998-1999 school years until construction of the new, existing school building could be completed. The temporary Sacred Heart School building marked the first time since 1912 that Sacred Heart School was located away from its 3rd St. location.Planning and construction on the new school building began almost immediately after the demolition of the previous buildings. Construction began in 1998 and was completed in time for the Class of 1999 to attend their graduation in the new gymnasium. The new building provided Sacred Heart School a significant increase in space, with the new building boasting 112,600 sq. feet of space in comparison to the 88,000 sq. feet the previous buildings provided. The new building also marks the first time since the 1950s that the high-school and elementary school would be underneath the same roof. The new building has some interesting post-1997 flood quirks as well. Most noticeable is the ring of concrete lining the bottom of the building on 3rd St. This ring raises the new Sacred Heart School three feet above ground level, helping prevent the flood waters that destroyed the old buildings from destroying this new building. The cornerstones from the 1912 building and the 1958 elementary building were moved from their original places to near the doors between the church and school buildings.A new addition was completed in 2019. This new addition is located on the southeast side of the building, facing Hill St. NW. The addition added six new classrooms, meant to meet the rapidly increasing class sizes in the elementary school and the shrinking class space in the high school.

Sacred Heart Church and School have been located at their present 4th St. location since 1893 and 1912, respectively. While buildings have come and gone over Sacred Heart’s existence, the site that the current buildings sit upon has been property of Sacred Heart Parish for over 120 years. Sacred Heart Church is one of the oldest Catholic churches in East Grand Forks and Sacred Heart School is not only the oldest Catholic school in East Grand Forks, but the only Catholic school in northwestern Minnesota that teaches Kindergarten through 12th grade.

Sacred Heart Church and School

The Empire Arts Center lies at the heart of the Downtown Grand
Forks Historic District. When its original owner, A.J. Kavanagh, first had it
constructed in 1919, he wrote the first chapter in the building’s colorful
history. The theater was originally opened under the name, The New Grand Theatre.
It was boasted as being North Dakota’s finest theater, with newspapers citing
its contract with Paramount-Artcraft productions to get new films as early as prominent
Twin Cities theaters, premium fireproof design, 948-person capacity, basement
tunnels to keep the theater warmer, and extravagant ornamentation. The New
Grand was the first theater in Grand Forks devoted to motion pictures and on
opening night, November 10, 1919, around 500 people braved a blizzard to see the
showing of A Witness for the Defense.1,2The theater underwent a series of changes through the 20th
century. In 1928, it became the first theater in Grand Forks to play a “100% talking
movie” with its showing of Lights of New
York. The theater’s name changed to Paramount Theatre in 1930 and it added a
marquee with 3,000 lights—the largest in North Dakota at the time. The
Paramount was renamed the Empire Theatre in 1954 with the addition of cutting-edge
CinemaScope equipment and a new marquee that vertically reads, “EMPIRE,” and
still exists today. The manager at the time reported the name was changed to
represent North Dakota becoming an oil, land development, and industrial empire.
The Empire Theater remained much the same for decades until competition from
the growing video rental industry prompted it to switch to a 99-cent theater
showing budget films in 1987. In 1994, the theater’s owner, Midcontinent Theater company, ceased its operation. Until this time, the theater had shown films for
75 consecutive years.3The building was given a new life in December of 1994 when
Midcontinent Theater Company donated it to North Valley Arts Council (NOVAC), a
local arts group.4 NOVAC soon acquired the neighboring Satrom Building and began
remodeling the spaces to create one multi-use arts center, named the Empire Arts
Center.5 Hal and Kathy Gershman, as well as the Knight Foundation, made substantial
early donations to kickstart the fundraising campaign.6 The renovation process
suffered a significant setback during the 1997 Red River Flood. The theater narrowly
escaped the fire that followed the flood because someone noticed the fire jump
to the Empire’s roof and quickly alerted the fire department, which was able to
save the building. The floodwater, however, rose to four feet high on the first
floor of the Empire and caused around $150,000 in damage.7 This could have doomed
the Empire Arts Center because its donors now had expenses from flood damage of their
own to pay, but no donors rescinded their commitments and many others made new contributions.8 The Empire Arts Center, along with other local arts groups, became a unifying
force for the community. Its importance as a cultural institution was attested
to by community leaders and its interaction with the community grew
substantially. The Empire Arts Center, fortunately, got the support it needed to complete the
renovation.9On March 27, 1998—less than one year after the flood—the Empire
Arts Center opened its doors to a capacity crowd.10 The Empire had been fully
renovated with&nbsp;an improved stage and added art gallery, among other enhancements.11 The Empire Arts Center has continued to serve the Grand Forks community as a host
of a variety of theater productions, performing arts, films, concerts
speakers, community events, and meetings.12&nbsp;Today, it has four venues: the main
theater, a Black box theater (added in 2014), a backstage performance venue,
and a gallery.

This landmark movie theater turned multipurpose arts center in the heart of Grand Forks has been a local cultural institution for a century. Originally constructed in 1919, this theater showed movies each year until 1995, before a brief hiatus that ended with the theater’s transition to the home of a multifaceted arts organization. After the 1997 Red River Flood and the subsequent fires that devastated downtown, the Empire became a point of unification for the community. Today, the Empire Arts Center offers a variety of venues and events.

Empire Arts Center

George B. Clifford was born in 1859 in Concord, New Hampshire. He moved to Grand Forks in 1882, at the age of 24, and opened a law practice. Thirteen years later in 1895, Mr. Clifford and other businessmen in the area organized the Cream of Wheat Corporation. The corporation moved its headquarters to Minneapolis in 1900, but Mr. Clifford remained in Grand Forks until 1909. During his time in Grand Forks, Mr. Clifford was an instrumental leader and builder in the community. He is known for having built some of the best buildings in the city, including the Clifford Annex Building which was constructed in 1906.The Clifford Annex Building drew its name from the adjacent Clifford Building, a larger edifice built in 1904 by George B. Clifford and his business associates. The annex building was designed by architect Joseph Bell DeRemer and was built with locally sourced materials i.e. Red River Valley clay bricks. Many of the other buildings in the downtown area used similar locally sourced materials, which resulted in many superb brick buildings being built during this time. The Clifford Annex Building was owned by the Clifford family for sixteen years before being purchased by Sam and Isadore Papermaster.The Papermasters owned the building for eleven years. They operated the Clothes Panatorium, a laundry, and clothing repair shop until the business fell victim to the Great Depression. The Clifford Annex Building was put up for auction and purchased in 1933 by E.J. Lander and Company for $22,807.97. The Lander Co. retained ownership of the building until 1983. The building was central to the downtown area during the 40s-60s extended era of commercial prosperity. During this time the Clifford Annex building consisted of apartments, a photo studio, a gift shop, and a bookstore.The era of prosperity the Clifford Annex Building and the downtown area enjoyed through the 1940s and 1960s ended though in the 1970s with the movement of local retailers to the southwestern part of town. Through the 1970s and 1990s, the building was occupied by small specialty businesses and professional offices. These businesses consisted of a bank's computer center, a tailor, an office supply company, a dance studio, a real estate company, a psychotherapist, an insurance company, a boutique, and many more small businesses. The building's deed transferred hands several times between several financial institutions throughout the 80s and 90s until its destruction following the 1997 flood. Formerly listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it was removed from the National Register in 2004 due to its replacement with a newer building on this site.

The Clifford Annex Building was built in 1906 on Grand Forks' original townsite. It was built and originally owned by George B. Clifford, and designed by architect Joseph Bell DeRemer. It takes its name from an adjacent, larger building also owned by Clifford.  In 1914 the building was purchased by Joseph Clifford. Over the next eight decades, the building would trade owners, until the flood of 1997. Following the flood, the building was destroyed and replaced by a new corporate center and its adjacent parking ramp. The demolished building was removed from the National Register of Historic Places in 2004. 

Clifford Annex Building

The Odd Fellows Block is architecturally significant in that it is one of twor emaining&nbsp;Richardsonian Romanesque&nbsp;buildings extant in Grand Forks along with the&nbsp;St John's Block. These buildings were, along with the now demolished Security Building, the most impressive in Grand Forks in the late 19th century. The south (principal) and west elevations of the building feature cream brick towers framing recessed red brick bays along with stone details and decorative brick panels. Visible above the roof is a large wire frame skylight, now covered over with tar paper, which once lit the meeting hall below. The second floor apartments date to the original construction. The Odd Fellows Block played a significant role in the social and civic life of Grand Forks in the last decades of the 19th century serving as a meeting place.

Located in the southwestern corner of Grand Forks's historic downtown, this building was constructed in 1888 and was home to many civic organizations in addition to the Odd Fellows fraternal order. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is home to the Urban Stampede coffee shop, but most of the building has not been restored. The building was home to the Odd Fellows as well as the Daughters of Rebekah, the lodges of the Ancient Order of United Workmen, the Knights of the Maccabees, the Order of Foresters, the Grand Army of the Republic, and the Royal Arcanum. When not used by these civic organizations, the building was also used to host civic and social events during the 19th century. This 1888 structure survived the 1997 Red River flood and fire with only minimal damage. 

Odd Fellows Building (Grand Forks, North Dakota)

The first covered shopping mall in North Dakota was South Forks Plaza (now Grand Cities Mall, sometimes known locally as the "old Kmart mall"). At the intersection of South Washington Street and 17th Avenue South, it was constructed in 1964 when Grand Forks housing complexes expanded southward. Shopping centers were shifting from downtown districts to the suburbs in cities nationwide at the time, and Grand Forks saw a similar trend, albeit on a small-town scale.The City Center Mall was a project made to try and keep the people of Grand Forks downtown so the economy would grow. The Mall was a cheap way for the city to build something to keep the people downtown and not expand out. The proposal to the mayor was very intriguing because the costs were so low, and the projections of income and popularity were so high. However, during the same year, the Columbia Mall in South Grand Forks was also built and was a whole new building more resembling the malls we know today. It was bigger and had more major department stores than people were accustomed to in the 1970s. Even though the City Center Mall did have a few department stores, they were smaller than the new ones in Columbia. With greater access to the newly completed Interstate 29, the Columbia Mall was built even farther south near 32nd Ave. South when it in 1977. Therefore, it makes sense that downtown businesses were concerned. JCPenney relocated to the Columbia Mall from its previous home on South 3rd Street in the heart of downtown. Business owners in the downtown area feared their enclosed malls would steal all their customers. They decided to enclose a block of South 3rd Street and transform it into an enclosed mall.The City Center Mall did not meet the planners' expectations and did not improve many businesses downtown, however. For many reasons, the Mall did not succeed; for example, the Columbia Mall was in many ways better and was attracting people there, but the already in-motion trend of the people of Grand Forks moving out of downtown to more significant pieces of land and the rush of the project that made the Mall uninviting to guests. Then, unfortunately, the great flood of 1997 hit Grand Forks, and the Mall was destroyed like many other buildings downtown. With the Mall being close to the river and most of the Mall on ground level, most things could not be salvaged. Due to the minor success of the Mall, the town decided to scrap the Mall and return the street to how it was and return the business to what they formally were. Today walking where the Mall once was, there are few indications that there even was a mall there. The covered street, 3rd Street, is back to once it was with cars and parking. However, where there once was one of the entrances to the Mall now sits Loon Park. A park was built between buildings that once held businesses in the City Center Mall.

The City Center Mall was a quick attempt to create an area that would attract people and encourage them to stay in the downtown area of Grand Forks. Construction finished in 1978, and the Mall was full of trendy stores then. Costing $3.1 million or $22 million in today's money, the Mall was a much cheaper construction as they added a roof over the street connecting existing buildings.

The City Center Mall 

The&nbsp;New Hampshire Apartments&nbsp;in&nbsp;Grand Forks, North Dakota&nbsp;were listed on the&nbsp;National Register of Historic Places&nbsp;in 1982. They were built in 1904 at a cost of $26,000 and were significant as a building designed by architect&nbsp;Joseph Bell DeRemer. The apartments were an example of commercial&nbsp;vernacular architecture, and the building was the first in Grand Forks to have a planned second-story-level walkway to another building (the Security Building).&nbsp;When listed on the National Register, the apartment complex was one of few remaining downtown structures designed by DeRemer with classical details.&nbsp;It was built by the&nbsp;Dinnie Brothers, a construction firm that was established in 1881 and was at one time responsible for the building of more than 60 percent of the commercial buildings in Grand Forks When the large amount of snow melted due to high temperatures during April and May 1997, the Red River, that ran through Grand Forks, flooded over,&nbsp;devastating&nbsp;most of the city. The flood washed into the apartments and the following fire finished off the destruction of the apartments.&nbsp; *Any older photos of the apartments, or of what remained following the 1997 flood, should be added to this page.*

On this spot once stood the New Hampshire Apartments, a complex destroyed by the 1997 Red River Flood and subsequent fire. Designed by New Jersey architect, Joseph Bell DeRemer and constructed by the Canadian Dinnie Brothers, who owned a businesses in Grand Forks. Opened in 1904, the complex was used until its demise in 1997. A marker sits where the apartments once stood. 

New Hampshire Apartments

The Metropolitan Opera House was built in 1890 by the Grand Forks Opera Company on land donated by&nbsp;James J. Hill&nbsp;of the&nbsp;Great Northern Railway&nbsp;at a cost of $91,000.&nbsp;Though the term "Metropolitan" may have been an overstatement for a community that, at the time, had just 5,000 citizens, those behind construction of the building were looking to the city's future growth. The building required two mortgages to complete and struggled to stay in the Black after opening. Nonetheless, it was able to provide citizens 50 years of opera and theatre.By the 1940s, opera had fallen in popularity due to new forms of entertainment such as film. The Met was no exception and the curtain fell for the last time. Over the next 50 years, the building was home to a variety of businesses. During this period, the 1890s interior was gutted and replaced by bars and bowling alleys.Badly damaged during the&nbsp;1997 Red River Flood, the building sat empty for several years and came close to meeting the&nbsp;wrecking ball. However, the former opera house was saved by the Historic Preservation Commission. The exterior has since been restored to its 1890s appearance, while the interior has been converted to high-end apartments with space for businesses on the first floor. In 2015, Rhombus Guys Brewing Company opened on the first floor.The building was designed by prominent&nbsp;Minneapolis&nbsp;architect&nbsp;Warren B. Dunnell&nbsp;in the&nbsp;Richardsonian Romanesque&nbsp;style.&nbsp;It went through an extensive renovation/restoration by&nbsp;JLG Architects&nbsp;in 2005 and 2006.

The Metropolitan Opera House (or The Met) is located in the downtown area of Grand Forks. The building, constructed in 1890, faces the Red River of the North and sits between the BNSF Railway tracks and a parking structure. At one time, the Opera House was considered the best opera house between Minneapolis and Seattle. Today, the building has been converted into an apartment building called the Opera House Lofts

Metropolitan Opera House (Grand Forks, North Dakota)

The flood of 1997 was the most notable flood to hit Grand Forks in recorded history. In early March of 1997 the communitiy started to see the starts of what would be the biggest flood to hit Grand Forks. It was stated on page 34 of Flood Stage and Rising by Jane Valley, that "the flooding rivers filled the streets and froze." During this flood season 2 of the 3 bridges that connected East Grand Forks and Grand Forks were closed. The Kennedy bridge had a high span and remained open. "The bridge symbolized movement and connection between North Dakota and Minnesota, and on a deeper level, it symbolized control" (35). During the flood of 1997, schools and businesses closed so that more people could volunteer their time towards the sandbag lines. After the floods destruction that lead to the whole city evacuating, The Grand Forks Harald wrote that, "To the south of DeMers will be an obelisk monument commemorating flood years in Grand Forks and the elevation of flood waters." This was written on Sunday, January 13, 2002. The monument was built and along it, a couple different paths for the community to walk around. This monument stands tall and occasionally in the springs, it sinks slightly under the flood water of the Red River. It hasn't reached the heights of the 1997 waters since.

The Flood Memorial Monument in Grand Forks, ND was built following the flood of 1997. The flood forced evacuation of the city. Afterward, President Bill Clinton signed an order that granted the community money to rebuild after the natural disaster. The Flood Monument shows the years of the greatest floods and references the height that the flood water rose to. The monument was built to signify 12 of the building that were lost during the flood. It is built on the site of the former Security Building in Grand Forks. This was the first of the 12 buildings that were lost in the downtown fire due to the flood. The flood displaced thousands of people and caused millions of dollars in damage throughout the community.

Flood Memorial Monument

The Viets Hotel&nbsp;was an 1876&nbsp;vernacular&nbsp;Greek Revival&nbsp;building in&nbsp;Grand Forks, North Dakota. In proceeding years it had been the&nbsp;Richardson House&nbsp;(by 1884), a subdivided residence (by 1896), the&nbsp;Hall Hotel&nbsp;(from around 1906 until at least 1938),&nbsp;Hotel Apartments&nbsp;(1940),&nbsp;Hall Apartments&nbsp;(1942–88), and&nbsp;Bachellor Apartments&nbsp;(1989–97). At times when extra rooms were needed for visitors, a building at 317 S. 3rd St. was used as overflow.&nbsp; Following six snow storms and then high temperatures soon afterwards, the Red River flooded over in 1997, the worst flooding to happen in Grand Forks since 1826. Flooding affected northern and eastern&nbsp;North Dakota, parts of Minnesota and the Canadian&nbsp;provinces&nbsp;of Saskatchewan&nbsp;and Manitoba. To make matters worse, a fire then hit the city,&nbsp;destroying buildings, both those affected by the flooding and those left untouched by the flood.&nbsp;Sitting next to the Red River, the already neglected Viets Hotel was filled with mud, water and trash. Not wanting to repair the building, the city decided to demolish the building and a dike replaced it.&nbsp; *If any older&nbsp;photos of the hotel can be found, they should be downloaded to this page*

On this spot where a dike now stands, the old Viets Hotel was located here when it was first completed in 1876. The hotel was Grand Forks's oldest retail establishment until its destruction in the 1997 Red River Flood. The hotel over the 120 years of its existence was also known by many other names, such as the Richardson House, Hall Hotel and Hall Apartments, to name a few. Known for its vernacular Greek Revival architecture, the hotel would suffer in types of neglect before its destruction. 

Viets Hotel

Grand Forks's first Lutheran church was the&nbsp;Zion First Evangelical Norwegian Lutheran Church,&nbsp;organized&nbsp;in 1879 and had its own building by 1881. In 1886 the second Lutheran synod was the&nbsp;Evangelical Lutheran Church, later to be known as Trinity Lutheran. Following those in 1889 was the&nbsp;First Lutheran Church, which formed after a group of members left the Zion Lutheran congregation.&nbsp; In 1918, Trinity and Zion merged as Bethany Lutheran, where they met in Zion's church building. In 1936 Bethany merged with First&nbsp;Lutheran, thus becoming the United Lutheran Church of Grand Forks. In September of 1927, the installation of Rev. Ingvoldstad was broadcast over the radio, initiating one of the&nbsp;longest radio ministries in the country, continuing to this day.&nbsp; Construction for a new church building to house all three united synods began in 1931 under the direction of regionally famous Joseph Bell DeRemer and his son, Samuel. The building was finished in 1932. Throughout the 1960s, the church saw extensive additions and renovations made. Following the 1997 Red River flood, the church had to once again be restored, having been damaged, yet not enough to warrant demolishment.&nbsp;

United Lutheran came to existence in 1926 after three of Grand Forks's Lutheran synods (congregations) decided to come together. After series of these congregations splitting apart, others banding together or minor ones existing based on ethnic backgrounds, it was announced, over the radio, that all Lutheran congregations would come together. A church building was then needed to hold them all. This building was constructed in 1932. The building was lucky to survive the 1997 Red River flood largely intact. The church is still active today. 

United Lutheran Church (Grand Forks, North Dakota)

The Lincoln Drive Neighborhood (sometimes called the Lincoln Park Neighborhood) was a prominent working-class neighborhood that stood in Grand Forks since at least 1923, according to Sanborn maps of the city.[1] Over the decades, some of the streets of the neighborhood were apparently consolidated so that the neighborhood would instead have longer avenues with connecting streets near the ends.[2] Lincoln Drive Neighborhood was one of, if not the first areas of Grand Forks to flood.[3] In some ways only photographs can capture the true extent of the flooding, with houses submerged in their entirety as shown by the image “The disaster begins to unfold in Grand Forks.”[4] Despite the unfortunate loss of dozens of residents’ complete loss of homes and belongings, the land that the Lincoln Drive Neighborhood was built on has been effectively put to use as a Greenway, promoting outdoor recreation while protecting from future flood.While the end result was a flooded and destroyed neighborhood, Lincoln Drive residents, Grand Forks residents, and UND officials worked tirelessly to construct, maintain, and rebuild broken levees and dikes.[5] Residents likely even watched as the neighborhood slowly filled with water[6] (see: “Lanark Street in Lincoln Drive Park. Now the road that leads to the dog parks.”). However, by April 18th residents of the neighborhood, like many others throughout the city, were ordered to evacuate.[7] Once the flood waters had receded and the city of Grand Forks was safe to inhabit again, Lincoln Drive residents were able to see the damage themselves. With road and debris alike caked in mud, an entire house lifted, warped, and deposited on top of a resident’s car[8] (see: “Corner of Lanark &amp; Lincoln Drive in Lincoln Drive Park. Current site of the dog park.”) it was clear to many returning residents that they would have to start over.In the aftermath of the flood, the Grand Forks City government acted with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to recover the city from the devastation.[9] For instance, the image “Temporary Dike built on Lincoln School Site” shows a small dike being built where the old Lincoln Elementary School had used to be.[10] It is possible that this small dike still exists in Lincoln Park today, according to the landscape of Lincoln Park as seen through Google Maps.As part of the recovery and rebuilding process, the City of Grand Forks instituted a property buy-out program for residents and business owners in flooded neighborhoods, such as Lincoln Drive. While many residents surely accepted the buy-back as soon as possible to get back on their feet, one Lincoln Drive resident gained local notoriety for holding out for a fairer value[11]. Seen in Draves’ “Kelly Straub’s House on Maple St. in Lincoln Drive Area”, Straub’s house was essentially the only home left in her area of the neighborhood by 1999.[12] After waiting for the City to officially use eminent domain, Straub was able to use federal law to enforce a buy-out for the price of her new home where she housed her family.[13]The plan to rebuild Grand Forks consisted of the construction of new dikes, floodwalls, and water pumps to protect the city. At the same time, the City saw an opportunity to use the bulldozed green land to construct a “Greenway” along the wet side of the floodwalls. This Greenway would serve as outdoor recreation space, spanning the length of Grand Forks and the Red River.[14] Today in Lincoln Drive Park, there stands a playground, a dog park, a disc golf course, and ample green space for recreation and play.With the Flood of 1997, much of the history of the Lincoln Drive neighborhood was lost. Much of the research and documentation about Lincoln Drive has been exclusively focused on the flood. While this is understandable how the Flood is somewhat engrained into the cultural memory of Grand Forks, it is regrettable that this long-standing neighborhood so near to the heart of the city has so little information about it.The havoc and destruction of the Lincoln Drive Neighborhood, and of Grand Forks as whole, was a terrible and tragic event. The sacrifice that many Grand Forks residents were forced to make cost them their belongings, their homes, and their lifestyles as they knew them. From the destruction wrought by the 1997 flood, grew an opportunity for the City of Grand Forks to take proactive action to protect the city so that this extent of damage would never occur again. At the same time, a primary focus of the development was to create a hospitable continuous area of recreation, where new memories could be formed in the wake of destruction. In this way, the area may have been leveled from a neighborhood to a park, but there will always be a Lincoln Drive.

When the Red River Flood of 1997 hit Grand Forks and East Grand Forks, there is no question about the sheer extent of damage both cities underwent, especially their downtown areas and neighborhoods near the river. Among these, Lincoln Drive Neighborhood was one of the first places in Grand Forks to flood, due to its location nestled at a bend in the Red River. A working-class neighborhood and home to Lincoln Elementary School, Lincoln Drive Neighborhood was decimated in the flood’s aftermath. Today, the area is home to a prominent park of Grand Forks’ Greenway, built upon the bones of the old neighborhood to prevent flood waters from ever wreaking such destruction ever again.

1997 Red River Flood Drive/Walk Tour

Grand Forks Central High School

Introduction