View a flood impact chart for the cities of Grand Forks/East Grand Forks.
(requires flash)

EAST GRAND FORKS, MINNESOTA

Update: Dedication of Sacred Heart recognition wall.

Sioux Indians once camped at the fork of the Red Lake River and the Red River of the North, a site that would eventually become East Grand Forks, Minnesota.

It wasn't until after the Civil War that the city had its beginnings as a trading center and stopping-off place for teamsters who drove the Red River Valley ox carts between Winnipeg and St. Paul.

Early Settlement
The settlement, first known as Nashville, was established by fur trader and government mail carrier W. C. Nash. Nash worked up and down the Red River Valley between Abercrombie to the south and Pembina to the North.

With the establishment of a post office in 1883, the name was changed to East Grand Forks. Eight years later, the St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railroad, later renamed the Great Northern, extended its lines to the community and a building boom began.

Commerce
Located in one of the world's richest agricultural areas, East Grand Forks and its principal manufacturing enterprises have always been closely related to the native economy and to processing agricultural products including grain, sugar beets, sunflowers, soybeans and potatoes.

Among its earliest enterprises was a brewery. Utilizing the extensive Red River Valley barley harvests, the operation brewed and exported beer across a seven-state area. Prohibition ended the enterprise.

During the 1930's and 40's, beer parlors that were legalized by state law and city ordinance (but still technically illegal in Polk County) quickly expanded their fares to include gambling and hard liquor, most of which was smuggled from Chicago through Canada. Local tradition has it that well-known gangsters including Al Capone supplied beer and liquor to East Grand Forks bootleggers.

In the late 1930's the discreet little storefront signs gave way to so many flashing neon signs that Ripley's Believe It or Not credited a three block area of East Grand Forks (DeMers Avenue from the bridge to Fourth Street) with having the highest concentration of neon lights in a three-block area of any place in the world.

At one time, East Grand Forks was well known as a lumbering center, boasting one of the largest sawmills in the country, producing forty million feet of lumber annually. For some years, the manufacture of lumber exceeded all other local industries. The Red Lake River provided an excellent means of getting logs from forest to mill. When the timberlands were exhausted and the mill closed, East Grand Forks turned its attention to agricultural development.

Sugar beets were grown experimentally for several years. When it was established that the soil and the climate would support sugar beets, a processing plant was proposed. The American Crystal Sugar Company built the local plant in 1926. Today, American Crystal Sugar's largest Red River Valley plant is located in East Grand Forks. It has the capacity to slice and process 8,000 tons of sugar beets per day, making the East Grand Forks operation the largest sugar beet plant in America.

Near the end of World War I, the importance of potato growing was recognized. The production has steadily increased, leading to the development of potato processing industries that remain active today. Because of its shipping base, East Grand Forks is known as the "Potato Capitol of the World."

Present
East Grand Forks continues to rebuild after the 1997 Flood. On April 18, the community's eight thousand residents were forced to evacuate as the Red River swelled to a level of 54-point 4 feet. Floodwaters kept homeowners away from their property for weeks. Only seven of the 55-hundred homes escaped flood damage. Neighbors and volunteers from all over the region came to help begin to clear the wreckage. Part of that recovery story is the rebuilding of the Campbell Library, which was completely destroyed in April of 1997.

The Red and Red Lake Rivers see a great deal of use by boaters and fishermen. East Grand Forks' annual Cats Incredible catfish tournament is nationally recognized. In addition to its natural and outdoor recreation opportunities, the Civic Recreation Center and the VFW Arena provide indoor facilities for hockey, skating, conventions, and exhibits year round.