Area Attractions in Wahpeton, North Dakota
What, that’s nothing. That couldn’t even buy lunch. But back in 1872 it was quite a sum for a young man of eleven. Wait a minute he’s eleven how can he join the Army? He stood on a piece of paper with the numbers 17 on it and said to the officer when asked about his age, “I’m over 17!”
We had a good laugh at this and the whole scene played out for our amusement. The Fort Abercrombie officers were showing us how a young man would be inducted into the military when the fort was a growing concern, back in the 1860’s and 1870’s.
The Fort was an important part of settling the country and a safe haven for people on their way west whether by wagon or steam boat on the Red River. Today the county road that runs right through the site of the actual fort is a testament to the changing times.
The fort is about forty miles south of Fargo Moorhead and ten miles north of Wahpeton. Wahpeton is about two hundred miles west of Minneapolis.
The fort was erected in it’s current location in 1959 after threats of flooding from it’s first location along the Red River. In the beginning the fort was simply buildings that were protected by guard towers on the four corners. You can still see the buildings footings as you walk around the broad area of grass. A few of the buildings have been reconstructed and the one guard house is an original from the fort. The few buildings that have been rebuilt are to show just what those volunteer soldiers were facing when attacked by Sioux warriors in the Dakota Conflict of 1862.
After the battle that lasted six weeks, with the soldiers and people staying in the fort defending it without walls or a stockade fence, the fort was rebuilt with a palisade wall surrounding it. The fort was later abandoned in 1877 and its troops moved or disbanded.
The fort had been an important haven at the crossroads of the major transportation of the area. The Red River saw boats and even steamers up and down it for trading and the wagon trains would cross the ford at the old site of the fort on their way west.
There are re-enactors who work at the fort to share the knowledge and history of the important site of the conquering of the west. They love to share their knowledge of the past and show things like candle and soap making, how they washed the uniforms of the soldiers and how the soldiers fought off the invaders using the small cannon.
One of the officers after inducting our youngest as a soldier took us out to one of the corners of the fort with it’s partially built palisade wall and showed us how they would fire the cannon that sits there. Over looking the Red River and the fields between the Red and the fort he ran use through the drill of cannon firing. We practiced loading and he showed just how hard it was to accomplish, working as a team was the most important part of the whole drill.
We got to see were the escape tunnel had been from the fort to the Red River that was used as a means to get water during the siege and a way that some escaped just before and during the fighting. The whole experience was a fun time and the re-enactors sure knew their stuff. The Fort Abercrombie site was a great stop on our day trip to the Wahpeton area and a last stop as we headed home.
We went first to the Chahinkapa Zoo and the Prairie Rose Carousel. The zoo is a nice surprise to find in a medium sized town. They have a good variety of animals and one of the favorites of the many people that were there was the Tamarins and Lemurs.
The zoo has the Rodger Ehnstrom Nature Center were classes are conducted and there are exhibits like the spider monkey and a few others. My younger son liked the rocks that are in several display cases in the center with some for sale. My older one liked the large snakes that are there. We even caught them feeding the monkeys at the center.
Then we moved on into the zoo, where the rest of the animals are and spent the morning. There are over 150 animals at the zoo and they are all in very nicely kept exhibits. The cage with the Tamarins are close to the entrance and they are so fun to watch, especially when they get fed.
You can visit here for more information about the Chahinkapa Zoo and other sites for the Wahpeton area:
http://www.wahpetonpark.com/zoo.htm
We enjoyed the morning at the zoo and then stopped in at the Prairie Rose Carousel and Prairie Rose Church to see that. The carousel is a restored working carousel that was made in 1926. All the parts and machinery are original and the horses have all been restored to their original beauty. The carousel has a unique calliope that plays as the ride is running, and all the horses were named by the people or corporations that sponsored and donated to have them
restored.
The Prairie Rose Chapel is a restored church that is available for rental of smaller weddings and spiritual events.
For more information on the carousel and chapel go here:
http://www.wahpetonpark.com/zoo.htm
We had lunch and then moved down the road to the Fort Abercrombie site and toured there. We had a very good time and learned a lot about the history and such of the fort and we always enjoy trips to zoos.
There are other thing to do in the area but those are the major attractions to find out more about the area you can go here for tourist information:
http://www.wahpetonpark.com/
There are also a few sites that you can get to from that one to find out about lodging and such in the area. Whether you want a quick day trip that is close to the Fargo Moorhead area or a weekend visit, the Wahpeton area is a great place to visit.
