Duck Inn and Waddle Out of Venturia, North Dakota

July 19, 2017Troy Larson 68 Comments

Venturia, North Dakota is located in McIntosh County, just north of the South Dakota border, forty-five miles east of the Missouri river, about nine miles southwest of Ashley, North Dakota. Like most shrinking rural communities across the state, Venturia was founded as a railroad town, but today the tracks are gone.

We visited Venturia on an overcast day of intermittent sprinkles, and we were excited by the photo opportunities but we needed a break from the rain. It took us a few minutes of sitting in the car, waiting for the rain to pass, before we realized the neon sign on the bar behind us was lit — OPEN. We decided to go pay a visit.

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Hamberg Flashback

June 23, 2017Troy Larson 5 Comments

We visited Hamberg, North Dakota, a near ghost town in Wells County, about 18 miles east of Harvey, for the first time in 2008, to photograph an old school which has since burned in an accidental fire.

Thanks to Heidi Ermer, we can now take a brief look at Hamberg as it appeared in yesteryear when there were residents numbering in the hundreds, as versus the approximate 20 residents who live there today. Heidi sent us the following postcards. The exact year of these photos is unknown.

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Postcards from the Edge of North Dakota

February 8, 2017November 29, 2021Troy Larson 9 Comments

This is a simple truth. There is no greater pleasure per penny than searching through a box of old postcards in an antique store. A little hard on the lower back if you’re wearing the wrong pair of shoes, but pleasurable none-the-less. Here are a few old postcards featuring scenes from Marmarth.

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Freda, North Dakota is a true ghost town in Grant County about 35 miles southwest of Bismarck. Freda started out as a Milwaukee Railroad town, and once had a population of 50 plus its own bank.

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Abandoned: Freda, North Dakota

February 11, 2016November 29, 2021Troy Larson 29 Comments

I was on the road to deliver some books this morning and I decided to stop in Sheldon because I’d seen the old bank once before and I wanted to shoot it. It’s not a ghost town, not even close, the population in 2010 was over 100, but I’m always on the lookout for good photo opportunities in small towns.

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Morning in Sheldon, North Dakota

September 8, 2014Troy Larson 63 Comments

When Omemee Was a Town

January 15, 2014Troy Larson 10 Comments

We first learned about Omemee, North Dakota, a ghost town in Bottineau County, through contributors Mark Johnson and Tom Tolman, who contributed photos of Omemee as it looked around the turn of the millennium. Those images were all we had ever seen of Omemee until quite recently. Despite all the time we spend rummaging around at estate sales and antique stores in our free time, postcards and photos of Omemee just didn’t seem to pop up very often.

So, Tim Brannon of Georgia caught our attention when he posted some photos of Omemee, North Dakota on our Facebook page. He was kind enough to share these photos and comments. Continue reading “When Omemee Was a Town” →

We added a postcard of the Fargo Waldorf as it looked in 1911 a few days ago. Here are a few more looks at this long gone Fargo landmark.

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More of the Fargo Waldorf

January 6, 2013Troy Larson 11 Comments

Clif Nelson contributed these photos of Hanks, North Dakota, a near-ghost town in Williams County — population one. Clif’s comments:

“It was never much of a town, but they had coal mines north of town and grain elevatorsin the early 1900’s. My Grandfather Anton Nelson who farmed about 7 miles northwest of Hanks would haul a load of grain in and haul coal home from the mines just north of the town of Hanks. They had a bank at one time, and a store plus I’ m sure other businesses. The school became a museum of which I have pictures included… My Uncles farmed the old Nelson homestead so we used to visit a lot out there from the late 40’s and on. My children and family used to frequent the Museum when we would visit the Uncles in the late 70’s and early 80’s. It was quite a museum and how long it has been closed now I have no idea.”

More of Clif’s comments are included as captions below.

It’s interesting to note the presence of the former Bonetraill school and the Zahl depot in Hanks. It’s quite common for structures to be moved from a vanishing town to another location, many times for use as a museum or other historically-oriented destination. In this case the structures have been moved from one withering location to another.

Hanks was featured in the National Geographic article “The Emptied Prairie” in 2008. You can also check out John Piepkorn’s gallery of Hanks photos from 2010 here.

Back side of the old chicken hatchery

Back side of the Zahl depot…Zahl was about 5 miles east of Hanks on the Railroad line and the highway

Front of the old Zahl depot

Former bank building in Hanks, later had a gas pump in front of it, so it maybe was a store and or gas station in later life.

Old Pioneer Trails Museum. Was the school at one time.

Bonetraill township one room grade school. Township was north of Hanks.

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Another Look at Hanks

October 7, 2012Troy Larson 14 Comments

Pingree is a small town in Stutsman County, northwest of Jamestown. According to the 2010 Census, Pingree is home to 60 residents. Pingree was founded in 1881 and reached a peak population of 268 residents in 1920.

We didn’t have plans to visit Pingree, but we saw a few photo opportunities from the highway and decided to stop. On the day we visited, several local residents were busy towing cars from the townsite. There is a sizable auto repair/salvage operation in Pingree.

This church is beautifully well-kept and still in use.

The former Pingree depot and gazebo.

Relics of Pingree’s railroad heritage are prominently displayed in town.

Inside the caboose.

The former Pingree Jail — two cells.

Photos by Troy and Rat, copyright Sonic Tremor Media LLC

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Pingree, ND

May 13, 2012Troy Larson 43 Comments

Thank you to Dustin Person and Durton Koble for contributing these photos of Bordulac. Dustin’s comments: I was really surprised by this town as well, the population is around 15-20, and the elevator and bar & grill are the only businesses in town. The white building was the Bordulac Hall. The reddish building was the Carrington train station I believe, and it must have been moved the 9 miles to Bordulac.