Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library opening in North Dakota Badlands

[BlueMTexpat]

12. I first visited there in 1963.

My grandfather's family ended up in North Dakota (my great-grandfather was from Ireland). But after my father was born, my father's family moved to north-central Montana to take advantage of the homestead lands, purchased mostly from the Blackfeet tribe, that were being given away by the then-Great Northern RR in the early part of the 20th century in order to establish settlements in the area.

My dad's uncles and an aunt remained in ND, near Dickinson. They became cattle ranchers, although one of Dad's cousins also became a sought-after auctioneer. Oil was discovered on my aunt's ranch as well. We didn't really know those relatives until my younger brother and sister began attending private schools in ND. My dad used to make the long drive to and from the area, and I accompanied him and my brother on the first RT in 1963. Meeting the "new" relatives was great fun.

I had always dreamed of living on a cattle ranch. In north-central MT, I was surrounded by tens of thousands of acres of cereal grains. Not as exciting, IMO!

The badlands are truly spectacular. Much of our country is!

Our current MisAdministration has no concept of what a fantastic nation we are! All they want is to divide, bankrupt and ruin us.