Van Hook, North Dakota

Van Hook, North Dakota
Ghost town
Coordinates: 47°56′42″N 102°21′36″W / 47.945°N 102.36°W / 47.945; -102.36Coordinates: 47°56′42″N 102°21′36″W / 47.945°N 102.36°W / 47.945; -102.36
Country United States
State North Dakota
County Mountrail
Founded 1914
Incorporated[1] 1915
Disincorporated[2] 1953
Elevation 1,850 ft (560 m)
Time zone Central (CST) (UTC-6)
 • Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
Area code(s) 701
Van Hook
Location in the United States
Van Hook
Location in North Dakota

Van Hook is a ghost town in the north central United States, located in Van Hook Township in Mountrail County, North Dakota. The original town site was inundated when Lake Sakakawea was formed in the 1950s behind Garrison Dam, and most of the residents moved to New Town. Much of the old townsite is underwater, and that which remains was converted to a park.[2] Lake Sakakawea's Van Hook Arm gets its name from the town.

History

Van Hook was founded 102 years ago in 1914 as a station on the Soo Line Railroad. It is named after Fred Van Hook, who was one of the first to survey the area in 1911. It was incorporated in 1915, and reported a peak population of 372 in 1930.[3] In fact, the town grew so fast that it earned the nickname "The City of Speed."[2]

When the Garrison Dam was built in the early 1950s, forming Lake Sakakawea, the town's residents relocated to New Town, which the government had built to house those displaced by the dam. Residents from Sanish, which was also flooded, also moved here. The town's last reported population in 1950 was 380.[1][4]

References

  1. 1 2 North Dakota Secretary of State (1989). North Dakota Centennial Blue Book. Bismarck, ND: North Dakota Legislative Assembly. p. 512. OCLC 20074974.
  2. 1 2 3 Wick, Douglas A. (1988). North Dakota Place Names. Bismarck, North Dakota: Hedemarken Collectibles. ISBN 0-9620968-0-6. OCLC 191277027.
  3. ↑ U.S. Census Bureau (1931). "Number and Distribution of Inhabitants, North Dakota" (PDF). Fifteenth Census of the United States: 1930. Government Printing Office. Retrieved 2008-07-20.
  4. ↑ U.S. Census Bureau (1952). "Number of Inhabitants, North Dakota" (PDF). Census of Population: 1950. Government Printing Office. Retrieved 2008-07-20.


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