If you drive west from North Dakota’s most popular walkable destination on I-94, you’ll pass a memorial woodchipper, swaths of blue sky, prairie lands, and, eventually, Jamestown. This unassuming borough is sandwiched between Fargo and Bismarck, North Dakota’s second biggest city, which means many people drive right by the gigantic buffalo statue outside of town, but few stop and explore. Well, we’re here to tell you to hit the brakes; any road trippers lucky or savvy enough to pull off the highway into this Midwestern town are in for a treat.
Jamestown has remained incredibly steady throughout the decades. In 1990, its population was 15,571, and nearly a quarter century later, in 2023, its population was recorded at 15,691, a net increase of 120. The town seems to have been developed to satisfy the needs of its local population instead of expanding and building in hopes of attracting more outsiders, and that’s exactly what makes it so appealing to its residents. This approach is most noticeable in the town’s education and infrastructure. Jamestown College’s sterling reputation leads many to call it “the Ivy League of the Region,” and the Jamestown Regional Medical Center was ranked in the top percentiles nationwide by the Women’s Choice Awards for obstetrics, emergency care, and emergency timeliness.
If you’re tired of going to places where people complain about crowds or constantly talk about how much things have changed over the years, head to Jamestown. Here, you can see what it’s like for a population to remain steady, take care of their own, and resist many of the massive changes that have gripped the rest of the country.
Jamestown is full of unique stops
While Jamestown has, for the most part, been developed for locals, the city has invested in several charming tourism efforts — and one gigantic one. Jamestown is home to the Dakota Thunder, the world’s largest buffalo statue, a 26-foot-tall, 60-ton homage to the original kings of the prairie that watches over the entrance to the National Buffalo Museum, also known as the North American Bison Discovery Center. This museum is a metaphor for the entire town, taking you on a journey back in time — in this case, to when the buffalo roamed the plains. There aren’t just gigantic buffalo statues here, either, as an actual herd of buffalo calls the prairie lands surrounding the museum home. You can check them out from a distance or get up close with a pasture tour…