Carl Grimstad was born in Brigham Township, Iowa County, Wisconsin, in 1856.  He settled in Dakota Territory in 1879 near Park River.  While waiting to file a claim for his homestead, Grimstad taught in a pioneer school.

The collection consists Grimstad's orginial handwritten manuscript, Life in Dakota Territory from 1879 to 1887.  The manuscript documents his travel by horse and wagon and ox cart to Dakota Territory, the hardships faced by both men and women homesteaders, problems with drunkeness, blizzards, and the foritude and spirit of helpfulness of the Walsh County Pioneers.
 

Frontier and Pioneer Life