Today’s travel was a sprint along interstate 94 from Fargo to Bismarck, the capital of North Dakota, and my only sightseeing was on the grounds of the capitol. The map/video is here.

The capitol building tours are on the hour and I arrived just before 1 PM but too late to catch that tour so I headed for the other star attraction in town, the North Dakota Heritage Center and State Museum. This is a large, modern learning center and museum that covers the history of the Dakota Territory and, since  1889, North Dakota State. All aspects of the area’s history –  geographical, economic, political, cultural and technological are presented in well designed displays and interactive exhibits that encourage visitors to think about situations rather than just absorb information.

I wasn’t able to spend as long as I would have liked at the Heritage Center because the last capitol tour of the day was at 3 PM. North Dakota is one of just four states that do not have a traditional, domed capitol building. The assembly, senate, supreme court and most state agencies are housed in a 21 storey art-deco office building that was opened in 1934 and is still the tallest building in North Dakota. This alone made it worth a visit and I took the tour to see how it all worked.

The approach to government in North Dakota seems to be very practical. A domed building typically has only about 40% usable space but costs far more to build than the 80% usable skyscraper. Although the materials and quality of the main rooms and public spaces are similar to other capitols it was built in the Great Depression and the budget was strictly adhered to. The members and senators have no offices, they must work at their desks in the actual chambers. However, they only need to be there for 80 days every two years. For instance, the current assembly was elected to serve for 2017 and 2018 but members have already met for 80 days and will not meet again. This seems to recognize the fact that politicians spend much of the second year campaigning anyway. It was a short but fascinating insight into a different way of thinking.

This photo gives an idea of the investment and expertise available to the State Historical Society, which operates the Heritage Center which has no admission fee, compared with the lack of funding of the local Historical Society in Fargo which charged $12. Both were excellent in different ways.

The State Capitol building
The view from the 19th floor observation level
and the Assembly Chamber that is used for 80 days every two years.