Around the State: August 21, 2023

The counties and cities within the state of North Dakota hold many interesting news stories.

Here are just a few of the feature stories that others are reading in communities around the state.

Apparent vandalism at Writing Rock

Apparent vandalism at Writing Rock State Historic Site has Divide County Sheriff Zach Schroeder alerting “the right people,” but other than that, there’s not much he or deputies can do.

Discovered late last month by park caretaker Justin Hanson, Schroeder said it appears someone threw some kind of liquid on one of the ancient petroglyph stones.

Visible stains remain.

A Divide County deputy visiting the park, according to Schroeder, reached between the protective bars.

“He put his hands right on it,” Schroeder said. “He said, ‘It doesn’t feel oily.’ We’re not sure what it is.”

Nor, Schroeder said, is he confident the stains can be removed without damaging the stone.

“That’s a question for the experts,” he said. “Way above my pay grade.”

Writing Rock is state property, falling under the jurisdiction of the State Historical Society. Divide County’s Park Board provides maintenance services, while security type issues fall to the sheriff’s department. The park’s location, Schroeder said, presents significant challenges when it comes to policing.

“I’d love to be able to put some cameras up there,” said Schroeder. “But it’s state property, and besides, any cameras would have to come out of my own pocket. We don’t have the budget for those things.”

In 2017, someone reached between the bars erected to prevent damage and wrote on one of the petroglyph stones with a black marker.

(Story by Brad Nygaard, the Journal, Crosby)

Garrett Volk creates products from animal pelts

In a time of history where new products and practices are changing rapidly, there are still some businesses and trades in North Dakota that are a few centuries old.

One of those practices includes buying and selling animal furs. This industry has experienced popularity in the past, but has had a lull in the most recent years.

Hoping to bring some of this market back, area businessman Garrett Volk is doing his part to promote, create and revitalize the use of fur in a variety of products.

Volk has been in the fur business since 2015. He first started by simply buying and selling fur for a profit.

Then, in 2018, Volk set about using these pelts to make clothing, beginning with hats. His business first developed by selling products word of mouth, but since December, he has started selling on Etsy, called Volk Furs.

He has a vision to “bring fur products to market that are practical to use.”

Some of the products that Volk makes include mittens, hats, Davy Crocket hats, pillows, blankets, and koozies. He does a lot of custom made fur products and will take orders.

Volk said the price of hats is about $200 to $250 and uses mainly coyotes, racoons and some red fox. Muskrats and beavers are other hides that he will use on occasion and are predominantly from North Dakota.

(Story by Amber Houck, the Kenmare News)

Rolla man charged in prison drug ring

A Rolla man was charged for being a part of an alleged prison drug ring.

A Minneapolis man was sentenced to 17 years in prison with five supervised release for Conspiracy to distribute Controlled Substances and Money Laundering Conspiracy inside Grand Forks County jail.

Fifty-seven-year-old Timothy Eason had been arrested on state drug charges and was being held in Grand Forks.

From October 2021 to February 2022, Eason arranged shipments of meth and fentanyl from Arizona to Fargo, Moorhead and elsewhere.

He used cash applications such as Cash App and Chime.

Additional defendants in the case include Alfonso Patrick, 47, of Arizona, Tiffany Johnson, 43, of Moorhead and Ashtyn Gladue, 26, of Rolla, North Dakota.

(Story taken from the Turtle Mountain Star)

Kittson Cabin rededication August 19

The Kittson Cabin rededication took place on August 19 at Walhalla State Historic Site.

The cabin was disassembled last fall following best historic preservation practices, with careful removal, numbering and storage of every log. Some logs were salvaged, while others needed to be replaced in-kind. This spring the cabin was reassembled.

The Kittson Cabin, dating to 1852, is one of the oldest surviving buildings in North Dakota. It is a rare existing example of Metis Red River Frame construction, a style in which the horizontal logs forming the walls slot into upright corner posts. This cabin was built by fur trader Norman Kittson as a warehouse to supply ox carts traveling to St. Paul and likely Winnipeg. It stood in the predominantly Metis community of St. Joseph, now downtown Walhalla. By 1899, the cabin was being used as a stable for the Bellevue Hotel. In 1904, the Pembina County Old Settlers’ Association disassembled and moved the cabin to its current location in Walhalla.

(Story taken from the Cavalier Chronicle)

Opioid epidemic claiming lives at a torrid pace

In the ongoing opioid epidemic, synthetic opioids, like Fentanyl, have grown to be a major problem. An average of 57,834 people died from synthetic opioids in 2020. The number increased to 71,238 deaths in 2021.

Synthetic opioids are produced in laboratories but are made to look like prescription medications. The main issue with synthetic opioids is that Fentanyl is so widely used. Despite the fact that Fentanyl can be prescribed, some people have figured out a way to make it illegally. Fentanyl is most frequently mixed with other drugs, such as methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin. This enables the dealer to increase sales and the scope of their offering.

Sadly, the cost of this happening has resulted in a lot of overdoses involving other drugs.

In 2020, 19,927 people overdosed on cocaine. Then, it increased by over 4,500, reaching 24,538 in 2021.

It is well known that when buying any drug off the street, you run the risk of using fentanyl. You never truly know what is used to cut the drug.

(Story taken from the Turtle Mountain Star)