Lloyd Nygard Papers, 1904-2001
Collection Overview
Title: Lloyd Nygard Papers, 1904-2001
Predominant Dates:1963-2001
ID: OGLMC1422
Primary Creator: Nygard, Lloyd (1915-2001)
Extent: 8.75 Linear Feet
Date Acquired: 12/11/2000. More info below under Accruals.
Subjects: Burlington Dam, Minot, North Dakota, Souris River
Languages: English
Abstract
Scope and Contents of the Materials
The Lloyd Nygard Papers have been divided into six series as follows:
Series 1: Correspondence
Series 2: Organizations
Series 3: Miscellaneous Flood Control Materials
Series 4: Published Government Documents
Series 5: Newspaper Clippings
Series 6: Oversize Materials
One photograph of Lloyd Nygard was separated and placed in the Photograph File Cabinets.
Collection Historical Note
Lloyd Nygard was born on June 29, 1915, to Andrew and Anna Nygard of Edinburg, North Dakota. He was the tenth of eleven children. He graduated from high school at the Walsh County Agricultural and Training School in Park River. While in high school, he was active in the Future Farmers of America (FFA), Glee Club, livestock and crops judging teams, school annual, and the school newspaper.
He attended the North Dakota Agricultural College (now North Dakota State University) in Fargo, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture in 1939. He continued to be active in FFA, as well as the livestock judging team, YMCA, and Alpha Zeta, an honorary agricultural fraternity.
He married Martha Flaten of Park River on November 4, 1942, at Pleasant Valley Lutheran Church. The couple, who had known each other since high school, had two sons, Mark and Neal, and one daughter, Joanne.
After turning down a scholarship to attend Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, Nygard accepted a position at Velva High School as a teacher of vocational agriculture in 1940. In addition to his teaching, he served as chapter adviser for the FFA, and organized separate Young and Adult Farmer courses. By the time he left Velva ten years later, Nygard supervised the only complete vocational agriculture department in the state.
In 1951, the family moved to Minot, where Nygard was hired to manage the ranching operations of Maurice Harrington, then mayor of Minot. He was responsible for over 7,000 acres of crops, and up to 1,000 head of cattle. He built a purebred Hereford herd that won awards at shows throughout the region. Nygard and Harrington worked together to establish the performance testing program that became the model for over 1,000 herds in the state.
In 1962, Nygard purchased a farm in the Souris River Valley upstream from Burlington. When Harrington closed down his purebred operation in 1971, Nygard went into farming on his own. He built his own Hereford herd, and also started a certified seed program. He was named Commercial Beef Producer of the Year by the North Dakota Beef Improvement Association in 1974. During the 1980s, the American Hereford Association recognized the quality of his herd by twice placing his cattle on their elite list of most valuable producer cows.
Beginning in the early 1960s, Nygard became active in efforts to oppose the flood control plans of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The plan articulated by the Corps included construction of the Burlington Dam and inundation of much of the Souris River Valley. Nygard was instrumental in the creation of Citizens United to Save the Valleys, an organization of over 4,000 members throughout the Souris River Valley. This group supported a more comprehensive plan, including channel improvements in Minot, dams on Souris tributaries in Canada, and smaller dams on coulees in the Des Lacs River Watershed. The group was successful, as by 1991 the original Corps' plan had been discarded.
Nygard was a member of the Ward County Farmers Union, as well as the Ward County Farm Bureau. He served as President of the United Public School District (Des Lacs and Burlington), as well as the Ward County School Board Association. He was also active in the local 4-H Club. He served on the church council of First Lutheran Church in Minot, and sang in the church choir.
Lloyd Nygard died on December 21, 2001, and is buried at Sunset Memorial Gardens in Minot.
Subject/Index Terms
Administrative Information
Repository: Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections
Accruals: Additional material was donated by Mark Nygard (via Dr. Gordon Iseminger), Minot, North Dakota, on May 4, 2001 (Acc.2001-2503) and the Nygard family (via Dr. Gordon Iseminger), Minot, North Dakota, on April 21, 2003 (Acc.2003-2613).
Access Restrictions: Open for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections.
Acquisition Source: Lloyd Nygard (via Dr. Gordon Iseminger), Minot, North Dakota
Acquisition Method: Donation; Acc.2000-2474
Preferred Citation: (Description of Item). Lloyd Nygard Papers. OGLMC 1422, Box #, Folder #. Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections, Chester Fritz Library, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks.
Finding Aid Revision History: Finding aid migrated to Archon in March 2015.
Box and Folder Listing
Browse by Series:
[Series 1: Correspondence],
[Series 2: Organizations],
[Series 3: Miscellaneous Flood Control Materials],
[Series 4: Published Government Documents],
[Series 5: Newspaper Clippings],
[Series 6: Oversize Materials],
[Photographs :],
[All]
- Series 2: Organizations
- This series includes materials from various organizations regarding their stand on the Burlington Dam, as well as other aspects of flood control in the Souris River Valley. The folders are arranged alphabetically by the name of the organization. Citizens United to Save the Valleys comprised the bulk of the material, although the organizations represented range from farmers groups to school boards to women's organizations. Resolutions, correspondence, and publications are typically found in the file for each organization. Although the majority of the organizations were from the United States, some Canadian organizations are included. Lloyd Nygard was involved with some, but not all, of the organizations.
- Box 1
- Folder 12: American Rivers Conservation Center and Environmental Policy Center: 1974, undated
- Folder 13: Board of County Commissioners, McHenry County: 1971
- Folder 14: Board of County Commissioners, Renville County: 1975-1976
- Folder 15: Board of Supervisors, Brandon Township (Renville County): 1977
- Folder 16: Bottineau County Township Officers Association: 1977
- Folder 17: Carpio Public Schools: 1971-1972
- Folder 18: Citizens Committee to Stop the Kindred Dam: 1970
- Folder 19: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: By-laws, undated
- Folder 20: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Objectives and Goals, undated
- Folder 21: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Membership, 1975, 1977
- Folder 22: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Program Outline to Boost Membership, undated
- Folder 23: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Correspondence, 1974-1981
- Folder 24: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Correspondence, undated
- Folder 25: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Meeting Minutes, 1974-1990
- Folder 26: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Newsletters, 1975-1981
- Folder 27: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Press Releases, 1975-1979, undated
- Folder 28: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Flood Questionnaire, 1975
- Folder 29: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Testimony Before Congress, 1976-1978
- Folder 30: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Instructions for "Petition Opposing Burlington Dam Project," 1977
- Folder 31: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: "Petition Opposing Burlington Dam Project," 1977
- Folder 32: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: "Petition Opposing Burlington Dam Project," 1977
- Folder 33: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: "Petition Opposing Burlington Dam Project," 1977
- Folder 34: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: "Petition Opposing Burlington Dam Project," 1977
- Folder 35: Citizens United to Save the Valleys: Valley Rally Day, July 2001
- Folder 36: Coalition on American Rivers: 1975-1978
- Folder 37: Democratic/Nonpartisan League Party, Districts 3, 6, and 7: 1976
- Folder 38: Des Lacs City Council: 1972
- Folder 39: For Dam, Ltd.: 1976-1978
- Folder 40: Friends of the Earth: 1975-1976
- Folder 41: International Souris River Board of Control: 1979
- Folder 42: Izaak Walton League of America, Theodore Roosevelt Chapter (Minot): 1969- 1975
- Folder 43: K-W Mixettes Homemakers Club (Minot): 1972-1975
- Folder 44: Manitoba Action Committee: undated
- Folder 45: McHenry County Farm Bureau: undated
- Folder 46: McKinney Cemetery Association (Tolley): 1976
- Folder 47: Minot Implement Dealers Association: 1977
- Folder 48: Minot Rotary Club: 1966
- Folder 49: Mouse River Land Owners Association: 1963-1964, undated
- Folder 50: North Dakota Farm Bureau: 1976
- Folder 51: North Dakota Farmers Union: 1976-1977
- Folder 52: North Dakota State Water Commission: 1974-1981
- Folder 53: North Dakota Stockmen's Association: undated
- Folder 54: North Dakota Wildlife Federation: 1970-1977
- Folder 55: North Towner Farmers Union: undated
- Folder 56: Renville County Farm Bureau: undated
- Folder 57: Renville County Farmers Union: 1975-1976
- Folder 58: Renville County Soil Conservation District: 1970
- Folder 59: Sheyenne Valley Association: 1975-1979
- Folder 60: Sierra Club: 1970-1980
- Folder 12: American Rivers Conservation Center and Environmental Policy Center: 1974, undated
- Box 2
- Folder 1: Souris Basin Development Authority (Regina, Saskatchewan): 1990
- Folder 2: Souris Basin Planning Council: 1976
- Folder 3: Souris River Basin International People's Involvement Group: 1977,1979
- Folder 4: Souris River Basin Study Board: 1976-1978
- Folder 5: Souris River Flood Control Committee: 1972
- Folder 6: Souris Support Association, Estevan, Saskatchewan: 1989-1990
- Folder 7: United Public School District No. 7, Des Lacs and Burlington: 1969-1978, undated
- Folder 8: Upper Mouse River Association: 1968-1971, undated
- Folder 9: Velva Association of Commerce: 1972
- Folder 10: Verendrye Electric Cooperative: 1974, 1976
- Folder 11: Ward County Farm Bureau: 1971-1977, 1991, undated
- Folder 12: Ward County Farmers Union: 1974-1977, undated
- Folder 1: Souris Basin Development Authority (Regina, Saskatchewan): 1990
- Box 7
- Cassette Tape 1: Oral History Interview with George Rossten, Carpio, North Dakota, of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 21 January 2002
- Cassette Tape 2: Oral History Interview with Burle Stewart, Sherwood, North Dakota, of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 21 Januaru 2002
- Cassette Tape 3: Oral History Interview with Orlin Oilum, Towner, North Dakota, of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 25 January 2002
- Cassette Tape 4: Oral History Interview with Jack Pritchard, Foxholm, North Dakota, of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 26 January 2002
- Cassette Tape 5: Oral History Interview with Pastor Mark Nygard of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 28 January 2002 (no audio)
- Cassette Tape 6: Oral History Interview with Martha Nygard, Burlington, North Dakota, of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 27 October 2001
- Cassette Tape 7: Oral History Interview with Dennis Emmel, Sherwood, North Dakota, of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 21 January 2002
- Cassette Tape 8: Oral History Interview with Walter Erman of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 2 July 2002 (tape 1 of 2)
- Cassette Tape 9: Oral History Interview with Walter Erdman of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 2 July 2002 (tape 2 of 2)
- Cassette Tape 10: Oral History Interview with Orlin Hanson of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 14 October 2001
- Cassette Tape 11: Oral History Interview with Orlin Hanson of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 27 October 2001
- Cassette Tape 12: Oral History Interview with Paul Krenz, Sherwood, North Dakota, of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 21 January 2002
- Cassette Tape 13: Oral History Interview with Lloyd Nygard, Burlington, North Dakota, of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 27 October 2001
- Cassette Tape 1: Oral History Interview with George Rossten, Carpio, North Dakota, of Citizens United to Save the Valleys: 21 January 2002
- Box 1
Browse by Series:
[Series 1: Correspondence],
[Series 2: Organizations],
[Series 3: Miscellaneous Flood Control Materials],
[Series 4: Published Government Documents],
[Series 5: Newspaper Clippings],
[Series 6: Oversize Materials],
[Photographs :],
[All]