Euro-Americans came to the plains with baggage. Beyond the valuables packed in wagons were the values in their heads and hearts. Prairie novelist Ole Rolvaag presented this idea in his image of an immigrant trunk. Out of it came a way of life from the old country.

The Great Plains offered an open place to start anew, though few left old ways behind. From 1860 to 1880, the northern plains welcomed newcomers wishing to replant and grow diverse values. Missionaries carried their gospel, hoping to replace tribal ways with Christianity. Others sought and found chances to take part in local or territorial government. Still others looked for wealth, some in the mines of the Black Hills.

Explore the interactives and topics in this section to learn more about how people created communities on the frontier.