Connie and I were born and raised in the small Montana town of Cut Bank. Growing up in the 60’s and 70’s in this community was awsome. This was a time when children could roam and play without worry. Be home by supper time was usually the rule. Cut Bank was also about an hour away from the east side of the Rocky Mountains, allowing for many mountain adventures. Connie and I were high school sweethearts and when we decided to marry we faced the decision of staying in the area or moving to ND to start working for my Uncle Arden who had previously offered me the opportunity to start farming. The economy in MT at the time was sluggish to say the best, so we made the move to start our life in the little community of Churchs Ferry, ND.

Churchs Ferry was a sleepy little town of approximately 130 pop. When we came it had a branch bank, grocery store, bar, hardware store, post office, a service station, two grain elevators, and two Churchs. This tight knit community revolved entirely around agriculture. Connie and I started our lives together here and proceeded to raise our family. The decision to begin here was one we will always be thankful for. Our kids were also able to roam and play safely. Being farm kids they were given work responsibilities and they learned to be successful. They were doing jobs at a young age that city kids would have been doing at twice the age if at all. They were raised in a Christian home and regularly attended our little Lutheran church. You could not ask for a easier place to raise your children than in this community. I attribute their success, work ethic, love of family, and community interest to lessons learned growing up in this small town. Churchs Ferry was not immune to the plague that most small ND communities suffered during this period. The older generation was dying and the younger folks were often moving away. With no other industry other than farming there were very few opportunities for employment. Still we had a very strong nucleus of family farms that kept the community rolling.

In 1993 the Devils Lake area (which included Churchs Ferry) started to receive rainfall substantially above normal. Large winter snowfalls along with heavy spring and summer rains seemed to be the norm and the lake began to rise swallowing up homes, farms, and ag land. Each year brought us another year of new challenges with the rising water. Around 1999 the large ag coop was forced to move and at this time the majority of the towns residents accepted a federal government buyout for their homes and also moved away. We were fortunate to purchase a farmstead a few miles north that we moved to. Many citizens were forced to move entirely away from the community.

There were a few years of respite from major additional flooding, but then heavy rains in the fall of 2008 and excess snow through that winter prompted another round of huge runoff into the Devils Lake Basin. This trend continued through 2011 when a tremendous spring melt and runoff added another 4 1/2 feet to the lake. This event flooded 10’s of thousands of additional acres in the basin. It also inundated numerous roadways that were vital to our farm infrastructure. Our farm operation centered on both sides of a drainage called the Mauvais Coulee. This little coulee grew to be a mile wide in places. There were 5 bridges along it that were critical to our operation being able to transport equipment from the east side to the west, we lost them all. In order to access our farm land that was left we often had 20 mile commutes. Virtually all remaining residents in this area were forced to relocate.

photo illustrates the flooded farmland and roads

this photo was my uncles farm and the base for our operation until the flood

this photo shows flooded farm land with Hwy 2 running through it. What remains of Churchs Ferry is in the upper left

The final breaking moment for our little community was when we lost our Church. In 2011 we were forced to shut the doors do to flooding. We did have flood insurance that we were able to collect, but with the diminishing membership we elected to disperse the funds to other organizations rather than attempt rebuilding. As congregational president I had the task of demolishing and burning the building. One of the saddest moments in my life.

Connie and I had long dreamed of someday returning to the mtns of Montana. In 2012 we purchased our property on Teakettle Mtn.. I had been leasing horses for years and we decided to purchase our own stock the next year.  Then we began the task of building new fences and additional land clearing for pastures.  We spent the next 6 years sharing our time between the farm in ND and our mtn home. This was great, but always left us concerns of vandalism happening at one place or the other during our absence. This fall we decided it would be best to rent out our farmstead to a young man that works for the farm. His wife and family will move in November. My son, who took over management of the farm for 2018, and I will continue our partnership for a couple more years with me commuting back for spring and fall

We had 37 years living and raising our family in the Churchs Ferry area. It is very hard to leave.  Loosing the proximity to our grandchildren, our many friends and our other family in the area is difficult. I loved to farm. The flooding we encountered was disheartening, but the weather pattern seems to have changed and we have been reclaiming many many acres of the productive land. I get a few more years of being active in the farm, but hopefully I will be able to continue to return and assist my son for many more.

Now we begin a new era in our lives. Apgar View Ranch is a beautiful place. Our horses get to roam on mtn pastures. We get to explore many new backcountry places. It’s a hard mtn to live on with the extreme snowfall we receive, but the rewards of experiencing this beauty are well worth it.  We hope to build a place that our family and friends can come to breathe, unwind, and appreciate the beauty that God created. Leaving the turmoil and stress of the real world at bay for at least a little while.

Connie aways says that GOD has a plan. If the flooding we endured had not happened and our community remained somewhat intact maybe we wouldn’t have gone down this road. We have to wait and see what new adventures are in store!