This sculpture, “Kudzu Devouring the Jackelope,” stood at the entrance to the park for years.

Kidding. While the card says it’s Island Park, it bears little relation to the Fargo of today – the streetcars are gone, of course, and the main entrance has shifted to the end of Broadway. If you’d like to acquaint yourself with the area before we continue, this satellite view should help.

You’ll note that it’s not an island.

The topography of the park isn't apparent in the satellite image, but it's rather unusual. Island Park is below the grade of the rest of downtown; there’s an actual change in elevation that leads down to the park, and as you might imagine this is quite a novelty in flat North Dakota. People come from miles around just to watch things roll down the hill, or experience the unusual sensation of walking up an incline. 

But I’m getting ahead of the story. Let’s begin.