UND Man Camp Project | Video

Jennifer Joas | 8/27/2012

Researchers at UND say people in western North Dakota are making history every day. A team of archeologists and historians traveled to the Williston area to document the phenomenon of contemporary labor housing, also known as man camps.

They took pictures and gathered information with the plan of both relating the short term settlement patterns to other gatherings across the world, and help make policy recommendations. They say they hear stories of triumph where people made it and got a job, and other stories the liken to the "Grapes of Wrath," where people struggle to get jobs and find housing.

But most of all, they say there`s a sense of history repeating itself.

"Where people were going out there to farm. And they were huddled in these little towns on the rail yards. They got to know their neighbors, they relied on each other to some extent to make it through and survive . And take advantage of an opportunity that everyone recognizes is not guaranteed. Even in the fad days of the Bakken boom, you have to make a go of it," said researcher William Caraher.

The team plans to prepare an academic paper and a preliminary report. Researchers plan to return in February to see how workers cope during the harsh winter.

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