WHAT'S ON YOUR MIND
By Scott Hennen
Host of “What’s On Your Mind?” Radio Show
heard on the Flag Family Network including KTGO 1090AM
in Watford City, Williston and Tioga, North Dakota
Seventy-five years ago, in a quiet corner near Tioga, North Dakota, something remarkable happened. On April 4, 1951, the Clarence Iverson #1 well struck oil - and in doing so, it struck opportunity.
What followed wasn’t just an energy boom. It was a transformation.
Today, North Dakota produces more than a million barrels of oil every single day. The industry supports roughly 63,000 jobs and generates nearly $50 billion in annual economic impact. More than $4 billion flows back each year in taxes, fees, and royalties - funding schools, roads, and essential services.
But if you ask Ron Ness what the real return on investment has been over 75 years, he doesn’t talk about barrels or balance sheets.
“It’s not about the oil. It’s not about the money,” says the North Dakota Petroleum Council president. “It’s about the ability of North Dakotans to have an opportunity to live and work in North Dakota.”
That’s the story too often missed.
In a state defined by agriculture, oil became a second engine - one that allowed generations of North Dakotans to stay, return, and build lives in the communities that raised them. Ness points to farm kids coming home, small businesses thriving, and towns that were once shrinking now growing again.
For the full story, visit www.watfordcitynd.com and subscribe to the McKenzie County Farmer today!