Minot (population 45,000) is a city within the north central portion of the State of North Dakota. Dubbed the "Magic City", Minot is noted for its sudden growth over a short period of time. The Minot Air Force Base is situated north of the city. The city is the 4th biggest city in North Dakota and the principal city of the Minot Micropolitan Statistical Area, including Renville, Ward and McHenry counties, with a population of 69,540. Minot serves as the county seat of Ward County.
The City of Minot is a commercial trading center for a lot of northern North Dakota, as well as the southern parts of the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
The city's history dates back to the construction of the Great Northern Railway during 1886. James J. Hill's Great Northern Railway had just completed constructing a difficult trestle across Gassman Coulee when winter came, ending the railway's push west until spring. A tent town sprung up at the location and within five months rapidly grew to more than 5,000 residents. The township was called the Magic City since it seemed to materialize as if by magic. The town site belonged to homesteader Erik Ramstad, who became among the leaders of the city and was named in honor of Henry D. Minot, a railroad investor. Minot was incorporated as a city during the year 1887.
The Minot Air Force Base located 21 km north of the city provides a certain amount of economic security for residents by generating jobs, although two-thirds of Minot households earn less compared to the national median household income. A significant minority of the city residents should have more than one job to make ends meet.
The company ING/ReliaStar has a big service center in Minot. The company cited the excellent caliber of workers and citizens in Minot as part of their reasoning for expanding their operations locally. In recent years, a boom within population and infrastructure investments have resulted from expanded oil drilling within the region using the 'frac' extraction method. A comprehensive log of everyday oil activity could be found on the web site of the state of North Dakota.