Prairie Populist: The Life and Times of Usher Burdick

Prairie Populist: The Life and Times of Usher L. Burdick by Dr. Edward C. Blackorby tells of Burdick's frontier upbringing on Graham's Island near Devils Lake, North Dakota, and his political career in the North Dakota Legislature and 10 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. It also details the personal side of Burdick's life, including his involvement with the Indian people of the state, his abiding interest in the history of North Dakota, and his family relationships, particularly with his son, Quentin, who served North Dakota as a U.S. Senator for 32 years.

Usher Lloyd Burdick (1879-1960)

Usher Lloyd Burdick, (father of Quentin N. Burdick, father-in-law of Jocelyn B. Burdick, and father-in-law of Robert W. Levering), a Representative from North Dakota; born in Owatonna, Steele County, Minn., February 21, 1879; moved with his parents to Dakota Territory in 1882; raised among the Sioux Indians; was graduated from the State normal school at Mayville, N.Dak., in 1900; deputy superintendent of schools of Benson County, N.Dak., 1900-1902; was graduated from the law department of the University of Minnesota at Minneapolis in 1904, teaching school in a business college while attending the university; was admitted to the bar in 1904 and commenced practice in Munich, N.Dak.; member of the State house of representatives 1907-1911, serving as speaker in 1909; moved to Williston, N.Dak., in 1910 and continued the practice of law; Lieutenant Governor 1911-1913; State’s attorney of Williams County 1913-1915; assistant United States district attorney for North Dakota 1929-1932; unsuccessful candidate for the Republican nomination to the Seventy-third Congress in 1932; also engaged in livestock breeding and farming; author; elected as a Republican to the Seventy-fourth and to the four succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1935-January 3, 1945); was not a candidate for renomination in 1944, but was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican nomination for United States Senator; unsuccessful Independent candidate for election in 1944 to the Seventy-ninth Congress; elected to the Eighty-first and to the four succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1949-January 3, 1959); was not a candidate for renomination in 1958; died in Washington, D.C., August 19, 1960; interment on his ranch at Williston, N.Dak.

About the Author
Edward C. Blackorby was born and educated in North Dakota, earning a B.A. at Mayville State University and the M.A. and Ph.D. at the University of North Dakota. He also did post-graduate work at the University of Minnesota, Iowa State University and the American University in Washington. DC. He spent fifty-one years teaching, the last twenty years as a professor of history at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, where he was awarded the Excellence in Teaching Award in 1968. He also taught at Dickinson State University and the University of North Dakota, and was a teacher and administrator in North Dakota public schools for nineteen years. Best known for his book Prairie Rebel: The Public Life of William Lemke, Dr. Blackorby has also written for many publications, including North Dakota History, Journal of American History, the Dictionary of American Biography, and Essays on Western History. His special interests are in the history of the West and the Agrarian and Progressive movements in America. Dr. Blackorby retired in 1980 and presently lives in Bloomington, Minnesota.

Website Links:

Usher Burdick Papers, Chester Fritz Library, UND