Through the Lens: The Beginnings of Interstate 94
The 1950s brought much improvement to the highway system of North Dakota. The construction of Interstate 94 was started in 1957 near Valley City. There was also a great emphasis on paving the state road system. Improvement of roads in North Dakota brought a huge expansion in the number of automobiles used for transportation with mishaps and accidents well covered by television news.
Source
Through the Lens: North Dakota as Seen by Television in the 1950s (1986); State Historical Society of North Dakota
Grade Level
4 - 12
Subject Matter
Social Studies, Science
Standards
Evaluate the effects of technology on people and the environment (e.g., new construction, oil drilling, electric cars)
Explain ways humans benefit from Earth’s resources (e.g., air, water, soil, food, fuel, building materials)
7.6.1. Identify ways in which technology has influenced the course of history and improved the quality of life
Identify intended benefits and unintended consequences that result from the development and use of technologies
Identify the factors (e.g., pollution, heredity, diet, virus, bacteria, parasite) that may result in disease
Explain the effects of human activities (e.g., dams, levees, farming practices, deforestation, land-use practices, land-management strategies) on the environment
Describe how community life has changed from past (i.e., pioneer and tribal) to the present
Describe ways (e.g., the development of transportation, communication, industry, and land use) geography has affected the development of the local community over time
Identify similarities and differences between past events and current events in North Dakota (e.g., in the lives of people from different cultures past and present)
Describe the effects of changes in industry, agriculture, and technology in North Dakota (e.g., energy production, transportation, farming methods)
Describe ways geography has affected the development (e.g., the development of transportation, communication, industry, and land use) of the state over time
Explain how human activity (e.g., settlement patterns, migration) affects the physical environment (e.g., soil uses, economy, pollution, use of energy sources)
Explain the factors (e.g., trade routes, goods available, location) that influenced the growth of cities
Explain how human modifications affect the physical environment (e.g., damming of rivers, pollution, urbanization)
Analyze the transformation of the nation (e.g., Imperialism, industrialization, immigration, political/social reformers, urbanization, mechanization of agriculture, changing business environment)
Explain how political leaders (e.g., Andrew Jackson, William Henry Harrison, Martin Van Buren, John Tyler) dictated national policy (e.g., States’ rights, closure of National Bank, Indian Removal Act)
Evaluate the impact of various factors that led to the transformation of the nation (e.g., imperialism, industrialization, immigration, political/social reformers, urbanization, mechanization of agriculture, changing business environment)