[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Page 12751]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               125TH ANNIVERSARY OF AMENIA, NORTH DAKOTA

 Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, today I honor a community in North 
Dakota that is celebrating its 125th anniversary. On June 10 and 11, 
the residents of Amenia, ND, celebrated their community's founding.
  Amenia is a small town in the eastern part of North Dakota, with a 
population just under 100. Despite its size, Amenia holds an important 
place in the State's history. Amenia in 1880 when the Northern Pacific 
Railroad established a station and a settlement grew around it. Eban 
Chaffee of the Amenia Sharon Land Co., on whose home the station was 
actually built, called the new settlement Amenia.
  The post office was established on January 20, 1880, and Edwin McNeil 
became the first postmaster of the newly formed community. At a special 
election held December 27, 1927, the village of Amenia was incorporated 
by a vote of 14 to 1. The Amenia Sharon Land Co. rigidly controlled 
Amenia until it disbanded in 1928 and as a result the townsite was not 
platted until late in 1928. In 1967, Amenia officially became a city.
  The word Amenia comes from the Latin word meaning pleasant and today 
that is more appropriate than ever. Amenia now has a city park, a bar 
and grill, a city beauty shop and an elevator. Under the leadership of 
Mayor Donna Myers, Amenia remains a delightful community in which to 
live and work.
  I ask the U.S. Senate to join me in congratulating Amenia, ND, and 
its residents on their first 125 years and in wishing them well in the 
future. By honoring Amenia and all the other historic small towns of 
North Dakota, we keep the great tradition of the pioneering frontier 
spirit alive for future generations. It is places such as Amenia that 
have helped to shape this country into what it is today, which is why 
Amenia is deserving of our recognition.
  Amenia has a proud past and a bright future.

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