Backoo, North Dakota

Backoo is an unincorporated community in Advance Township in North Dakota's Pembina County located roughly 5 miles northwest of Cavalier.[1] It was established in 1887 as a townsite along the Great Northern Railroad.[2]

Backoo, North Dakota
Unincorporated community
Backoo, North Dakota Show map of North Dakota Backoo, North Dakota Show map of the United States
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	North Dakota
County	Pembina
Elevation	912 ft (278 m)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
Area code(s)	701
GNIS feature ID	1027778

History

Backoo was a town of roughly 50 people, and was one of the more prominent communities in the township.[3] The post office was established September 26, 1887, and was in continuous operation for more than 100 years, closing October 11, 1988.[4][5] The post office was assigned the ZIP code of 58215. Mail service is now handled through Cavalier.[6]

John Mountain, one of its first settlers, is reported to have named the town after the Barcoo River in his home country of Australia.[7] Other sources credit the origin of the name to Baku, a city in Azerbaijan on the Caspian Sea.[2]

References

1. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
2. Wick, Douglas A. (1988). North Dakota Place Names. Bismarck, North Dakota: Hedemarken Collectibles. p. 75. ISBN 0-9620968-0-6. OCLC 191277027.
3. The Dakota Icelanders Project (2009). "Icelandic Settlers of Advance (Avon) Township". Retrieved 2010-07-02.
4. Patera, Alan H.; John S. Gallagher (1982). North Dakota Post Offices, 1850-1982. Burtonsville, Maryland: The Depot. pp. 106–108. OCLC 09763647.
5. "Postmaster Finder". U.S. Postal Service. Archived from the original on 23 July 2010. Retrieved 2010-07-02.
6. Zip Code Lookup
7. Williams, Mary Ann (Barnes) (1966). Origins of North Dakota Place Names. Bismarck, North Dakota: Bismarck Tribune, 1966. p. 224. OCLC 431626.