List of the oldest buildings in North Dakota

This article lists the oldest extant buildings in South Dakota, including extant buildings and structures constructed prior to and during the United States rule over South Dakota. Only buildings built prior to 1880 are suitable for inclusion on this list, or the building must be the oldest of its type.

In order to qualify for the list, a structure must:

• be a recognizable building (defined as any human-made structure used or intended for supporting or sheltering any use or continuous occupancy);
• incorporate features of building work from the claimed date to at least 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) in height and/or be a listed building.

This consciously excludes ruins of limited height, roads and statues. Bridges may be included if they otherwise fulfill the above criteria. Dates for many of the oldest structures have been arrived at by radiocarbon dating or dendrochronology and should be considered approximate. If the exact year of initial construction is estimated, it will be shown as a range of dates.

List of oldest buildings

Building	Image	Location	First built	Use	Notes
Gingras Trading Post State Historic Site		Walhalla, North Dakota	1844	Trading post	Likely oldest buildings in North Dakota [1]
Headquarters Building (South Dakota) at Camp Hancock State Historic Site		Bismarck, North Dakota	1872	Residence
Opheim Cabin		Cooperstown, North Dakota	1879	Residence	First permanent home in Griggs County (ND) built by Omond Nelson Opheim, Washburn Township, 1879 (cabin now on courthouse grounds, Cooperstown) [2]
Bread of Life Church (South Dakota) at Camp Hancock State Historic Site		Bismarck, North Dakota	1881	Church	Oldest church building in North Dakota; no longer in active use by congregation; later St. George's Episcopal Church
I. W. Goodner House		Pierre, South Dakota	1881-1885	Residence	One of the oldest houses in Pierre; built for Clerk of SD Supreme Court [3]
Griggs County Courthouse		Cooperstown, North Dakota	1884	Courthouse	The Griggs County Courthouse was designed by F.B. Edwards and built in 1884 by Alexander Moffat. A vault was added to the building in 1918 and a law enforcement center was added in 1960. It is the oldest courthouse still in use in North Dakota but the county is currently transitioning to a new courthouse. [4]
Glencoe-Sloan Memorial Presbyterian Church		Glencoe, South Dakota	1885	Church	Oldest church building still used for worship in South Dakota. [5]

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in South Dakota
• History of South Dakota
• Oldest buildings in the United States

References

1. Antoine Blanc Gingras, Metis Fur Trader and member of the Minnesota Territorial Legislature, 1852–1853 Minnesota Historical Society, accessed December 6, 2010
2. "Opheim Cabin, Cooperstown, Griggs County, N.D." digitalhorizonsonline.org. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
3. "I. W. Goodner House". Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary: Pierre and Fort Pierre, South Dakota. National Park Service. Retrieved July 6, 2013.
4. "North Dakota Historic County Courthouses - Historic Preservation - State Historical Society of North Dakota". www.history.nd.gov. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
5. "The Oldest Church In North Dakota Dates Back To The 1800s And You Need To See It" https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/north-dakota/oldest-church-nd/