Dickinson is centrally located in southwestern North Dakota, the midpoint between Fargo, North Dakota and Billings, Montana. Due to this strategic location, and the resulting regional social and economic influence, it was known for decades by the nickname “Queen City of the Prairies.” This nickname was used as early as 1906, and legend has it that it was selected through a contest sponsored by the Dickinson Press. The Dickinson Commercial Club (now the Dickinson Area Chamber of Commerce) published a variety of material promoting Dickinson as the Queen City, especially in the early 1900s when they were lobbying hard to acquire a state college (now Dickinson State University). While other stories exist to explain the nickname, most of them have been discredited through research.  Many regional commerce centers throughout the United States and Canada promote themselves as their region’s Queen City due to the positive imagery of a nurturing woman and the association with a lush and bountiful region.  As Dickinson is also the gateway to the great American West, Medora, and Theodore Roosevelt National Park, it has also been branded by its modern nickname: “The Western Edge.”

The original town site of Dickinson was platted in 1882.  As was common with many North Dakota towns, Dickinson was developed as a “T-Town.”  This describes a standard layout for communities strongly influenced by the railroads. The intersection of two primary streets, usually also the location of the depot, often formed a noticable "T."  In Dickinson this can be seen where Sims Street (running north and south) meets Villard Street (running east and west).  This intersection is also the location of the historic Northern Pacific Depot, which is still in use by the Burlington Northern Railroad Company.  Dickinson was chosen as a division point by the Northern Pacific because of its central location between Bismarck, North Dakota, and the Montana border. 

The Dakota and Lakota (Sioux) camped and hunted in this region for many generations before American and European settlement came to this region.  The Mandan also have a long history in the area, and often hunted in this region. The Mandan, Arikara, and Hidatsa (the Three Affiliated Tribes) continue to live northwest of Dickinson, along the Missouri River, just as they have for hundreds of years.

Some of the first white men in the area included General Alfred Sully in 1864, who was in pursuit of Dakota/Sioux Indians who were alleged to have been involved in a conflict commononly called the Minnesota Uprising of 1862. By 1873, the Northern Pacific railroad survey crews were in the region scouting for potential routes to connect Duluth, Minnesota with Puget Sound, in Washington Territory.  It was at this time that George A. Custer came to the region to help protect the survey expeditions. 

In 1876, Custer died in the Battle of the Big Horn in Montana Territory.  Less than a year later, Fort Keogh was established (present Miles City, Montana), and the Keogh trail was the primary route for travelers going west from Bismarck to Montana.  A stage line operated until rail service could be established in 1881. The Fort Keogh stage coach and mail route was closely followed by the Northern Pacific Railway, and at the turn of the century it was followed as a primary road for automobiles--known as the Old Red Trail. The Old Red Trail was graveled, and later paved, in the 1920s and 1930s to become Highway 10. In the 1960s Interstate-94 was built, still closely following the original route of the Fort Keogh Tail.

For decades Dickinson was a major cattle shipping point, and ranching was a major element in the region’s economic system.  Gradually this shifted to a strong agricultural and farming base, and by the 1950s the oil industry also become a significant resource in the region.  Ranching and farming continue to be integral to the modern local economy, in addition to the oil and coal industries.