1. The Territory of Dakota was created on December 2, 1861, which included present-day North Dakota, South Dakota, and portions of Montana and Wyoming.
2. The University of North Dakota, the state's oldest and largest university, was founded on December 2, 1883.
3. North Dakota native and baseball legend Roger Maris was born on December 2, 1934. Maris played for the New York Yankees and broke Babe Ruth's record for most home runs in a season in 1961.
4. The Fargo-Moorhead flood of 1897 reached its peak on December 2 of that year, causing widespread damage and prompting the construction of a system of levees and floodwalls along the Red River.
5. Samuel Fordyce, the president of the Northern Pacific Railroad, arrived in Fargo on December 2, 1879, completing the final leg of his journey from St. Paul, Minnesota, and marking the completion of the Northern Pacific's transcontinental rail line.