1. On December 4, 1917, North Dakota Governor Lynn Frazier issued a proclamation calling for increased vigilance against German sabotage during World War I. Frazier's call for vigilance was prompted by increasing reports of sabotage and espionage in the United States.

2. December 4, 1961, saw the completion of the Garrison Dam on the Missouri River, creating Lake Sakakawea in western North Dakota. The dam provided flood control and irrigation, but also submerged more than 100,000 acres of farmland and displaced thousands of residents.

3. In 1975, North Dakota became the first state to ban most personal-use fireworks, including firecrackers and bottle rockets. The ban was enacted in response to public safety concerns and a series of wildfires caused by fireworks.

4. On December 4, 1980, the North Dakota Supreme Court ruled that the state's school aid system was unconstitutional. The court found that the system, which relied primarily on local property taxes, created disparities in school funding between wealthy and poor areas.

5. December 4, 2012, marked the anniversary of the Battle of White Earth, a conflict between the U.S. Army and the Dakota Sioux that took place in western North Dakota in 1863. The battle resulted in the deaths of several soldiers and Sioux warriors, and was part of a larger conflict between the United States and the Dakota Sioux known as the Sioux Wars.