The only president who was ever a ranger for the National Park Service signed the law creating Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site near Stanton.

Gerald Ford only had been in office two months in 1974 when Knife River and five other national sites officially became part of the federal park system.

Monday, the Stanton historic site had a modest 35th birthday party celebrating the event, with homemade chocolate cake and punch, a historical photo display and a commemorative postage cancellation.

A few folks showed up for the low-key celebration, many of them members of the site's friends' foundation.

Superintendent Brian McCutcheon said the historic site has become a core part of the local community, evidenced by the pride and dedication of the friends' group in particular.

On a larger scale, the park brings in people from around the country and the world who want more information about the Plains Indian culture preserved at the site, which contains vestiges of earth lodge villages occupied historically by the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara.

Archaeology always has been an important aspect of the park's existence, and next year crews with special funding will come into the park to study sites exposed by last spring's historic flooding on the Knife River, McCutcheon said. In addition, the park also will host a national conference on geophysical archaeology, which uses ground-penetrating radar to essentially ultrasound underground features and artifacts.

Besides archaeology work, Knife River is involved in long-term studies on forest growth and controlled burns and has put emphasis on restoring domesticated grass acres to native prairie.

"I'm really proud of the progress the park has made over the years," McCutcheon said.

(Reach reporter Lauren Donovan at 701-784-5511, or lauren@westriv.com.)