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In 1964, candidates plowed for votes at Plowville, U.S.A.
More than 100,000 people were expected as Barry Goldwater and Hubert Humphrey turned the plowing contest into a late-campaign stop.
On September 19, 1964, Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater and Democratic vice presidential nominee Hubert Humphrey campaigned at the National Plowing Contest in Buffalo, North Dakota, where more than 100,000 people were expected.
Organizers transformed the 1,500-acre Fraase farm into "Plowville, U.S.A.," constructing a tent city 32 miles west of Fargo complete with an airplane landing strip and communications tower.
Vice President Hubert Humphrey defended farm policies, claiming agriculture was "America's number one success story," while Goldwater promised a program "good for the farmer, good for the rancher, good for the nation."
At Hector Airport, the rivals were "within shouting distance," though they apparently never met. Volunteers from both political parties worked together in the Fraase kitchen to prepare lunch for the candidates.
Six weeks later, Johnson defeated Goldwater in a landslide, becoming the last Democratic presidential candidate to carry North Dakota. The historic doubleheader remains a notable moment in state political history.