Located on the western banks of the Red River of the North in an extremely flat region known as the Red River Valley, the city is prone to flooding and was struck by the devastating Red River Flood of 1997. Originally called Les Grandes Fourches by French fur traders, Grand Forks was founded in 1870 by steamboat captain Alexander Griggs and incorporated on February 22, 1881. Its location at the fork of the Red River and the Red Lake River gives the city its name.
Historically dependent on local agriculture, the city's economy now encompasses higher education, defense, health care, manufacturing, food processing, and scientific research. Grand Forks is served by Grand Forks International Airport and Grand Forks Air Force Base, while the city's University of North Dakota is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The Alerus Center and Ralph Engelstad Arena host athletic and other events, while the North Dakota Museum of Art and Chester Fritz Auditorium are the city's largest cultural venues.
As of the census of 2000, there were 49,321 people, 19,677 households, and 11,058 families residing in the city. The population density was 989.8/km² (2,563.0/mi²). There were 20,838 housing units at an average density of 418.2/km² (1,082.8/mi²).
The racial makeup of the city was 93.35% White, 0.86% African American, 2.75% Native American, 0.96% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.58% from other races, and 1.44% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.87% of the population. The top 6 ancestry groups in the city are Norwegian (36.4%), German (34.7%), Irish (10.6%), French (6.5%), Polish (6.2%), English (6.1%). In the city the population was spread out with 21.4% under the age of 18, 22.9% from 18 to 24, 27.7% from 25 to 44, 18.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 102.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.2 males.
Of the 19,677 households, 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.2% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.8% were non-families. 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.96. The median income for a household in the city was $34,194, and the median income for a family was $47,491. Males had a median income of $30,703 versus $21,573 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,395. About 9.3% of families and 14.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.6% of those under age 18 and 7.7% of those age 65 or over.
Grand Forks International Airport (GFK, KGFK) is served by Northwest Airlines with several daily round trips to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. The airport is a major distribution center for FedEx, which conducts flights daily with Boeing 727 and Cessna Caravan aircraft. The Cessna Caravans transport packages to outlying areas of the state. The airport is also one of the busiest airports in the country, due mainly to the presence of the John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences of the University of North Dakota. The BNSF Railway runs track in several directions in and around the city. Amtrak passenger service on the Empire Builder line heads westbound daily at 4:52 am and eastbound daily at 12:57 am. The Empire Builder stops at the Grand Forks Amtrak station.
Three federal highways pass through Grand Forks: U.S. Highway 2, Interstate 29, and U.S. Highway 81. U.S. Highway 2, known as Gateway Drive in the city, runs east to west through the northern part of town and is a four lane highway. The highway is the primary connection between Grand Forks, East Grand Forks, the Grand Forks Air Force Base, Grand Forks International Airport, and nearby Crookston, Minnesota. Interstate 29 runs north to south along the western part of the city, officially multiplexed with U.S. Highway 81 in the Grand Forks area. The U.S. Highway 81 business route, Washington Street and 32nd Avenue, runs through many of the city's major commercial districts.
Within the city, roads that run from north to south are traditionally called "streets" and roads that run from east to west are traditionally called "avenues." Streets are numbered in blocks west of the Red River. Avenues are numbered in blocks north or south of Demers Avenue — the city's historic dividing route adjacent to the rail yards. The city maintains a bus system called Cities Area Transit, also known by the acronym CAT. The system has operated since 1926 when it was introduced to replace an earlier trolley system. There are twelve bus routes including night service and service in the community of East Grand Forks.
With over 3,400 employees and over 180 physicians, Altru Health System is the main provider of health care in Grand Forks and the surrounding region and is also the largest private employer in Grand Forks. Altru's 90 acre medical campus near the center of the city offers a 261-bed acute care hospital, a 34-bed rehabilitation hospital, and five clinics. Altru Hospital, formerly called United Hospital, is the result of a 1971 merger of Grand Forks' Deaconess Hospital and St. Michael's Hospital.
Grand Forks has long had just one major healthcare provider, but recently a new medical campus, called Aurora Medical Park, has been developing on the south side of the city. Facilities in the development include the Stadter Center — a 70-bed psychiatric hospital — and a two story clinic building. Individual spaces in the clinic building are leased out to private medical practices. In early April 2007, a proposal surfaced to build a 70-bed hospital called Aurora Hospital on the medical campus.
The Grand Forks Herald is the major daily newspaper serving Grand Forks and is also the second most widely circulated newspaper in North Dakota with a daily circulation of around 31,000. The Exponent is a weekly newspaper published in East Grand Forks, Minnesota. The University of North Dakota also has its own student-published newspaper called The Dakota Student, which is published twice weekly during the school year.
The major AM radio station in Grand Forks is KNOX 1310, which is a news and talk station. The city's FM stations include NPR affiliates KUND 89.3, KFJM 90.7, KQMN 91.5 and KNTN 102.7. Commercial FM stations include rock station KJKJ 107.5; top 40 station KKXL-FM 92.9; and country stations KSNR 100.3 and KYCK 97.1.
WDAZ-TV channel 8, an ABC affiliate, is the only broadcast television station in Grand Forks that provides local news. All other major U.S. television networks are represented in Grand Forks from Fargo-based television stations. The cable television provider, Midcontinent Communications, carries several locally based cable channels such as the Fighting Sioux Sports Network and public channels run by the University of North Dakota, City of Grand Forks and the Grand Forks Public Schools.