The Deuce abides
July 18th, 2024
Deuce of August festival celebrates 125 years and many more
By Sabrina Hornung
According to the 2022 census, the population of Mountain, North Dakota is around 70, give or take a few. But this small, largely Icelandic community packs a mighty punch, drawing thousands during the annual Deuce of August festival, which is held August 1-4 this year.
What’s so special about “The Deuce,” one may ask?
It is the longest running ethnic festival in North Dakota (2024 is its 125th year) and the largest Icelandic festival in the United States. In fact, it even attracts Icelandic officials as well as Icelanders, providing a mix of traditional or folk programming along with Midwestern fun, such as fish fries, the North Dakota State Pick Up Pull and good old-fashioned street dances with Downtown Horns on Friday night and Tripwire on Saturday night.
“I often have people say to me, ‘How in the world can a little community like that pull off such a successful celebration year after year like that?’” said Curt Olafson, President of the Icelandic Communities Association. “I give them a flippant answer. First, I just shrug my shoulders and say, well, nobody told us we couldn't. And then I give them the real answer, and I say, we've got a core group of people, 20 to 30 people, who know exactly what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. And then in addition to that core group, we've got a lot of people who will come in and volunteer and help us out. We couldn't do it without that mix of those people.”
The Icelandic connection
“We've hosted five sitting Prime Ministers of Iceland, multiple Iceland ambassadors to the United States, multiple cabinet ministers and literally thousands and thousands of citizens from Iceland who come here every year, not only during The Deuce, but also on tours at other times of year,” Olafson said. “And so I would dare say that there are not too many communities in North Dakota, large or small, that have hosted a president and five sitting prime ministers from a foreign country!”
This year, Her Excellency Guðrún Hafsteinsdóttir, Iceland Minister of Justice, will be the keynote speaker during their heritage program, which occurs on Saturday, August 3 at 2 p.m. at the Mountain Community Center. In Iceland the Minister of Justice would be the equivalent of our U.S. Attorney General.
“The government of Iceland has been very, very supportive of making sure that they have a high level dignitary here to take part in our celebration,” Olafson said. “And we really appreciate that.”
The Mountain Community Center is a new, $1.8 million facility. The government of Iceland donated $75,000, marking the largest single donation for the project. There were hundreds of donations ranging from $1 to $25,000. When the project was launched, organizers took out a $450,000 construction bridge loan facilitated by a local bank, which was a 20 year note. This April, they paid off the loan seven years…
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