Fort Ransom State Park is located on the Sheyenne River, 30 miles south of Valley City. The Sheyenne River Valley is one of the more scenic areas in eastern North Dakota, surrounded by gently rolling farms and woodlands. Fort Ransom itself was built in 1867 to protect settlers and railroad workers. The fort was home to a guardhouse, barracks, storehouses, stables, a granary, a bakery, and a hospital. By 1872 the fort was dismantled and moved northwest to build Fort Seward at Jamestown.