Grandin was named for Bonanza farmer John Livingston Grandin. Grandin, a native of Tidioute, Pennsylvania, along with his brother William James, purchased 99 sections of land in the Red River Valley, dividing them in 1,500 acre farms. The brothers had 14,000 acres under cultivation near Grandin, with another 600 acres near Mayville, North Dakota. Prior to the arrival of the railroad the brothers shipped wheat from their farm by barge on the Red River to Fargo, 90 miles downstream. The barges were towed by the steamers Alsop and Grandin. The Grandin brothers' bonanza farm was one of the earliest adopters of the telephone in the state. JL Grandin's great granddaughter is Temple Grandin, an animal scientist, author and autism advocate.Chapter 10 The Legacy Of Genes in "A Thorn in My Pocket: Temple Grandin's Mother Tells the Family Story" by Eustacia Cutler
