When there's an event, most of the community shows up to participate.
Fullerton is a friendly and active community in southern North Dakota. Many both regular and special occasion visitors come to Fullerton for its dining, recreation, hotel and park facilities. On a nightly basis people from surrounding communities, other parts of North and South Dakota and beyond dine at the Ranch House attracted by its the reputation for fine food, great service and reasonable prices. The Ranch House is also a popular site for groups celebrating anniversaries, birthdays, graduations and other events and for business meetings and banquets.
The Carroll House hotel also accommodates meetings and gatherings in its third floor “ballroom” and first floor lobby. In combination with the early Dakota furnishing of the hotel rooms and kitchen access the hotel is also a popular site for family gatherings for reunions, special occasions, and holiday weekends. Pheasant, duck, goose and deer hunters from around the country find the combination of the Carroll House hotel and Ranch House dining and lounge facilities to be a particularly attractive base camp in the heart of the miles of excellent hunting grounds that extend from Fullerton in all directions.
For larger scale spring, summer and fall family reunions, wedding dances and other events Fullerton has a beautiful park area including a large, well equipped kitchen, a stage area and sizable indoor space that can accommodate from small groups to hundreds of people for meals, meetings, dancing and other entertainment. Every summer and fall a number of large family reunions and the annual Fullerton Threshing Show make good use of these park facilities. The annual Chili Cook Off Competition in March utilizes the Fullerton’s downtown streets. This summer’s community Ice Cream Social and Fund Raiser for Fullerton’s 125th Celebration experienced a taste of the pioneer days of Fullerton using the indoor and outdoor veranda facilities of the Carroll House.
Fullerton on a beautiful June morning
People occupying the surrounding farm sites and those involve in agricultural production and hunting activities are also an integral part of this community. As indicated in the “Fullerton Businesses, Civic Organizations and Other Entities” section of this website, many of the major agricultural operations of Dickey County are centered in the Fullerton area. In recent years many of the traditional farmsteads around Fullerton are being converted to family home sights for people commuting to near-by towns and the small cities up to an hour away.
The Fullerton Farmers Elevator along with its fertilizer plant and farm machine and auto repair shop is the primary employer in Fullerton. The Fullerton Elevator is a primary source of corn for North Dakota’s ethanol production. Other in-town businesses range from the Ranch House which is the second largest employer to Simek Refrigeration Services, Dakota Duct Cleaning, Lonski Stump Grinding and Custom Timpani (a timpani refinishing plant with a national and international clientele).
Just to the south of town the Maple River Colony contains two major operations Roughrider Crane and the Northland Steel & Trim. Also in the Fullerton area just a short distance southeast of town The Prairie Pothole Lodge accommodates hunters and a short distance north of Fullerton Hay’s Lodge accommodates both hunting and fishing parties.
