As the Great Northern Railroad expanded west, towns began popping up adjacent to the tracks. In 1886, the town of Glasston was established as a station along the railroad. Originally known as Baltimore, the small hamlet was renamed after the community’s first postmaster, Archibald Glass.

Because Glasston was just a flag station on the railroad, if no passengers were waiting to board, the train just slowed down for a mail sack exchange. Imagine sacks of mail being thrown to and from the moving cars! This daily ritual went on for years until the railroad built a platform south of its original location, which was near the post office. Of course, eventually, the railroad would quit running through this quiet farming town, leaving not much behind but the tracks themselves.

The early days of Glasston saw a variety of business, including a blacksmith shop, general store, lumberyard, and saloons, along with churches and a school. In the early years, it was also home to five large elevators, with the combined capacity of approximately 200,000 bushels, a huge amount for this small farming town. During its heyday, Glasston likely shipped more wheat annually than any other town of roughly the same size in North Dakota.

In 1906, a fire broke out in the lumberyard and most of Glasston burned to the ground, but that wasn’t the end of Glasston. Business rebuilt, though the community never exactly boomed. During its lifetime, the population of Glasston has rarely exceeded 100 people.