Fine early plan of Larimore, in Grand Forks County, North Dakota.

The town of Larimore was formed in 1881 with the arrival of the Northern Pacific Railroad. The map notes that Larimore is:

Located in the center of the great Wheat Belt, in the celebrated Red River Valley--beautiful location, abundant supply of Pure Water, and with Railroad Facilities unsurpassed by any Town or City in the Valley.

A second note above claims 25 to 40 Bushels of Wheat to the Acre.

Augustus Gast prepared an earlier promotional map for Larimore in : Larimore! : the greatest railroad center of Northern Dakota, published in 1882 .

At the center of the map, the Casselton Branch of the Northern Pacific is shown. This extension was completed in December 1881. The map references the Breckinridge Branch of the St. Paul, and the Minneapolis & Manitoba Railroad, which was under construction as early as 1880. The title of the map (naming only Dakota), suggests a date prior to 1889.

The map also shows the Fort Totten Branch and the Northern Route of the St. Paul, Minneapolis & Manitoba Railroad.

Larimore is named for N.G. Larimore, the owner of the Elk Valley Farm near the town. Senator W.N. Roach was the original land agent for the sale of lots. As noted in Early History of North Dakota:

Beginning with 1882, Larimore entered upon a boom period lasting about three years. In 1882 it was the principal trading point for a vast extent of country and it prospered beyond comprehension, almost. The lands were productive; prices for products were high and the farming lands were being developed, creating a demand for supplies of every class, and its population soon exceeded one thousand. The wheat receipts from the crop of 1882 were 300,000 bushels.