Before European colonizers arrived, modern-day Bismarck and North Dakota were the home ground for the indigenous peoples. Like the Mandan Native American tribe, Indigenous peoples lived in the area and created successive cultures. Bismarck has the Hidatsa name "mirahacii arumaaguash," which means the place of the tall willows. It also has the Arikara name "ituhtaáwe," meaning the same thing. European colonizers arrived in the area in the early 1870s and established a settlement in 1872. They called this settlement the Missouri Crossing after the Lewis and Clark Expedition, which crossed the river at this point. They then changed the town's name to Edwinton, named after Edwin Ferry Johnson, the engineer-in-chief for the Northern Pacific Railway. The city's name changed again in 1873 to Bismarck and has stayed that way until now. The Northern Pacific Railway made the name change to honor the German chancellor Otto von Bismarck. The townspeople took this action in the hopes of attracting German immigrant settlers to the area as well as German investment. In 1874, people discovered gold in the nearby Black Hills of South Dakota. This discovery led to an economic boom in the area as thousands of miners flocked to the town to take advantage of the newfound opportunities. However, these developments caused tensions with the Native American peoples, as the miners trespassed on sacred land in their quest to find gold. The city of Bismarck also became a freight-shipping center on the "Custer Route" from the Black Hills, the capital of the Dakota Territory in 1883, and the new North Dakota's capital in 1889.

The city of Bismarck, North Dakota, offers a range of activities and attractions, such as:

Dakota Zoo: In operation since 1961, the zoo is 90-acres in size and houses over 600 animals. Visit the zoo and find Bengal tigers, American alligators, arctic foxes, African tortoises, and Vietnamese pot-bellied pigs.

Lewis and Clark Riverboat Cruises: This cruise travels up the Upper Missouri River, where you can relax in Bismarck's beautiful countryside views.

North Dakota Heritage Center: This center is home to the permanent collection of the State Historical Society of North Dakota. Visit the center and see dinosaur bones, a prairie post office, and a Native American Hall of Honor. The museum also showcases the Northern Lights Atrium and the Capitol Arboretum Trail.