 Joe Rolette, who started a fur post for the American Fur Company in Pembina, and Norman W. Kittson (for whom the county is named), were two early entrepreneurs who opened this area by developing the Red River Ox Cart trails and broadening the use of oxcarts.The need for oxcarts diminished as steamboats became the new mode for transporting furs and supplies.The steamboats were eventually replaced by the railroad.