Boomtowners

North Dakota and Montana historically haven't been thought of as destinations where people would want to move to start a career that could make them a lot of money. That changed, though, in recent years with the development of fracking in the Bakken shale region of that area, which turned the Bakken into one of the leading oil-producing areas in the world. "Boomtowners" profiles some of the people who moved to the Bakken to get a job in its booming oil industry, including husband and wife Ben and Phoebe, who moved from Phoenix hoping the oil boom can lead to a better life for them and their children. On the flip side of people taking advantage of the oil, there are folks like Sandi, a lifelong resident of Sidney, Mont., who yearns for her town to go back to what it was like when she was growing up.

Original Air Date: Apr 26, 2015Smithsonian Channel46m