The city was named by railroad officials after the famed Bow bells at St Mary-le-Bow in London, England.

The town is home to a Lutheran, a Methodist, and a Roman Catholic church.

A municipal golf course is located four miles east of the city, and a community swimming pool, park and campground are available as well for visitors and residents.

Due to attentive management over the years, the brick building is still in good condition and currently houses kindergarten through sixth grade students.

[6] Farmers in the area produce crops such as barley, canola, flax, oats, peas, sunflowers, durum and Hard Red Spring Wheat.

The town's main street includes a gas station, a service station, a handful of crop and property insurance agencies, Dacotah Bank, The Newly Remodeled Historic Bowbells Hotel and North Dakota Wine Kitchen.

The Des Lacs valley was formed as meltwater flowed out of Glacial Lake Regina thousands of years ago.

It is located approximately 52 miles northwest of Minot, the nearest city with an international airport (MOT) and 30 miles north of Stanley, the nearest passenger train station.

The racial makeup of the city was 96.4% White, 0.6% Native American, 2.7% Asian, and 0.3% from two or more races.

36.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

The racial makeup of the town was 98.77% White, 0.74% Native American, 0.25% Asian, and 0.25% from two or more races.