Plot Synopsis

BOOMTOWNERS, comprised of six one-hour episodes, chronicles the daily lives of people who live and work in the Bakken shale region of North Dakota and Montana, the epicenter of the area's oil boom. Oil was originally discovered in the area in 1951, but the recent development of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, has rapidly transformed the Bakken into one of the world's leading oil-producing regions. Since 2010, when the boom began, production has grown to over one million barrels of oil a day, which has led to lower gas prices in the United States. But the towns surrounding the Bakken may have been changed forever. And while many seek their fortunes amid the boom, others worry about potential environmental damage from fracking. The region struggles mightily to keep up with the infrastructure needs, housing demands, and the massive influx of workers and their families. Schools are beginning to be overrun and can't keep up with the demand for teachers. Restaurants and grocery stores can't keep employees as many favor the big checks coming from the oil fields. BOOMTOWNERS follows the lives of these people: truck driver Ben Moorhead and his court reporter wife, Phoebe, the parents of two young boys who left Phoenix, Arizona for steady work in Sidney, Montana; Ray and Deanna Senior, parents of four, who picked up their entire family and moved from Rancho Mirage, California, and are struggling with their new way of life; Judge Greg Mohr of Sidney, Montana, who experiences the dark side of the boom, because his courtroom is packed every day; Sean Banks, a street preacher/oil worker, who spreads his gospel to anyone who will listen and even some who don't; Dan and Hannah Dooley, who see the Bakken boom as their ticket to entrepreneurial wealth; Tony Miller, an oil supervisor who has put his career before his happiness; Sandi Beagle Angel, a lifelong resident of Sidney, who yearns for the town she grew up in, not the one it has become; and lifelong Sidney, MT, residents, Haley Mindt and her fiancee Larysa Hurst, who take care of each other while working to grow their new trucking company.
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On Sunday, May 31, 2015 at 9pm ET/PT, Smithsonian premiered the season finale of BOOMTOWNERS. In the season ender, "Boom or Bust," financial woes are hitting the Boomtowners hard, leading to major decisions that could have life-altering effects. For Chris, the CEO of Liberty, a downturn in oil prices leads to a risky gamble that could mean trouble for the company. Larysa and Haley start selling puppies to pay for their wedding. Ben pushes his lockbox invention to prove to his wife, and himself, that he can follow through on his dreams. And Sean faces a big choice when it looks like his own dream of being a full-time pastor could become a reality.