North Yankton

Updated 29 October 2026 · Fan site. Not affiliated with Rockstar Games or Take-Two Interactive.

North Yankton is a fictional Midwestern US state in Grand Theft Auto V, based on North Dakota. The game opens there in 2004 with a failed robbery in the town of Ludendorff by Michael, Trevor and Brad. Michael is reported dead, and the story returns to Ludendorff's cemetery in 2013 when Trevor digs up the grave.

What is North Yankton?

North Yankton is the cold, snow-covered state where Grand Theft Auto V begins. gta.wiki describes it as a parody of North Dakota, with the town of Ludendorff borrowing from Fargo and Bismarck. The name likely comes from the Yankton Sioux, and possibly also from Yankton, South Dakota. It is the series' only setting with no coastline at all.

Unlike Los Santos and Blaine County, the state is not open for free roaming. Only a small area around Ludendorff can be played, the rest is background scenery, and leaving the mission route ends the mission.

What is Ludendorff?

Ludendorff is the only town named in North Yankton. Its main street is Cavalry Boulevard, which is crossed by a railway line, and it has a church with a cemetery behind it. Both of the game's North Yankton missions take place here. Police are the North Yankton State Patrol, whose cars carry snow chains, and local number plates read "YANKTON".

What happened in the 2004 North Yankton robbery?

In 2004, Michael Townley, Trevor Philips and Brad Snider rob a Bobcat Security cash depot in Ludendorff. During the getaway, a train smashes into their car and the crew has to run for the helicopter on foot with the State Patrol close behind.

A sniper, FIB agent Dave Norton, then opens fire. He kills Brad and hits Michael, but misses Trevor, who holds off the police and gets away alone. Michael is believed dead and a funeral is held for him in the Ludendorff cemetery, which he watches from a distance. In fact, Wikipedia explains, Michael had a secret deal with Norton, and he reappears nine years later in Los Santos as Michael De Santa with his family under new names.

Who is buried in Michael's grave?

For years Trevor believes the FIB killed Michael and that Brad is in prison. When he finds out Michael is alive, he starts to doubt the whole story. In the mission "Bury the Hatchet", Trevor goes back to Ludendorff to see whose body is really in the grave. Michael follows to stop him. Trevor digs it up and finds Brad's body in the coffin.

Trevor takes this as proof that Michael set Brad up, and feels betrayed. Triad gunmen working for Wei Cheng, who were already hunting Trevor, then attack the cemetery. Trevor escapes and leaves Michael to fend for himself, and Michael is captured. Trevor later comes back to rescue him and Dave, and agrees to help with the Union Depository heist, as described on Wikipedia.

Can you go to North Yankton in GTA Online?

Only in a limited way. gta.wiki notes that Ludendorff was added to GTA Online as a Survival map, the Ludendorff Cemetery, in the Bottom Dollar Bounties update. The state plays no part in the online story. Before that, players could reach a hidden copy of the map through a glitch, since it sits high in the sky above the Port of Los Santos. Rockstar patched that exploit in update 1.10.

Trivia

gta.wiki records a few extras. Snow-covered vehicles exist only during the two missions, and a frozen alien can be spotted under the railway bridge in the river. In a 2015 Facebook post, Ned Luke, who voices Michael, mentioned North Yankton as one of the places he would like to visit again.