Ads From 1963

Other Ads of Interest – November 1963 – Minot Federal Savings (Midwest Federal or the Big “M” Building) was new. During normal business hours daily tours were being offered with free refreshments and free brochures …. Arrowhead Shopping Center was advertising the fact that 2^nd Avenue was now paved all the way to the shopping center …. Prices on a local car dealer’s used car lot – 1958 Ford Fairlane - $285.00 .. 1959 Pontiac Catalina - $995.00 .. 1961 Ford Fairlane - $1065.00 …. Vince Lee’s Bottle Shop on 3^rd Street NE was advertising the right wine for any occasion …. Self Service Furniture had a full size crib and mattress for $29.95 (They were located on South Broadway across from Ryan Chevrolet) …  And White’s Dairy was advertising BEEP – A fruit flavored, dairy processed breakfast drink ….

Tempo - Automotive Specials - 1963

More Advertised specials – 1963 – For the automobile Tempo was offering a pair of 15 inch snow tires for $27.95 .. no more down and payments of $1.23 a week …. A 6/12 volt battery charger was $2.97 …. Gas line antifreeze – 14 cents a can …. Battery booster cables were only $1.07 ….  A wooden snow brush for 23 cents …. Tempo also had an ad running featuring winter footwear for the family …. Girl’s snow boots - $2.68 pr …. Women’s snow boots - $4.28 pr … Men’s four buckle overshoes - $4.58 pr …. Men’s insulated pac boots - $4.38 pr ….

Tempo Christmas Specials - 1963

In 1963 Tempo was featuring many toy and Christmas specials in their newspaper ad. Kids tricycles were on sale for $7.79 …. Regular size Christmas lights (replacement bulbs) 5 packages of 5 bulbs for 28 cents …. The Mouse Trap game - $4.22 …. A 34 inch red wagon - $7.47 …. Christmas Tree stand – 81 cents …. A cuddly Teddy Bear - $1.68 …. A basketball, hoop and air pump - $3.68 …. Rummy Royal card game - $1.78 …. Monopoly Game - $2.97 …. Santa was on hand to meet the kids in Santaville located inside the Tempo store. Tempo used the slogan – “Your Store with More at Lowest possible prices.”

Christmas 2011

As I reported earlier, we are back in the house and it is quite comfortable. We are still trying to find important everyday items. Some are in storage units, some are buried in all the stuff stored upstairs. We have not yet found our dishes. We have pots and pans, or at least most of them. Christmas dinner was held at our house with all relatives and one of our contractors attending. I made the usual potroast dinner with beef, pork and venison roasts. We ate with paper and plastic plates and plastic dinner ware.... it went well. A good time was had by all. Things are getting back to normal in the house. Outside is another matter. A lot of dirt and very few houses inhabited. Some Eastwood Park residents are in FEMA trailers. I am estimating that maybe a dozen of us are in our homes. That is out of 162 houses in Eastwood Park. In the next short while I am going to walk the neighborhood and get an actual count.

Jupiter Christmas Specials - 1963

The Jupiter Store in Minot was located at 8 South  Main Street. The building is now the home of Western Paint Home Center. In 1963 the newspaper ad featured these specials for the Christmas shopper. A boy’s or girl’s 26 inch bicycle for $29.88…. ¼ inch electric drill - $7.72 …. 6 big rolls of Christmas wrapping paper – 88 cents …. Sorry game - $2.27 …. Monopoly game - $2.99 …. Ladies Dusters - $1.88 …. Men’s thermal sox – 2 pr – 66 cents …. A 4 foot aluminum, Christmas tree - $2.87 …. A 6 foot tree for $4.68 ….  And an 18 ounce can of mixed nuts for 57 cents

S&L Ads - 1963

This is the entry for Friday the 23rd....... I was going through newspapers from 1963 and thought some of the Christmas ads were interesting....

1963  S&L ads – In November of 1963 S&L Department Store on main street was running the following items in their newspaper ads. Women’s fleece lined snow boots - $3.99 a pair and Women’s high fashion leather boots only $8.95 a pair. The men good purchase a pair of zipper galoshes for $4.99 a pair or a pair of 4 buckle work overshoes for only $5.99 a pair. Women also had the opportunity to purchase holiday print dresses for$5.98 for cotton to $14.95 for wool. In 1963 a woman’s mohair sweater was only $12.95.  S&L at this locations was at one time the State Theater

Cox Bakery Specials - 1963

1963 Cox’s Bakery Specials – Cox’s Bakery was located on Main Street, north of Central Avenue on the west side. The unusual thing I noticed about their pre-Thanksgiving ad in the 1963 newspaper is that it did not list their phone number or address. Some of the specials they were advertising were: Luncheon Rolls – 5 dozen for $1.00. Hamburger buns – 4 dozen for $1.00 and assorted cookies – 5 dozen for $1.00.  One could purchase a ½ pound of peanut brittle candy for 39 cents. For your Thanksgiving Dinner, Cox’s Bakery also offered pumkin pies, mince meat pies,  Yule kage, fruit cake and decorated Thanksgiving Day cakes. Cox's Bakery would have been to the right of North Main Tavern

1963 – Thanksgiving Day Specials – Minot’s Piggly Wiggly Stores were featuring these specials for Thanksgiving in their newspaper ad….. Bridgeman Ice Cream ½ gallon – 69 cents…. Jello – 3 pkgs $1.00 …. Butter – 49 cents a pound…. Celery – 10 cents for a large stalk…. Powdered or brown sugar – Two 1 pound boxes for 25 cents…. And Quaker king size TV tray tables for 99 cents with each $5.00 purchase….. Big Dollar stamps were given with purchases and there were coupons available to get extra stamps with various items purchased or with certain dollar amounts spent. The Big Dollar Stamps were collected and then redeemed for merchandise out of catalogs or redemption centers…. In 1963 Piggly Wiggly had only two locations in Minot. Oak Park Shopping Center and Highway 2 East by the Fair Grounds. Pictured below is the Oak Park Piggly Wiggly in Mid 1960's

AM Foss Jewelry

 AM Foss Sr. started his career as a watch maker in Sacred Heart, Mn in 1915. He then operated a jewelry store in Great Falls, Mt from 1920 to 1927. He came to Minot  opened his jewelry store in 1928.  In 1962 the management of the store went to AM Foss, Jr.  Otto Ternes joined the staff of Foss Jewelry in 1953. He was from Strasburg, ND. Foss Jewelers carried a complete line of fine jewelry, watches, silverware and china. They were located on Minot's Man Street.

Evacuated - Day 180- Dec 19, 2011

We Are Back in our House!!!! We moved in on Sunday the 18th... almost 6 months to the day since we evacuated. There is still a lot to do but at least we are there and can work on it a little at a time. Still being done today is the final pouring of concrete to level the basement floor at the foot of the stairs. Also building a pad for the washer and dryer to sit on as the floor is uneven where they are located now. I have to get in touch with the electician. They are coming back to check on a couple outlets that have no power to them in the work room. I need them to hook up the fan-light combo in the bathroom downstairs and also the wall heater. It is a bit dark and cool when taking a shower. The new jacuzzi tub will be installed after the holidays when the plumbers get back. I am meeting Lyle's Moving today to get more furniture from storage to make things more like home. We are planning on having Christmas dinner at our house.
Now we begin bringing all the stuff down from upstairs and putting it away or getting rid of it.

Farmers Union Elevator

 Established in 1915 the grain marketing co-op grew continuously. In 1915 a annex was built and another in 1941. The Main structure and the receiving house were built in 1952. As business grew so did the need for another elevator. In 1976 another  elevator was built  with a capacity of 830,000 bushels. Total capacity of the three elevator was 1,512,000 bushels.    

                

Memory Notes from A Listener #5

Memory Notes from a listener  #5 -  On the corner of Central Avenue and 1st to the East of Main there is a big brick building (across from the parking lot now that used to be the hotel) there was a discount women’s store back in the early 60's, I don't remember the name of it. Then it was a Joseph’s hairstyling college for a good number of years. Now it sits empty. (I have been told that the building is in the midst of a long restoration and may one day be the hairstyling school in the future).

Evacuated - Day 176- Dec 15, 2011

We have food in the refrigerator and microwaved some frozen dinners last night for supper as we worked on the house. The Counter tops are here for the basement laundry room and workroom. They should be installed today. The plumbers were there most of the afternoon. the toilets are in and working on the main floor and basement. The utility sink in the workroom is functioning and the faucet is on the sink. Today the kitchen sink should be hooked up and the vanity in the basement. The electicians are to return to day to give us power and lights in the laundry room, workroom and downstairs bathroom.
We are planning on moving in this weekend......

Memory Notes from A Listener #4

I was in Rick's Jewelers and that used to be Sharks Men's Store. The American Cafe still has the same front but is Abacadabra balloons now.  I think, after looking around, that Fiancee was Baders and Buttrey's store was a couple of doors south. There was also Taube's somewhere on Main street. I noticed "The Fair" sign is still on Ellisons front overhang.

What used to be  B&B, Minot Business College, Gaffeneys and Northwest Sporting Goods on 1st Street (west of Main) is all parking lot!!  Picture below is taken on 1st Avenue looking west from about the alley. You can see part of the B&B Drug sign on the left.

Memory Notes from A Listener #3

North Main Tavern located in the same block as the First National Bank, north of Central Avenue on the west side of Main St. The Covered Wagon was located a door or two up from the American Cafe on the east side Main St, south of Central Avenue. These were the first bars to have the dancing "go go girls" in Minot. Shortly thereafter Gordon's Holiday Spot and the 13 Club on 1^st St. got them. Gordon's is now Hibachi restaurant. Trails West Bottle shop was I think the Sundowner and then SideKicks. Back in the middle 60's Gordon's Holiday Spot lounge-bar the band "The Evans Sisters and Carl" played. It was a pretty popular night spot at the time.

Memory Notes from A Listener #2

On First Street,  mid block between Central Avenue and 1^st Avenue was Minot Bowling Lanes (it was upstairs also) owned by Fred George .  Harry's Tire Service was next door.  This Bowling alley at one time had human pin setters, they used to hire high school kids to do it.  (The people who ran the Bowling Alley lived in an apartment on the top floor of the building. Not sure when it closed but then in the mid-60's it was a place to take your slot car as it had a big track for racing slot cars. 
Also, just west of Woolworths on Central Avenue was the Singer Store and a Drug Store and I don't remember the name of that one. (There was also a women’s hat shop on the same block of Central Avenue, between 1^st Street Southwest and Main St.)

Evacuated - Day 173 - Dec 12, 2011

House Update:
The Jacuzzi tub is in the basement.... tomorrow they will place the deck to mount it and then tile the area around the tub... also the 3 feet above the tub in the same color tile but 6 inch squares with a glass inset. Electricians will come later on Wednesday or Thursday to power up the Laundry room, Basement bathroom and workroom. Plumbers need to get their stuff done by Friday... as they are heading back to Idaho for the holidays.... Tuesday I will take Dacotah out to the farm early as we have Madison's last basketball game. We will sneak over to Menards to look at medicine cabinets.... one for Main floor bathroom and one for area above my sink.... possible one for basement if the one we had is too large.
I need to get into storage quanset at farm during daylight hours ( no power or lights) to find furniture we want to move in this weekend. If it all comes together we may move home sunday or early next week.... hope to be in before Xmas,.

Memory Notes from A Listener #1

Carl's Music Shop was at one time The Minot Accordion Shop and it was located where I Keating is.  He sold Accordions and Guitars mainly and also gave music lessons for the accordion.  (In the mid sixties, Carls Music Shop was located in the Flat Iron Building on Central Avenue).

 On the East side of First Street there was B&B drug with a cafeteria below it and it had the most luscious carmel rolls in the morning!!  On street side,  one door down and up the stairs was the Minot Business College.  In the mid-60's Minot Business College moved up on South Hill to what used to be a convent.  Not sure when it closed It was owned by Lloyd Hansen. The convent was a Catholic High School for girls and also aBoarding School for Girls run by the Sacred Heart Academy. (This is now Apartments at the intersection of 3^rd Street and 14^th Avenue SE…. By Rosehill Cemetary).

Evacuated Day 172 - Dec 11, 2011

Sunday today.... The tile is done in the basement bathroom... it and the shower will be grouted tomorrow. The center of the basement hallway is poured, leveled and stamped to match the other rooms. (Dacotah did walk through the fresh concrete so a repair job was in order.) The new furniture for the den is delivered and installed. All the appliances were delivered from respective storage units. The washer, dryer, freezer and spare refridge are in the basement backroom.... still cutting tile in the laundry room. they will be placed this week.
The micreowave and refidgerator on the main floor are in place and functioning. The stove will be.... need a 3 prong outlet instead of a 4 prong. The plumbers will start mounting all remaining fixtures starting tomorrow. Kitchen sink, main floor toilet, sink and clawfoot tub, downstairs vanity. utility sink in workshop and downstairs shower. We may be moving some furniture in this week. Phones are almost ready and cable TV is hooked up.
We may be moving in next weekend!!!!!!!!

Evacuated - Day 170 - Dec 9, 2011

As of today, the basement bathroom shower stall is 98% complete. I ordered the shower doors yesterday as Menards can not find the two that are supposed to be in stock. We are going to tile the floor of the bathroom with the same tile that is in the shower stall. All fixtures are here and ready to be installed.
Today the furniture for the den will arrive in the morning. At 1:00 I am meeting a local transport company to get our kitchen appliances from the storage unit and the washer, dryer, freezer and spare fridge from the farm and move them to the house.
The last of the flooring (carpet in back area) shoul be installed this weekend.

The Keg #5

The Barrel  Pt 5 --  After the war, when gas rationing disappeared, the Minot Barrel grew in popularity. Ruth Sethen bought the Barrel from Muzzy and added a dining room and painted the Barrel White. In 1949, Ruth sold the Barrel to her brother Robert Sethen. He operated it until 1955 when he sold it to Rodney Lovdahl, one of his employees. Lovedahl changed the name to the Keg and operated it from 1955 to 1968. The Keg was severely damaged by the Flood of 1969 and was finally demolished in 1971. The other Barrel root beer stands met the same fate. They deteriorated and were eventually destroyed. The only Barrel still in operation is in Grand Forks and it is known as the Kegs. It consists of the original Grand Forks Barrel and the one from Wadena which was moved to Grand Forks. It did survive the Grand Forks Flood of 1997.
I was informed by one of my listeners that The Keg from Minot was moved to the Brooks Ranch after the '69 flood in the and used as a milk house. Over the years it deteriorated and is no longer there.

The Keg #4

The Barrel  Pt 4 – Harry Muzzy ended up building 8 Barrel root beer stands. Three in North Dakota…. Minot, Devils Lake and Grand Forks.  One in Montana …. Great Falls.  Four in Minnesota…. Crookston, Dilworth, Detroit Lakes and Wadena.  The Muzzy’s hired local couples to supervise the root beer stand and they supervised the chain from their home in Crookston. Harry Muzzy visited each Barrel monthly and did all the repair work himself. Cecile Kerns managed the Minot Barrel and became known as the “Hamburger Queen”. After closing her stand in the summer, the Hamburger Queen and helpers would go out dancing to the sounds on the big bands in the area. When the carhops and cooks came in the music would stop and the band would play “Roll out the Barrel” in their honor.

The Keg #3

The Barrel  Pt 3 – Harry Muzzy built the second barrel in Minot, next to the Minot City Ballpark and across the street from the city zoo. He used 117 pieces of 1 inch by 6 inch tongue and groove lumber sixteen feet long to form the outer shell of the structure. Local lumber yards had to shape and bevel the wood in order to fit in the top and bottom hoops. It was during the time of the Depression and lumber yards and carpenters were happy to have the work. When completed Muzzy began selling soft drinks, ham sandwiches and hot dogs with sauerkraut to Minot residents. The root beer logo was Triple XXX. The logo stood out prominently on the front of the Barrel root beer stand. This logo and the novel shape attracted and kept customers.

The Keg #2

The Barrel Pt. 2 – The Barrel was part of a chain of barrel shaped root beer stands built by Harry Muzzy and his wife Martha in the 1930’s. Muzzy grew up in Minot, worked as an engineer for the Great Northern Railway until 1920. He moved to Crookston, Minnesota and owned a successful cigar store. He had the opportunity to start a root beer stand in Great Falls, Mt. Aware of the success of the A&W Root Beer stands in California, he thought they would be a success along Highway 2 in the northern part of the country. He built the Great Falls stand in the shape of a 2 story barrel. It was a huge success both as a root beer stand and also as a tourist attraction. Muzzy and his wife lived on the second story of the Great Falls barrel.

Evacuated - Day 166 - Dec 5, 2011

We worked at the house again over the weekend. The tile setters are working on the basemant shower. The floor is in place. The tile is in place in the den and the kitchen. The small closet in the den is all that is left to finish in that area. The carpet will be in place later this week in the hallwat and dressing area off the main floor Bedroom. The baseboard is installed in the den so we can have the new furniture delivered for that room this week.
Electricians will be back to finish odds and ends on the main floor. They will also get  the water heater wired so it will work. I forgot to tell them that we moved it across the room due to the furnace install. They have to run a new wire for the water heater. Todd stopped by to look at what we need to terminate all the phone lines. Cable TV is scheduled for Tuesday. Counter top should be here Tuesday or Wednesday.Plumbers are getting main floor bathroom done today. Hopefully by this weekend we will be moving appliances back into the house.

The Keg #1

This will be the first in a five part history of The Keg that was once in Minot.
 The Barrel – (the Keg) Pt 1 – The Barrel root beer stand was built in 1931 in Minot. It was during the great depression, a time of dust storms, drought, heat waves and crop failures. A nickel bought a root beer and a dime bought a toasted ham sandwich. Food was delivered to the vehicles by young carhops. The smiles were free. Some believe the word “carhop” was coined because the waitresses had to hop p on the running boards of the cars to deliver the food. Others say it was a derivative of  the word “bellhop” and adapted to the cars.. … Most drive-ins instructed the carhops not to stand on the running boards because it was improper and overly familiar behavior. . The first carhops were not teenage girls, but were adult women who found the tips were excellent even back in the 30’s

Evacuated - Day 163 - Dec 2, 2011

We seem to be moving along at a brisk pace. We have a toilet in the house that is fuctioning. They basement stool is in and will be pulled out when we tile the floor in the bathroom. The electricians were in yesterday afternoon and have most of the outlets and switches working on the main floor. The water heater is in but I forgot to tell the electricians that we moved it to a different spot so they need to run a wire to it.... no hot water until Monday. When electricians get done Monday we could bring in our appliances if flooring is in. The basement bathroom is about 1/2 sheetrocked, the laundry room is ready for painting.
Main floor bathroom should get tub, sink and toilet installed today. Maybe 2 functioning toilets in the house.
Gary was laying the floor tile in the den on the main floor. If he finishes that room I will install base boards and have the new desk and bookshelves delivered. Bedroom furniture can move into bedroom so we can start cleaning floor in dining room.....Getting closer

Purity Dairy

 Letter from a listener …. My dad worked for Purity Dairy for over 15 years. He told me it was first located on the corner across the street from the Barley Pop. I believe he said it was in the late 1950’s. Then they were located on the frontage road on south hill. I believe the bypass is there now, and if my memory serves me correctly there was two frontage roads across from each other. One where Denny’s is and then the other side of the highway where purity dairy was located. I remember as a young kid I used to help my dad in the purity dairy truck delivering milk all over Minot.

Henry's Pool Hall

Henry’s Pool Hall – bands would play on the weekends. One long time resident of Third Street told me that when the bands would play on a busy weekend night the horn players would have handkerchiefs in their hands to hold on to the instruments. My source said the  horns would get so hot that you could not touch them. Also the windows of the Parrot Inn on many a Sunday morning would be all boarded up due to fights. The windows would all be blown out the night before.

Downtown Minot - 1950 #3

 Entertainment – If one wanted to watch a movie  there was the Orpheum Theater, The Strand and The State. In 1952 the Empire opened. Admission was a quarter and a bag of popcorn was a dime.

For more adult entertainment and refreshments there were a number of bars in Downtown Minot. There was the Brown Derby, The Buffalo Tap, Brady’s, The Covered Wagon, North Main Tavern, The Terrace, The Grand Tavern, Lee’s, The 13 Club and Vaughn’s . Downtown Minot provided all ages with some sort of entertainment in 1950.

Downtown Minot - 1950 #2

 Restaurants – In 1950 there were close to 50 eating establishments in Minot. Those in the Downtown area on Main Street included The Victory Café, The Union Café, Gimbles, the Ameerican, LaPlaza, Nellie’s and the Uptown Nook. Others were The Cut Rate café, Woolworth’s, Kresge’s, Arvids Red Carpet, The Bus Lunch, the Pantry, and Nagatomo’s. There were others along Central Avenue and on 1^st Street. One would not have to worry about going hungry in Downtown Minot. In most places a2 bits or a quarter would buy a burger and something to drink.

Evacuated - Day 159 - Nov 28, 2011

Things are moving forward. The carpet is installed in the bedroom. The new bed and bedroom furniture was delivered on Friday. Base moldings are in place in the rest of the bedroom area.... dressing room and hallway. Tile is installed in the bathroom. the base moldings for the bathoom and den are stained and almost varnished. I will be installing the bathroom base moldings tonight. Plumbers are back tomorrow and will begin installing fixtures. we need a toilet as all the porta-potties have been removed from the neighborhood.  The electricians will be back this week to hang fixtures and finish off the outlets and switches.
Flooring will hopefully be installed in kitchen, den and rest of the bedroom area this week.

Downtown Minot - 1950 #1

Department Stores – In 1950 a number of department stores were open on Main Street. Woolworths was listed as the 5 and 10 cent department store. Kresge’s was just up from Woolworths, carrying merchandise from 25 cents to $1.00. Other department stores on Main Street included Sears, on the north end of Main Street, Montgomery Wards, a favorite meeting place,  J C Penny on the corner of 1^st Avenue and Main , S & L on South Main, featuring trading stamps, and Ellison’s on 2^nd Avenue and South Main.

Piggly Wiggly (reprint)

The first Piggly Wiggly Store opened in the mid 40’s at 213 South Main Street. In 1957, at a cost of $300,000, Piggly Wiggly opened a new store by the Fairgounds. Piggly Wiggly East was one of the largest grocery stores in the state at that time. In 1961 another store opened in the Oak Park Center. The store on Main Street closed in 1960 and shortly after a third store was opened in the Town & County Center. In 1982 the Oak Park store moved to the Arrowhead Shopping Center. At one time Piggly Wiggly employed over 250 people. I worked at the Town & Country store in 1966-67. I started at $1.25 per hour, soon got a raise to $1.32 and shortly after the minimum wage increased to $1.40. Gas was about 25 cents and I was “rolling in the dough”.

Liquor Raid #3

Liquor Raid – Destruction Device – at 32 Central Avenue East a device had been constructed so that liquor packed around it would be destroyed by fire when the current was on. The device consisted of a small wire coil in a concrete enclosure. Around the coil were shavings and other flammable material. Mixed in with this were the bottles of liquor. When the current was turned on it would ignite the material and heat the bottles enough for them to be destroyed thereby eliminating evidence. When agents barged into the room, they unplugged the device. The bottles had not heated up enough to explode and destroy the evidence.

Evacuated - Day 152 - Nov 21, 2011

This past weekend we turned on the furnace. It is almost finished. The guys putting it in set it up so it runs off the main floor thermostat for the whole house. The zoning system is in but the dampers for the various areas need to be set up. We are working on new baseboards for the bedroom and den. The carpet installer will get carpet in this week, we hope as we have a new bed and bedroom furniture to be delivered on the Friday after Thanksgiving. New dest and bookcases for the den are ready to be delivered as soon as the flooring is installed in the den. Main floor bathroom needs flooring and then the plumbers will install all fixtures and we may have a bathroom. We are going to add a sink to the furnace/workroom. We need someplace to clean up paintbrushes, etc. Getting close to moving in day.

Liquor Raid #2

Liquor Raid Evidence – A heavy door from one off the raided establishments was removed from its hinges and brought into the courtroom. It has “three thicknesses of lumber and 5 locks” . Officers were impressed by its durability. Also found were hundreds of empty liquor bottles, pretzels and small glasses. Slot machines were also found in some establishments and many Canadian product labels. This led the authorities to believe that the liquor was produced locally and falsely labeled as being Canadian.

Liquor Raid

Aug 15, 1939 – One of the biggest prohibition raids in Minot took place on this day. Nineteen people, 10 men and 9 women were arrested. The raid was conducted by Federal agents from North Dakota and Minnesota. Search warrants were obtained for 12 establishments but only 8 were actually entered. Three establishments had heavily barred doors so tear gas was used to drive out the suspects and gain entrance. Charges of possession and selling intoxicating liquor were filed …. These charges carried a maximum fine of $10,000 and 5 years in prison per charge or both

Original "Third St"

The original Third Street, or the area of ill repute was 1^st Street SW, from Central Avenue south. The town was much younger and much smaller in the early days. The city fathers decided to move this area of ill repute “way out of town.”  They moved them about 2 blocks to the west, by today's standards, to its Third Street Southwest location. Its good they moved them to Third Street as Second Street eventually became Broadway. One of the first Madams on Third Street was May Butler. She was located on the west side of the block between Central Avenue and 1^st Avenue SW. May Butler was also active in the new area or what was to be known as High Third.

The Third Street Men

Cars of the Third Street Men– Lincolns, Cadillacs, Imperials and other big luxury cars were the favorites of the Third Street Men. One of these men had a 1956 Imperial hard top that he had stored in the Stearns Building. At one time he owned a big and fancy Lincoln Continental. Rumor has it that the car was stored at Stearns Motors and he  hired someone to go to the garage twice a day to dust the vehicle so it always looked good when he wanted to drive it. This person  later started driving Oldsmobile Toronado’s.. Another Third Street Man had a 1958 Chrysler Imperial. He also had a pet dog which was a Boxer. The dog was very protective of the car. Beware to any who got too close.

Evacuated - Day 146 - Nov 15, 2011

LAst night when Pat and I left about 6 pm, the kitchen cabinets were almost all installed. They look great.... have to down load pictures off the camera to upload to the sight. All the tape and plastic is off all the windows except in the kitchen and the arch way between the living room and dining room. The old strom door will work with the new back entry door so we will install and have a lot of cleanup to do on it in the spring.
Today or tomorrow work should begin in the basement bathroom on the shower and the floor.
Hopefully the flooring can start going in this week so new furniture can be delivered next week.
About 4 inches of snow last night. Driving in from Tom and Susan's place this morning at 4:30 am was almost a white out. No wind, but heavy snow and no tracks on the road. Speed was about 10-15 mph until we got to the bottom of Speedway Hill. Very slippery underneath the snow . For those familiar with Minot..... 3rd St by the Courthouse was closed as was the hill on Hiawatha. Lots of multi vehicle accidents all over town.

Ladies of High Third Street

Ladies of the Night Shopping. – the ladies of Third Street were regular customers at many of the best clothing stores in Minot. They had their own shopping time. Years ago, all the stores in downtown Minot were open every Thursday evening until 9:00 pm. Since the stores were open later in the evening they would open later in the morning, on Thursdays. Many of the stores like S&L, Bader’s and others would open between 8:00 am and 10:00 am just for the Ladies of Third Street to shop. They would always pay in cash and were always done shopping by the time the stores opened for regular business. The Ladies of Third Street would spend a lot of money and did not disturb the regular shoppers and could shop in peace.

Evacuated - Day 145 - Nov 14, 2011

The Main floor is painted. Cousin Susan and husband Tom spent Saturday and Sunday afternoon painting all the walls on the main floor. No wall paper this time. The kitchen cabinets arrived on Friday afternoon and if all goes as planned they will be installed today and tomorrow. The basement floor in the furnace room has been poured with new concrete and should be dry in a few days.
The new back door has been installed and we will see if the old storm door will work, or if we need to buy a new one. Pat and I are going to the house late afternoon and tonite to remove all the tape and plastic covering the windows...... Things are progreesing.

Mayor of Third Street

This individual controlled what happened on Third Street. Because of his control over the Third Street area, things were rather peaceful. The area pretty much was self policed. One of the local, well know individuals on Third Street, we will refer to him as Jim, had an altercation with the “Mayor”. The “Mayor of Third Street” looked at Jim and told him he had until evening to get out of town. Jim left town and went to Winnipeg. Jim did not return until the “Mayor” died.. This occurred on a hunting trip. The “Mayor” and a number of his cronies were out hunting and drinking. The practice was to have someone sitting on the front fenders of the car as they drove along looking for game. They group was driving down a corn field looking for pheasants. When they got to the end they noticed the “Mayor” was not on the front of the car. He was lying in the field. They had run over him breaking both legs. His friends took him to town and to the hospital. He died within 2 days due to an infection. After that, Jim was able to safely return to Minot.

Evacuated - Day 142 - Nov 11, 2011

Today the texturing shoould be done on the main floor. We will be picking up the paint for the main floor today and if all goes well, we will be painting this weekend. Flooring will start going in the middle of next week and then we will get the electricians back to do the final install of outlets, switches and fixtures.
Cabinets for the kitchen will arrive today sometime. We plan on putting them on the front porch until the painting is done. They could be installed early next week. Plumbing will be next. Getting closer to "move in" day. I ordered the cabinets for the Laundry room and work room yesterday. Those shoould arrive by early December.

Prohibition - Raids on 3rd St.

Woman in the Cupboard – Back in the 50’s, as the story goes, there was a raid on one of the houses on Third Street. One of the women in the house was found hiding inside a kitchen cupboard. She had crawled in and shut the door, hoping to avoid being found. This was a bit unusual as most of the time the establishments in Third Street had advance warning of pending raids by the Police Dept. When the Police Dept was located on 1^st Avenue in downtown Minot, it was in the same building as the fire dept. and City Hall. Some of the firemen would watch for unusual activity in the Police Dept and if it was a raid on Third Street, they would call and warn the Third Street businesses. Usually no one of importance was caught in the raids, however many prominent people in Minot would frequent many of the establishments. Because they establishments were usually warned when the raids were about to happen some speculate there was really no need for escape tunnels.

Cards for Cadillacs

It is well known that many of the High Rollers of the day would often hold high stake poker games. Many a car was lost and many won over a deck of cards. One of the Bootleggers always claimed the Cadillac’s or other cars he won from a well known auto dealer, always ran better than any he had purchased. He claimed that he won as many cars as he had lost. This same Bootlegger had at one time won a house on Third Street in a poker game. He also lost it in a poker game. Before he lost it in another poker game he hired someone to clean the house so he could turn around and sell it. As the cleaning person was clearing out a closet in the basement, she fell through the closet floor into a sub basement below the actual basement. One can only speculate what the lowest level was used for.

Evacuated - Day 140 - Nov 9, 2011

Yesterday we officially have a functioning furnace and air conditioner. However... at the advice of the MDU tech and our furnace installer we are not going to turn it on untill all the sheetrock taping, sanding and texturing has been completed. Too big a risk of dust getting in and clogging things up. The six small ceramic heaters are maintaining an inside temp of 69 degrees.
The main floor is almost all mudded and about 1/2 is masked off in preparation for the texture. They masking will stay so it is in place when we start painting, hopefully by this weekend..... Kitchen cabinets could be here this week. The kitchen will be painted first to allow for cabinet installation.
We are getting into the finishing stage and out of the construction phase.

Prohibition - Booze Pipeline

Courthouse to Leland Hotel Booze Pipe Line—This is from a listener who used to have a water well drilling company in the area:  Apparently at one time there was an underground pipeline that ran from the Ward County Courthouse to the Leland Hotel in Downtown Minot. It seems that when the court would prosecute booze runners during the prohibition days, the judge would dump all the illegal alcohol down a drain. Some enterprising individuals reportedly ran a pipe from that drain, under downtown Minot to the Leland Hotel. The alcohol was collected, processed and served to the guests of the Leland. Apparently many contractors over the years would hit the illicit pipeline when doing underground work in the area. The pipe was always patched and repaired, until they realized that it was not a water line and was no longer in use.  At one time there were a number of contractors who were aware of this booze pipeline

Prohibition - Bad Check Scam

One of the most sensational incidents was when a group of runners came up with the idea of buying a large amount of Canadian liquor and paying for it with cashier’s checks drawn on banks that had closed. The runners made sure they stayed south of the Canadian border as the Canadians who sold them the liquor were literally out gunning for them. As one of the group, a runner from Minot said, “They gave us bad whiskey so we gave them bad checks.”

Prohibition - Tidbits of Info

In a report to a federal grand jury in Fargo on October 6, 1920, Judge Charles Amidon  reported that there are automobiles loaded with liquor in convoys that have men armed with rifles and sawed off shotguns. He was encouraging the jurors to enforce the law.

On October 25, 1920 a story was printed about $40,000.00 worth of confiscated whiskey being destroyed in Minot. “The fumes of the strong liquor became so dense at one time that some of the officials became nauseated.”

Whiskey Six #2

The “whiskey sixes” would run to Canada and back in the late spring through the fall, until the snow came. They did not run in the winter due to the danger of getting stuck in snow or mud, also the cars would be easier to follow. The price paid to the runners for running from their start to Canada and back varied. The amount ranged from $100.00 to $500.00 per trip. A lot of money was made in a very short time if you wanted to take the risk.

Flood Control Plan

Well, the preliminary flood controll plan for Minot and the Souris Valley is out. If you want to check it go to this website---- www.mouseriverplan.com.
Click on the maps tab and a variety of maps covering the valley are available for viewing. Eastwood Park and our home are safe. The new plan would run along Central Ave. on the north side of Eastwood Park. Much of Roosevelt Park, the Minot Golf Course and  The Country Club are in the greenspace, between the dikes. Erik, our son, has a house that will be covered by a dike the way it looks now. Public meetings will be held next week and the final plan will be "set in stone" by sometime in February.

Prohibition - Booze Runners

Booze Runners - The runners carried heavy loads in the “whiskey sixes”.  Where the roads were good, the cars could travel along at speeds as fast a 50 to 60 miles per hour. The runners would travel in a line, or group with the lead car posing as a tourist to flush out the lawmen. The lead car would stall on the road, warning the runners that the law was ahead so they could make their get-away. Another trick used by the runners was to have a woman companion and at times a woman driving the car. The thought being that the lawmen would hesitate to shoot at a car occupied by a woman. It was generally considered by their appearance that these women companions were not home loving housewives.

Evacuated - Day 133 - Nov 2, 2011

It is like a beehive of activity at the house. The plumbers have almost everything roughed in and hope to have the inspection done as early as tomorrow. The heating and a/c crew has most of the heating ductwork in and is working on the cold air returns. We will have heat in areas that had none before. Like our entry way which relied on warm air from the hallway and living room. The electricians are wiring the garage today and should have that done by tomorrow at the latest. The sheetrockers have most of the main floor taped and mudded and may start applying texture tomorrow. When dry we may be able to start painting. The carpenter and I have a plan for buillding a soffit around the ductwork. We also have a plan for installing the exhaust fans in the workroom.
Next step will be to get the floor leveled in the rest of the basement and then start installing flooring upstairs to get ready for kitchen cabinets and cabinets in the laundry room and workroom in the basement.

Whiskey Runnners

The Whiskey runners made a lot of money and made it in a hurry. They were flashy dressers, sporting big diamonds, silk shirts, fancy ties and suits. They were also big tippers. One night in Minot a group of them lined up and peppered a bass drum in a Minot dancehall orchestra with silver dollars. The group was trying to break the head of the drum. They eventually ruined the drum but the orchestra was not upset as they got to keep all the silver dollars.

Whiskey Six

A Whiskey Six was the name given to the big, high powered automobiles used by the booze runners in the days of Prohibition. The favoured car at the time was the Buick. Minot was a local point for the Whiskey Runners in the era of 1919 to 1921. The whiskey running was at its peak during this time. Minot was the last major stop before Canada. The whiskey runners at times would travel in packs with a pilot car ahead to warn the if any lawmen were waiting up ahead. On some days, a whole city block would be lined with “whiskey sixes” waiting for dusk to make their run for the booze. They seldom returned to Minot after getting the load as the main destination was points like St Paul, Minneapolis, Sioux City and Omaha.

Evacuated - Day 131 - Oct 31, 2011

Just returned from the house after a special City Council Mtg and a quick trip to the noon Rotary Meeting. It is a bee-hive of activity. The sheetrockers are in the process of mudding and soon to be taping and texturing. They have most of the main floor done and soon to be working on the basement.
The plumbers have arrived. they are already working on getting rid of the old vent pipe and the few water lines remaining. They will have most of the plumbing by this weekend, if all goes well. Will keep you posted on how this goes.
The heating and a/c company is in. I met with Blaine after Rotary and I think he has a game plan. By this weekend we may have heat.... not sure about a/c but won't need that until next summer. Electrician will stop back this afternoon and move some ceiling lights we installed in the furnace room to make room for ductwork.
All the flooring has arrived. We need to get taping and texturing done so we can paint and then install the flooring .

Rowan's Funeral Home

This information was given to me by Les Maupin back in 1986 while researching Minot for the Centennial.  Rowans’s Funeral Home was on the corner of Main Street and 2^nd Avenue, where Rueb’s Camera and Cards was located. Apparently the owners were affiliated with some aspect of the booze running in the days of Prohibition. I was told that the viewing rooms of Rowan’s Funeral during this time were home to many high stake poker games. Maupin was not sure if they ever actually held any funerals during this time. During Prohibition, the alcohol was brought in in one and two gallon metal containers. Rowan’s Funeral Home would fill a casket, or two, with these cans of booze and load them into the hearse. They had at least one if not more. The hearse would then deliver the booze throughout the country under the guise of transporting a body in a casket. Diving prudently and obeying the speed limits they successfully delivered the product. After all, who would stop and search a casket in a hearse?

Pop Shaw's Garage

 At the turn of the century, the area known as High Third was originally located on 1^st Street SW, south of Central Avenue. This area also the future home of Harry’s Tire Service, known back then as  Pop Shaw’s Garage. The garage was on the main floor and the basement, There was a bowling alley on the second floor. The third floor was a gambling den and after hours night club. The garage was next to what is now Bremer Bank, and had an elevator. The bootlegger cars would enter the garage and the owner would ride the elevator down to the basement with the car full of booze. Rumor had it that he would booby trap the car in case someone tried to steal the liquor, lock it up and walk back up via the stairway. No one knew for sure as nobody was about to risk tripping the booby trap. By the 50’s the top floor was converted to an apartment where the family that the bowling alley lived.

Evacuated - Day 127 - Oct 27, 2011

Things are moving along at the house. Sheetrock was going up as of yesterday. The bedroom is done and they are working on the den. Some of the new flooring is in. The new furniture for the den is here but we will not take delivery for about 2-3 weeks. The furnace is to arrive today and be installed. The dustwork installation will start tomorrow or Monday. By early next week we should have heat.... needed to get taping and texturing done ... also painting. Tomorrow, (Friday), I am going to the house after the radio show is done to move insulation from garage to basement and then install it.... this should help with the heat also.

Prohibition - Free Car

 There is a story out there about a well known Booze Runner and free cars. The story says that this individual would offer a free car to anyone who could make three successful runs from Canada to Minot without getting high jacked or stopped by the law. The car was to have been a Buick, reportedly they were the fastest and most powerful vehicle at the time. In fact an entry in a national magazine claims that during the days of prohibition, Minot had more high performance cars per capita than any other city. Back to the free Buick. The problem for any takers on the offer was that if someone made two successful runs, this individual would make sure the third run failed. Since he knew the route and times, he would send his own men out to highjack the shipment so he would not have to give away a Buick.

Turn Arounds - Prohibition

A scenario for at least one of the Revenuer’s, (the Government Agents) in Minot: When his car arrived at their destination there was a “turn around” in the garage . The “Turn Around” was a very large motor driven turn table. Upon driving into the garage, the car would drive onto the “turn around” and the vehicle was turned around so it was facing the same direction it had entered from. This way it could make for a hasty exit without having to back out of the garage. The car could just drive straight out, often in hot pursuit of a bootlegger.

Evacuated - Day 125 - Oct 25, 2011

Yesterday the Electrical Inspector was at the house. Other than a few minor things to correct, we passed the inspection. The electricians will be there this morning to correct things. The Sheetrockers will probably be starting today on the main floor. Plumber is still scheduled for next Monday, the 31st, and the heating company is still scheduled for arrival this Thursday.
I am going to take tomorrow afternoon off and move the insulation in the garage to the basement. Will start putting that up later this week. With the insulation out of the garage, I can move things away from the walls so the electricians can get back in to wire the garage.
Cabinets and flooring should be in the first week of November and ready for installation.   Things are progressing......

Prohibition - Booze cars

When the booze car or cars got to their destination in Minot, a number of scenarios were possible. Some of the garages had special elevators. When the car entered with the booze, it would drive into a special elevator. This would either raise the car up to the floor above or lower it to the floor below. If followed by officers, they would enter the building and find no vehicle. By the time they would conduct a search, the booze would have been unloaded and stashed safely or moved to another location.

Triple Cars

The booze runners would travel in groups of three. Three vehicles, one with the alcohol and two decoy vehicles. The Choice of vehicle back in those days was the Buick. The alcohol was stored in a metal tank under the back seat. All the cars had a tank so all were weighted equally. The two decoy cars were loaded down with bricks. The reason for the equal weight was to leave the same track on dirt, muddy roads or grass when sneaking across the border. If the two decoy cars were not weighted down, the police could follow the car with the deeper tracks. The three cars would travel in line. The Booze car generally drove the speed limit, while the decoy cars would be speeding. If they were chased  by the law, the two decoy cars would split and go in different directions. If the decoy cars were caught the worst they would get was a speeding ticket. With the law enforcement people busy with the decoy cars, the booze car was free to travel on to Minot or wherever their destination was

Dee Dee's Bar & Grill

The Grill was located at 316 third St. SW… The Grill was a part of the area known  as “High Third” although it did not have the reputation of some of the other businesses on Third St.  Dee Dee Govan operated The Grill for many years. He acquired the property from “Ma” Butler, a legend on Third Street and the subject of another article. Dee Dee served pretty good food  and at times would offer coffee laced with liquor, if so desired. After the decline of Third St. The Grill was home to Dee Dee’s Hot Tamales. He made them, packaged them and sold them out of  The Grill.  I was offered a job by Dee Dee selling the Hot Tamales when I was driving truck for Coca Cola Bottling back in the late 60’s.

Evacuated - Day 120 - Oct 20, 2011

Stopped by the house a couple times yesterday. At one time there was 5 or 6 electricians working in the basement. When we were there last night about 6:30 to drop off a new toilet, 2 or 3 were working on running the phone and cable tv cables. They expect to be done today and ready for inspection. Once that is done and passed we may be sheetrocking next week.
We stopped by Slumberland and set an arrival date for the new bed and bedroom set for Nov. 18th. This weekend we are going to work on cleaning up some of the stuff in the garage. Items that we are going to try to salvage. We also need to move things away from the walls so the electricians can get the garage wired in the next week or so.
Flooring has been ordered and the plumber will start on Monday the 24th. We are still shooting to be in the house by Thanksgiving.

High Third Street

There were a number of businesses that flourished on Minot’s High Third Street. Third Street over the years was the home to Bars, Restaurants, Hotels and houses that participated in illegal activities that ranged from illegal alcohol sales during Prohibition, after hour alcohol sales, high stake card games  and prostitution. Some of those Third Street Businesses were: The Avalon, The Coffee Bar, Metrol Café (Saul’s Barbecue), Famous Pit Barbecue (Twilight Inn & Kay’s Café), The Grill, and later after Third Street was shut down, The Flame in Radio City. Business was brisk until 1960 when the Jaycee’s mounted a successful campaign to close down the area

Bienfait, Canada

The Canadian Liquor companies would rent a portion of the railroad depot warehouse in Bienfait. The liquor was stored in a closed off room. They would have a manager in town who would sell what was desired to the bootleggers, not to bars, just to the bootleggers. The depot is still in Bienfait, although it has been moved to different location and is now a museum. However, the original depot was purchased by and moved to a local farmstead about a mile outside of town.  The railroad tracks still go through the town. The route out of town goes south to Ross Percy in the Souris Valley, then to Sherwood, splitting off to Columbus and Portal.

Drug Raids

Besides the highly profitable liquor traffic, Minot was also known for other questionable activities.  An illegal drug trade flourished but not at the same scale as the liquor business. Between December of 1922 and December of 1924, enforcement officials cracked down on certain hotels, cafes, and other opium dens, most of them on the infamous Third Street. By the end of 1924, the opium and cocaine traffic was about at an end. In one raid on Third Street police confiscated over $100.00 worth of opium in the form of “decks” and “books”. The street value of a “deck” was $1.00. A “book” contained three times more opium than a “deck”, but it was still a relatively small amount.

Evacuated - Day 17 - Oct 17, 2011

Things are progressing.... Yesterday we met eith the plumber, also from Idaho. He will be starting on our house on Tuesday. He is in Bismarck today to get his ND license. The subflooring is down in the bedroom, kitchen and den. Quinn was working on the main floor bathroom when we left on Sunday. Today he will start on the cabinet wall in the kitchen. rebuilding it to a 2x6 wall for more support. The basement is done as far as the walls go. The rest of the floor will be finished with a concrete overlay so the whole basement is level. The basement floor work should begin today.
I am going to call the electricians and get them back to finish the house. Wiring the entire basement and finishing the main floor. They just have to install outlets, put in the stove outlet and pull the cat 5 and coax cables. When all that and plumbing is done we will insulate the basement and start the sheetrock process.... Thanksgiving is still out target dat to be in

Prohibition - Gun Battle

Minot was also the home of many high speed automobile chases in connection with the bootlegging activities. One national magazine was quoted as saying “Minot has more high performance vehicles per capita than any other city in America”. These powerful cars, Buicks at the time, were the favored car of the bootleggers. One high speed chase resulted in the arrest of the proprietor of the Last Chance Barbershop on Central Avenue. In a shootout, whiskey-runner Avery Erickson was fatally shot by Officer F.S. Fahler, who later died from wounds received in the same encounter. In 1921 when state prohibition forces opened their northwest regional headquarters in Minot, they announced that their cars would be equipped with Browning machine guns. The office was closed a few years later.

Little Chicago

Minot had a reputation as a rowdy and “wide open” town. When nationwide prohibition went into effect, Minot became known as “Little Chicago”. It had the reputation of being the most wide open city between Chicago and Butte, Montana. It was believed that the police would raid speak easies of those who had supported the losing side in the election for city officials. In 1921, soon after W.M. Smart was elected president of the city commission by defeating W.S. Shaw, (a six year incumbent), he was the subject of a recall petition. It was alleged that he allowed gambling and the operation of “Blind Pigs”. (Blind Pigs were illegal drinking establishments.)

Evacuated - Day 113 - Oct 13, 2011

Last night we ordered all the flooring for the main floor. It should be here in about 2 weeks or so.  We then stopped by the house to check on progress. Quinn, our carpenter from Washington, had made real progress. He had thewalls up in the area where the concrete had been poured. We looked over the rest of the basement and decided that he should replace most of the rest of the walls. Especially a couple load bearing walls that have been somewhat compromised by cutting them to allow the passage of drain lines and heating ducts. I think he will still have the basement ready for electricians by early next week. Today I am taking the afternoon off and spending it in the house putting in  ore insulation. my goal is to finish the main floor by the time I pick up Pat and Dacotah. A friend may stop by to give me a hand.

Inequity Hollow

 Fred Hines at one time was a cab or bus driver in Minot in the early 1900’s. He drove for both the Leland Hotel and Waverly Hotel at different times. His task was to pick up and deliver clients to their destinations around Minot. He would deliver his passengers from the railroad stations to the hotels and when the fair was held on south hill, he would transport the passengers to it also. Quote from 1939 article “at that period in Minot’s history there was a segregated district of bawdy houses in a coulee southwest of Minot and as a hack driver he was called upon to transport gentlemen of the double standard from downtown hotels to this place which was sometimes called Inequity Hollow.”  Alto North Dakota was under state prohibition at that time, Hines recalls that whiskey was easily obtained in Minot. 

This area is what we refer to today as 3^rd Street Southwest or Minot’s High Third.

Anderson D&S Bootery

 The original D&S Bootery was founded by Percy Doyle and Theodore Saloman in April 1938 and continued under that partnership for 10 years. In 1948, Salomon’s  interest was purchased by Arthur C Anderson . In March of 1956 Anderson bought out Doyle’s share and became the sole owner. In September of  1956  His son, Arthur L Anderson became a full partner. The store policy was and is to “Give you the finest footwear in America at the lowest possible prices along with courteous service.

Evacuated 2011 - Day 111 - Oct 11, 2011

Today, with the help of Tom Hinzpeter, did something in my house that had never been done before. We installed insulation in the walls. there was no insulation in the house at all. We have about 1/2 of the main floor done. Another 4 hours and I can finish it. Using Roxul insulation... Google it.... very interesting stuff. It is popular in Europe and Canada, just getting known in the United States... Spun stone fibers, made from molten lava and basalt rock.
A carpenter arrived today from Washington State, Quinn is his name and he will be joining the rest of the crew. He will building the perimeter walls in the basement tomorrow, so we can get that insulated also. Once the walls are up (by this weekend) the electricians will return next week to finish the main floor and wire the basement.
The plumber is to be in Bismarck on the 18th to get his ND license. He should be starting on our house on the 19th. We have removed all plumbing lines so he will have a blank slate to start with.
We met with Todd (contractor) and Darla (cabinet lady) last night. Had to make a few minor adjustments in the cabinets... they will be ordered tomorrow.
Heating and A/C are still scheduled for the 27th.

Robertson Lumber Company

Robertson Lumber yards began in North Dakota in 1881. In 1940 the firm began business in Minot as the Rogers Lumber Company. They were located at 200 1^st Avenue SE in Minot.  Robertson’s featured a full line of building products with easy terms, estmates and deliveries to your door. On December 24^th, 1975 a fire raced through the facility. Cause of the fire was not known but the damage was well over $1 million in losses. A temporary office was set up at 119 1^st Ave SE, new inventory arrived and business went on. Robertson Lumber would eventually move out to the bypass, just east of the Econostop Truck Stop.

Oak Park Theater

On Saturday, March 27^th, 1976 the Oak Park Theater was showing “The Hindenburg”, staring George C Scott and Anne Bancroft. The Oak Park Theater also featured Saturday Matinees. This particular Saturday the Matinee was “ The Phantom Toll Booth”. The theater ad stated: “Mothers, take an hour and a half break and come along with your kids to see this great show. They’ll drive you crazy but you will thoroughly enjoy the show. All matinee seats – 75 cents. The upstairs of the theater also had an separate for parents with small children to watch a movie without disturbing the rest of the audience.

I also remember back in the late 60’s, the Oak Park Theater would have all night shows on Saturday nights in the summer. The late evening shows tended to get a bit rowdy causing the theater to stop having them.

Evacuated 2011 - Day 109 - Oct 8, 2011

I did not get to the house yesterday until mid afternoon. The water department stopped by about 8:30 am to fix a small leak in the water main coming into the house. I was on my way down there when I called and was told everyone was evacuated from the area. Apparently while demolishing the house across the street, the gas line was broken. It took a couple hours for that to get fixed. I did sneak in for a brief visit about 2 pm and everyone was back working. Most of the lathe and plaster is now off all the walls on the main floor. Hopefully the exterior walls will go up in the basement so we can get the rest of the wiring done and start insulating.
We are going to enlarge the shower in the basement to 4 ft X 5 ft and have the concrete guys pour a floor and do the tiling. we are picking out the tile this weekend.

Behm's Propane

The first propane gas range installation in North Dakota was made in Minot by Behm’s Propane in the fall of 1948. From this significant milestone the business grew. In the mid 1970’s, Behm’s propane was serving thousands of homes and many commercial and industrial customers around the state. Behm’s also pioneered the use of propane gas for heating. The first propane gas furnace in the area was installed by Behm’s in Kenmare in 1947. The first propane bulk truck was also placed into service in 1947.  The company slogan was “Sunbehm Gas – The All Purpose Fuel.”

Evacuated 2011 - Day 107 - Oct 6, 2011

The house could almost be considered a blank slate as far as the infrastructure goes. Yesterday we pulled out the 2 water heaters, the 2 furnaces, all the gas lines and all the plumbing lines. The heating and A/C is now scheduled for the 27th of this month. A plumber is coming from Idaho. He will take the ND test to get licensed on the 18th and should start our house on the 19th. I am going to order kitchen cabinets today.... they should be here about the 1st week of November. Waiting for the floors to dry out a bit more on main floor so the sub flooring can go down..... the are a bit damp due to concrete curing in basement and the power washing that was done last weekend. The contractors are going to start today .... removing the balance of the lathe and plaster on main floor and rebuilding the missing walls in the basement. Then we will get the electricians back to finish the main floor and wire the basement...... things are progressing.

St Croix Motors

Charlie St Croix started selling cars in Minot in 1934. In April of 1948 he formed St. Croix Motors and ran it continuously until his retirement in June of 1973. At that time his son Collin purchased the business to continue the tradition of friendly sales and service that St Croix Motors had established. In the mid 1970’s, They features Yamaha Snowmobiles and Motorcycles. St Croix Motors also claimed to be the largest motor home dealer in Northwest North Dakota. They were the dealer for Wiinebago and El Dorado motor homes. St. Croix Motors was located at 1206 South Broadway. This location is now the home of The Dakota Boys Ranch Store.

Heisler's Super Valu

A few people have inquired about Heisler’s Super Valu. It was located in northwest Minot at 4^th Avenue and 21^st St NW. Heisler’s was open 7 days a week from 7 am to 11 pm…. One of the few stores open on Sundays back in the 60’s and 70’s. Heisler’s featured a complete line of groceries, fresh produce and fresh, quality meats. Also magazines and health and beauty supplies.

Town & Country Shopping Center

Snuggled up to a major highway, a hilly chunk of ground which many people though useless, was transformed and there emerged, in 1963, Minot’s Town & Country Shopping Center. In 1968 a sign proclaimed Town & Country to be the largest shopping center in North Dakota. The cost of building the center in 1963 was about $1.8 million. When it opened, Town & Country had 16 businesses operating. I recall working at the JJ Newberry Cafeteria and later at Piggly Wiggly in the mid 1960’s. I also remember Town & Country as a gathering place and full of activities. One of those in 1966 or 1967 was a Battle of the Bands. Below is a picture of the area before T&C Shopping Center was built. The first picture is looking south on Broadway. T& C Center would be on the left. The second picture is looking north from above the current site of First Western Bank... T&C Center would be on the right 

Evacuated 2011 - Day 104 - Oct 3, 2011

The last floor to be removed came up yesterday.... the Bedroom floor. The power washing in basement will be done today. With 6 big fans going the floors should be back down to 10% moisture content by the end of the week. Then new sub flooring will go down in the bedroom, den and kitchen.
The walls will be rebuilt in basment and then it is time to insulate. We removed the plaster, (cement), on the bricks above the fireplace in the dining room. We are thinking of leaving it the natural brick. Same will be done in one room in basement. Need to get a plumber on line..... they are scarce also.

Jacqueline Shop

The Jacqueline shop was located at 115 South Main Street. It opened for business on July 27, 1965. The original owner was Rowland Harkness, who also was the lessee of the shoe department in Walter’s Women’s Wear. At one time the manager was Katie Mullen and then Barbara Mills. Following the death of Rollie Harkness, ownership of the Jacqueline shop went to his son, Todd Harkness. The store featured shoes by Jacqueline, Connie, Famolare, Hush Pupppies, Bear Traps and Nurse Mates for women.

Evacuated 2011 - Day 101 - Sep 30, 2011

The hardwood floor is now out of the den. At this writing it is in the back of my pick up and when I am done with the radio show I will haul it to the city landfill..... I wonder how many memories are now buried in the landfill after the flood cleanup.
The driveway/patio is now almost done. The last section will be poured and stamped today. The color of the driveway is a dark copper to accent the dark brown on the house.
This weekend I have a friend from the City Council coming to help. We are going to remove the warped hardwood floors in the bedroom. Then all the bad floors are out. We picked out flooring last night with the help of Madison,(youngest grandaughter).
If the weather is warm this weekend I think we will scrub more of the river off the south side of the house...

Stearn's Apartments

Stearn’s  Apartment Rental Business – There were three apartments on the top floor of Stearns Motors. Lou Stearns lived in the largest one with his girlfriend Florence Brown. Lou and Florence had a turbulent relationship. At one time they were going to be married in Minneapolis, but by the time they arrived on the train, they had a terrible disagreement and fight. Both returned to Minot, but on separate trains. There is a story that whenever Florence would go Minneapolis, Lou would load a car on a flatbed rail car and send it to her destination so she would have something to drive.

Used Records - I was informed by one of my radio listeners that there was also a used record shop in Stearn's Motors, I believe in the basement. They store would sell records at a very reasonable price. The records were from jukeboxes around town.