Samuelson Shoes

Samuelson Shoes - A cousin of mine sent a link to your blog, and I just finished perusing it. Unless I missed it, I did not see any mention of Samuelson's Shoe Store. Established in 1899, it was a mainstay on North Main Street until moving to a mall location probably in the 1970s. I remember that at one time (late 1940s/early '50s?) they had an X-ray device there where you could see the bones in your feet. The proprietors at that time were high school classmates of my father, and we often used their store as a convenient meeting place when we had scattered in town on various errands.

Past Businesses - 1960's #6

Past Business of Minot #5 – Public Finance Corp. – located at 19 First Street SW … Above B&B Walgreen Drug Store. ….. Harrington Brother’s – The Minot location was opened in 1933 at the Great Northern Stockyards. It was at one time, one of the largest livestock rings in the state, holding auctions every Friday…..  Shark’s Clothiers – Herman Shark opened his first store in 1908 in Devils Lake. Besides Minot and Devils Lake Sharks Clothiers had stores in Fargo and Bismarck….. Diamond’s Department Store – Originally on North Broadway, Diamonds expanded to a second location in the Arrowhead Shopping Center. In 1961 you could get boy’s jeans for $1.19 a pair. The original store at one time became the Corner Pocket Pool Hall and is now the home to The Barley Pop Bar…….

Theaters - August 19,1961

Now Showing at Theaters – August 19, 1961 – At one time there were a number of theaters in Minot. At the Outdoor Theater there was a double feature. Charlton Heston in The Naked Jungle and the other show was Elizabeth Taylor in Elephant Walk. The next show was going to be Portrait in Black starring Lana Turner and Anthony Quinn….. At the Empire Theater on Main Street was The Pleasure of His Company with Fred Astaire, Debbie Reynolds and Tab Hunter….. The Town Theater was showing Atlantis- The Lost Continent, plus cartoons. … The newspaper had a section devoted to the theaters and what was showing with a synopsis and picture of the movie….There was also stock car racing at the Fairgrounds and a dance at the Central Parking lot sponsored by the Western Plains Timing Association. Gordon’s Holiday Spot featured the “Lillian Raye Duo” in the Shangri-la Lounge.

Bars From The Past

Bars  – The Covered Wagon Bar – at one time the Covered Wagon Bar on Main Street was Minot’s oldest bar opening in 1900. In the 60's I delivered Coca Cola products to the Covered Wagon and other bars. The bar in the basement was one of the nicest wood bars I have ever seen. …. The Dutch Mill – opened in 1944 on East Burdick Expressway (Highway 2 East) at the intersection of 27^th  Street, (at one time known as Friday’s and now The Rocking Horse Bar) was the top entertainment spot in Minot.  The Little Dutch Mill – opened in 1955 just to the west of the Dutch Mill. It featured short order and curb side drive-in restaurant service. The Little Dutch Mill building is still there – it is now used a living quarters for bands playing at the Rocking Horse….. Pictured below is the covered Wagon and the Dutch Mill

Past Businesses - 1960's #5

 Mallard Motors –in 1961 Mallard Motors was located at the intersection on 4^th Avenue and 6^th Street SW in Minot. They claimed to be “Minot’s foremost dealer in fine used cars”. Proprietors were Elwood (Woody) Thorpe and Jim Weiskoph…… Town Theater.. … located in Downtown Minot on Main Street - pictured below…… Import Motors – located on South Broadway. They were Minot’s authorized Volkswagen dealer…… Larson’s Food Store – “Serving Minot and the area with Quality and Reliability in Foods”. Larson Foods began operation in 1933 and were located at 213 4^th Avenue SE. Now this area is the parking lot West of the Courthouse on Burdick Expressway…..

Past Businesses - 1960's #4

Minot Printing Company – started business in 1923. Located at 19 East Central Avenue. Phone number TE 2-6124….. Harry Cook and Sons Plumbing & Heating – Their ad stated: “Just Dial TE 2-1108 and tell us your problems”. Harry started the business in 1937. In 1948 he and his two sons, Pat and Bob moved to their new location  at 400 9^th St. SE. The building was best remembered for the neon sign which had a dripping faucet…… ABC Cleaners – ABC Cleaners started service in their first location in Minot in 1935. Owners of the business were Bob and Bill Kondos, Jr.  As the business grew, they opened two more locations. 729 Second Street NW and 1344 Main Street South……

Gross Printing

Gross Printing was established in 1913. In 1941,  Harry L. Johnson became the manager. Gross Printing prided itself in keeping pace with the demands for skilled printing service. Gross Printing included in their shop up-to-date facilities including a complete set of off-set equipment. They also did letter press printing.  Gross Printing was located at 507 West Central Avenue and their telephone number was Temple 2-7125

House Update

Some of the followers are wondering about the house ....

House update ----- we are in and have been since the sunday before Xmas. The main floor is pretty much done inside. we have a lot of cleanup and fixing to do on the front porch when warmer. The basement is almost done. we are painting all the walls this weekend. The Bathroom is done with new large shower and jacuzzi tub. After paint the only thing left to do will be to replace the steps at backdoor, into basement and upstairs. The contractors are going back to Idaho this weekend for a couple weeks. they have the measurements and will build the steps there and install in early February. The biggest thing now is to empty the top floor. A lot of that is going into the Basment family room. That is going to be a fairly long process as we are sorting, throwing and giving away a lot of stuff. Books are going to library or adult learning center, clothes to salvation army,( and there are a lot of each). The heating guys will be back next week for one day to get the zones set up for the heat and A/c system. Then it is pretty much done  EXCEPT for the painting of the outside, redoing the whole yard and landscaping, replacing all the full length windows in basement with energy efficient ones that look like original, repairing and insulating the garage and getting that all set up again …. And so on …. And  so on pictures to follow soon

Past Businesses - 1960's

Buttrey’s Ladies Wear – Downtown Minot on main Street…… Grand Photography Studio – 108 west Central Avenue ……  Coast to Coast Store – 14 First Avenue SW. Coast to Coast started in business in 1957.  They were home owned and home operated. The owner of the Minot store was Glenn Simard. Coast to Coast carried items for the farm, sportsman, and the car. ….  Hoiland’s Floor Service – Odin Hoiland was the manager and owner. Hoiland’s Floor Service was located on Highway 2 East and specialized in ceramic and plastic wall tile, Armstrong Linoleum, and Formica Counter tops.. They did both commercial and residential installations. Below is a picture of Main Street looking south in the 1950's

Gust's Mobil

Gust’s Service Station – Gusts Super Service was located on the corner of Main Street and 4^th Avenue (now Burdick Expressway), next to the Empire Theater. Gust’s was a Mobil Station selling Mobilgas, mobilubrication, and Mobil Permazone Antifreeze.  They were old fashioned about courtesy and the “old Fashioned” service that earned service stations their name. Note in the picture below from the 1940's, the Empire Theater was not yet built as that happened in 1952. There was a miniature golf course in the Empire Theater lot but I have not been able to find out the name of it or any information about it, although I do have a picture of it

Strauss Brothers Jewelers

 Strauss Brothers Jewelers had its beginning in 1929. The first location was an upstairs room in the First Avenue Building. From there they moved to a downstairs location on East Central Avenue. In 1937 Strauss Bros. moved to the Leland Hotel Building until they finally they moved to 19 South Main Street. Straus Bros. featured Keepsake Diamonds and Longine Watches. Also in the store were Bulova watches, Wedgewood China, Heirloom and International Sterling Silver and more.

Past Businesses - 1960's #3

 Olson’s Men’s Store (The Better Clothiers) -  at one time known as Borene’s Men’s Store was Minot’s oldest men’s clothing store beginning business in 1916. Olson’s featured Hart Schaffner & Marx, Stetson Hats, Arrow Shirts and Florsheim Shoes…… Ann’s Fashions – “Women’s fashions for the young at heart”. Started in 1957 Ann’s was located at 117 South main Street. ….. Big Red Furniture Warehouse – Located 2 blocks east of the Clarence Parker Hotel on Third Street SE by the railroad tracks. Big Red Furniture featured warehouse style selling which they claimed eliminated the middle man and saved the consumer money.

Gambles

Gambles – There was a Gambles Store in Minot…. Not sure at this time where….. The first Gambles Store opened in St Cloud, Minnesota in 1925. Gamble Skogmo incorporated in 1928… The Minot Gambles Store opened in 1927.  At the time of Minot 75^th Anniversary in 1961 there were 2,367 Gambles-Skogmo associated retail outlets. The early stores catered to the Ford Model “T” owners, selling them parts to keep their automobiles running. Eventually they expanded into hardware, paint, tool and other items associated with a full-line hardware store. The Gambles store was the predessor to Minot’s Tempo Store in Arrowhead shopping Center

Past Businesses - 1960's #2

 The Bon Ton Shop – There motto was “Smart Clothes for Better Dressed Women”. The Bon Ton Shop opened in 1942 on Minot’s Main Street. They also prided themselves as being “Minot’s Smart Shop for Correct and Becoming Fashions” ….. Brannan Drapery Studio – Owned and operated by Leo Brannan they provided home fashion service to the area since 1957. Brannan’s was located at 6 North Main… phone number Temple 6-5233……Toivo’s Jewelry – in 1961 they were located one block north of  the Post Office at that time (now the Federal Building in Downtown Minot. They specialized in jewelry and watch repair. 1 week service guaranteed…. Short jobs the same day. Toivo’s also sold Black Hills Gold Jewelry.

Past Businesses - 1960's

Past Businesses – 1961 – A few business ads that I came across from the 1961 newspaper. --- Mellberg’s Jewelry and Pawn Shop  Located at 114 ½ West Central Avenue. …  Do – It – Yourself Auto Repair…. Located on Highway 83 south in 1961…. Allowed people to rent a space and equipment if needed to do their own car repair. The mechanics were there to offer advice if needed. They were open evenings also…… King Koin Launderette – located at 514 3^rd Street NE . They were open 24 hours and catered to both men and women. …. Pierce Trailer Sales – Highway 83 South. Minot oldest dealer at the time for mobile homes, founded in 1939. Wally Iverson was the manager in1961 and Pierce featured Gold Seal mobile Homes …..

Minot Electric

Started in 1923 by Sophus Henriksen it was located at 19 First Avenue SW. in 1961 Minot Electric was Minot’s oldest electrical contractor with 39 years of service. Back in 1923 the Minot Electric Showroom window featured the newly introduced 2-way plug. The Slogan for the new gadget was “ In every room, use the Benjamin two-way plug and double the use of every socket. The showroom window featured about 10 appliances all plugged into the same outlet. The two-way plug became a thing of the past and by 1961 the “Octopus Outlets” came into existence

Alm's Milk Products

In 1961, Alm’s Milk products featured the only plastic, no wax carton in Minot. Alm’s also featured Ice Cream along with their Grade “A” milk. Alm’s also had home delivery available. Alm’s milk bottles were sealed by special machine with heat settings up to 1500 degrees. Under the bottle caps were a heavy a cardboard bottle top with premiums printed on them. One could save the bottle tops and redeem them for a “Treasure of fine premiums”. Such items included a Pen Portrait from a picture you sent in, A flourentine silver spoon set, a Black Foresty Wall Clock, 6 personalized pencils, and at one time the bottle tops could be redeemed for admission to the matinee shows at the Empire Theater.

Leslie Benton Contractors

Leslie & Benton Contractors – This company was located 1 mile Southeast of Minot on old Highway 52. Their phone number was Temple 7-4106. Leslie and Benton claimed they were equipped with the know-how to meet all your needs in Industrial, Commercial and Home Construction. They began operation in1947. The owners were Lloyd J Leslie and Arthur C Benton. Some of the projects they did included The Starlite Club, St Croix Motors (on South Broadway), Minot Lumber Company (on South Broadway), Eddy’s Bar, Self Service Furniture, Carl’s Radiator Shop, Purity Dairy and an addition on the Gelking Motel. Leslie & Benton were also the regional headquarters for Safway Scafolding. Pictured below is Self Service Furniture on South Broadway

Super Grill

The Super Grill was located on North Broadway, next door to the Northwest Super Valu. They were open 24 hours a day. The Super Grill started operation in 1955. They claimed to be home for the finest in Steaks, Chicken, Shrimp, Short orders, Bar-B-Qued Ribs and fountain drinks. One of their specials in 1961 was One-half chicken fried golden brown with toast, salad, French fries  and coffee for only 89 cents.

Carl Aurland

One of Minot’s earliest business establishments was a small grocery store, owned and operated by Carl Aurland. The store began operation in 1886. Besides running the grocery store Aurland also bought and sold buffalo bones, a thriving business in the early days on Minot. By night he studued law in the backroom of his store and by 1890 he was admitted to the North Dakota Bar Association. For many years he operated a law office in Minot as well as managing farm and other interests in and around the town. He and his wife Josie were married in 1891 and made their first home on the 100 block of 4^th Avenue SE. Eventually they built a large house at 120 4^th Avenue SE (now know as Burdick Expressway). They had two daughters, one of whom taught in the Minot School System for close to 20 years.

Alma Shop

The Alma Shop was located at 104 4^th Avenue SE, in the Van de Streek – Furs Building.  According to an ad in the 1961 Diamond Jubilee newspaper, Alice and Madge were the proprietors of the shop. Apparently the Alma Shop specialized in a variety of patterns, sewing machines and fabrics in a complete array of colors and designs. The Alma Shop started operation in  1955. The boasted that “With today’s easy to follow patterns and time saving sewing machines, even the teenager can sew fashions for herself.

Nedrose School Explosion

October 15, 1962 – Five people were hospitalized in Minot after an explosion heavily damaged Nedrose School. Two others were treated and released. The explosion heavily damaged the six room grade school located 3 mile east of Minot. A Parent Teachers Association (PTA) was meeting at the time the explosion occurred. The explosion occurred in the furnace in the furnace room. It is believed to have been caused by a leak in a propane tank that supplied fuel to the hot water heater used in the building. Walls and many windows were blown out by the explosion. Desks in the classroom next to the furnace room were tossed about like a tornado went through the room.