Chamber of Commerce

New building – On Tuesday, January 13, 1959 the Minot chamber of Commerce officially celebrated the open house of their “brand new” building at 2^nd Avenue and 2^nd Street SW. (the corner of 2^nd Ave & Broadway). Contractors involved in the construction were Harry R Cook & Sons – Plumbing – Mackley Construction – Montana Dakota Utilities (even the water heater is natural gas) – Northern States Power – Holmes Electric – M&S Roofing & Sheet Metal and Fargo Glass & Paint and Johnson Concrete Products. The building was built at a cost of $60,000.00. The location is now the home to Papa John’s Pizza. Pictured below is the Chamber building on North Broadway and the cover of a brochure from the 50's

Past Businesses - 1960's #18

 KG Men’s Store – The first KG Men’s Store opened in 1955 and was in Downtown Minot on Main Street. When Town & Country Shopping Center opened in the early 60’s, KG Men’s Store moved to the center and for a brief period of time was in the Dakota Square Mall. …. Kinney’s Shoes – a full line family shoe store originally located at 200 Main Street South. Kinney’s moved to the Town & Country Shopping Center when it opened. …. Shark’s Men’s Store – On Main Street in Downtown Minot, formerly Olson’s Men’s Store

TV in Minot -1959

TV in 1959 – On a Saturday evening in January of 1959 here is what you could expect to see on TV between the two local channels. 6:30 – People are Funny or Perry Mason – 7:00 – Perry Como or Wanted Dead or Alive – 8:00 – Wrestling or Lawrence Welk – 9:00 – Theater or Gunsmoke – 9:30 – Have Gun Will Travel or The DA’s Man – 10:00 – News, Weather & Sports – 10:30 – Jubilee USA or No Gun?? – 11:00 – Theater or The Whistler ---  Pictured below: KCJB-TV in Radio City Addition (next to what is now Minot Chrysler Center) and a newspaper ad about the station

Past Businesses - 1960's #17

John Iverson Company – John Iverson is one of the oldest electrical distribution companies in North Dakota. The first outlet was established in 1928 in Crosby, ND. The Minot store opened in 1938. John Iverson is now located at 3300 North Broadway. …. Metzger’s Appliance – 1615 South Broadway- Paradise Spas is now in this location…… AJ Automotive – the business started in 1960 and at one time was located on 2^nd Ave and Broadway SW, AJ Automotive moved to the base of North Hill at 11^th Avenue and North Broadway. They sold auto parts and accessories, Custom parts and did a variety of mechanical work. Pictured below: AJ Automotive on the corner of Broadway and 1st Ave, a newspaper ad and a business card from the 60's

St Joseph's Hospital

The Ward County Hospital was completed in 1896. At one time the name for the hospital was the Northwestern Hospital. In 1911 the Sister’s of St Francis came to Minot to manage the 30 bed hospital. They changed the name from “Northwestern” to St Joseph’s and began their mission of caring. In 1917 the Sisters purchased the hospital from the county for $28,000.00. The hospital grew from its original 30 beds to a 197 bed modern facility. St Joseph’s was eventually acquired by Trinity Medical Center. Shown below: the original Ward County Hospital and the new St Joseph's in 1920

Past Businesses - 1960's #16

 Fashion City – A ladies fashion store at 111 South Main St.  …. “Next Door to H&H Variety” – Celebrated their grand opening on October 30, 1958 – H&H Variety Store -  Located on the west side Main Street in the 1950’s ….. Diamond’s Jack & Jill Grocery Store – 505 2^nd St NW (North Broadway) – In 1958 a 2 lb can of coffee was only $1.49 – 10 cans of tomato soup was $1.00 and you could get a 50 pound bag of red potatoes for 98 cents ….. Greengard – Cranston – Men’s clothing store- originally on Central Avenue before moving to Main Street. The Central Avenue location is pictured below

PW Miller Co.

Ad Jan 1959 – In 1959 the PW Miller Company was located in the Grand Hotel Block on West Central Avenue – This is the parking lot across the street o the north of Tom’s Coin Shop. Prior to this location PW Miller was located on the west side of Main Street north of Central Avenue. In 1959 the ad for PW Miller stated “Our Inventory is up and our bank account is down”. They were advertising – boy’s suits - $6.00 … Men’s work shoes - $2.99 ….. Full size blankets - $1.00 …. Men’s Sweatshirts - $1.00 ….. Used British Parkas - $8.88 …. Marine Corps insulated boots - $6.66 pr …. PW Miller called themselves “The jacket headquarters of the Northwest” . They also sold usd items and military surplus. PW Miller was located next to the Clarence Parker Hotel on 1st Avenue SW. It is now the home of the Olson Law firm

Past Businesses - 1960's #15

 Goldberg’s Furniture – Located at 6 – 8 North Main, on the east side of  Main Street. Goldberg’s was open until 9 pm on Monday and Thursday. (Most stores were only open until 9 pm on Thursday. Their telephone number was 20-218 ….. Waterman Motors – Highway 83 South. Minot’s Volkswagen Dealer in 1958 ….. George Valker Floral – 216-218 South Main Street. Valker’s was located across from what is now Bray’s on Main Street ….. Bader’s – Ladies wear store located on Main Street. They advertised themselves as being “The Store of Famous Labels” …..

Hardware Train

 The year is 1903…. A full train loaded with hardware for the Martin Jacobson Hardware store came rolling into Minot. The Hardware store was located on Main Street and central Avenue, now the Taube Art Museum. Hardware and machinery of all kinds were needed. The storage area for the hardware was the basement of the store. Martin Jacobson Hardware had a large room for tach and harness goods…. Reportedly the largest selection west of St. Paul. The store also carried Jewel and Universal Stoves, Resort Heaters and Cole Heaters. In 1903, Jacobson’s sold 374,000 pounds of nails. Jacobson Hardware had machinery warehouse with in a city block and also sold Old Hickory  Wagons, Thomas Hay Rakes, Milwaukee binders and mowers, Minneapolis Threshers and Canton Plows.  Pictured below: The Jacobson Building. The Opera House was on the top floor --  and also the very first Jacobson Hardware delivery vehicle.

Past Businesses - 1960's #14

Carousel Village – Located at 224 20^th Ave SE – across from Kmart ( now the home on Minot Lumber. Carousel Maytag appliances as well as many other brands. …. Sebby’s Carpet-area – located at 1839 South Broadway – Carl Sebby started the business in 1946, working out of his garage prior to moving to his location on South Broadway. Sebby’s carried many lines of carpet, vinyl flooring, hardwood floors in addition to wallpaper, window treatments and Eureka vacuum cleaners. … Rex’s Auto Wreckers – 1200 16^th Ave SW claimed to have the most complete line of Late model car and truck used parts. Self Service Furniture is pictured below. Sebbys was to the right, just south of the furniture store.

Chain Grocery & Meat Co.

Located at the corner of 2^nd Street and 6^th Avenue NW. some of the specials featured in a 1920 ad were: Choice Beef steaks – 20 to 28 cents ea. – hamburger – 2 lbs for 35 cents – picnic hams 22 cents lb. – pork chops – 30 cents lb. Grocery specials included 3 boxes of corn flakes for 25 cents – 12 pounds of sugar for $1.00 –  ten large cans of milk for 95 cents – 3 pounds of potatoes for 25 cents. Chain Grocery also delivered to any part of the city and paid cash for butter and eggs.
Pictured is a billboard painted on the side of a building and two different pictures of the interior of Chain Grocery. I have no pictures of the exterior.

Minot's Zoo

In 1914 the decision was made to open a zoo in Minot. The Park Board decided to purchase two buffalo from South Dakota, a bull and a cow, at a cost of about $600.00. Five acres was to be fenced for the buffalo. Reports stated that a Menagerie will be started in the area. Some of the animals will be coyotes, foxes, bears and raccoons. A monkey cage will be added and the park already has a number of squirrels in the park, however, boys are shooting the squirrels. Fines and jail terms were to levied on anyone carrying guns in the parks. $1.00 to $19.00 and 1 to 15 days in jail. Pictured below are scenes of the original Minot Bear Castle.

Magic City Sun

 In the late 70’s and early 80’s, the Magic City Sun was a free newspaper, published weekly, consisting of classified ads of all types. It had both business and personal ads. The paper was free as the advertisers paid for the publication. It boasted that its controlled circulation represented over 6,000 more homes than any other publication in the Minot Trade Area. Besides being delivered to homes The Magic City Sun was available at many businesses in the Minot area. Besides the classifieds it featured a Dining Guide, TV section, and a column by Wayne Lubenow
Pictured below is 2nd Avenue in Downtwon Minot looking west from Main Street in 1912. The fountain was at that intersection for many years and is now back on Main Street at the corner of 1st Avenue and Main Street.

Past Businesses - 1960's #13

 Sullivan’s Floral – established in 1924, Sullivan’s was at one time Minot’s oldest full service floral shop. …. Smith & Lee Co. – An appliance store located at 14 East Central Avenue. They opened for business in October , 1958. Their phone number was 50-133. Lee’s Photo Finishing – Located at 209 South Main Street. They sold cameras, projectors and did photo finishing…… Voeller Furniture and Carpets – at one time located at 13-15 First St. SE. – a full line furniture store…… S D Kively – Jeweler  - located at 11 East Central Ave – specialized in watch repair and diamond setting. ….. The Great Minot Surplus Store – in 1958 they were located at 9 North Main Street. Featured “everything for the Hunter” along with some men’s clothing and military surplus items. The Surplus store would be in the lower right corner in the 1st picture

Westlie Motor Company

Truck Assembly Line – In May of 1927 the Ford Motor Company stopped production of the Model T Truck to retool their plants for the new Model A. The conversion was going to be a 2 year process. During that time, Westlie Motors set up an assembly line on the top floor of its business here in Minot. The parts were ordered directly from Ford Motor Company. Westlie Motors was the only dealer in the country to do this. In the fall of 1927, 38 trucks rolled off the assembly line.  In 1928, 50 trucks were assembled. When the Model A trucks came out in late 1928, the demand for the Model T ceased as did Minot’s first and only automobile assembly line . Shown below - Westlies original store on Central Avenue - note the gas pump on the street. The second picture is of the new car line-up on the in front of building.

Past Businesses - 1960's #12

Family Furniture – located ½ block north of the old YMCA on 1^st Street in Downtown Minot …..   Wylie Piano Company – 117 West Central Avenue – Authorized Baldwin dealer for western North Dakota …..  Minot Federal Savings & Loan – 24 West Central Avenue – established in 1935  ….. Mr Steak Restaurant – on top of Minot’s North Hill – Next to North Hill Bowl ….. Big Bear Store – located on North Main Street – next to what is now 10 North Main – sold western clothing and sporting goods for the hunter and fisherman. Big Bear then moved out to South Broadway at the intersection of 31^st Avenue, where the Gas Stop is now.

Ellisons - The Fair Department Store

The first Fair Store was opened in Minot in 1902 on Main Street, in a location next to and south of what is now Western paint. It was like most stores of the time with a 25 foot frontage. In 1910 the Ellisons moved the store a block south into a new building known as The Fair Block, just south of the intersection of Main Street and 2^nd Avenue. In 1929 a newer building was added at the corner and adjacent to The Fair Block. The new building, a large 2 story building with a basement  eventually incorporated The Fair Block in 1955 giving Ellisons a 100 foot store front on Main Street. During the Diamond Jubilee in 1961, Ellisons ran a contest to see who could bring in the oldest sales slip showing merchandise purchased at the store. The winner received a wool blanket…. Unfortunately I do not know who won or how old the receipt was. Pictured below: two early views of The Fair Store about 1910. The 3rd picture is the original concept for the Ellison Store. It was to be 5 stories with offices on the top floors. When construction began on the Valker-Christianson office complex, (which was never completed until 20+ years later when Clarence Parker bought it and it became the Clarence Parker Hotel), the top two floors were never added. The last picture shows Ellisons in the 50's.

Past Businesses - 1960's #11

Past Businesses of Minot #14 --  Truax-Traer Coal Company – Office in Minot, at one time in the First Avenue Building. Coal mine near Velva ….. Top Valu Market – 4^th Avenue and 21^st Street NW – Meats, Groceries, Frozen foods and open on Sundays – (Eventually became Heislers Market) …..  American State Bank – (now Bremer Bank) in Downtown Minot ….. Johnson Chevrolet  - Became Auran Chevrolet and then Ryan Chevrolet ….. The Corset Shop – Located at 16A South Main – either up or down a stairway between Minot Drug and Buttrey’s – The shop obviously catered to women – Hulda Hoskins was a Registered Corsetiere.  Pictured below: American State Bank in th 60's and the Truax-Traer Caol Mine near Velva

City Ordinances - 1888

In 1888 it was illegal to ride or drive horses in the city limits faster than a trot or 8 mph – while it sounds funny today, with no traffic signals a galloping horse was a threat to public safety …. There was a “vice” ordinance prohibiting anyone from owning or visiting a “bawdy house” or a house of “ill fame”…… Drunken or disorderly conduct was subject to a fine of not more than $19.00 and/or 9 days in jail ….. it was also illegal to keep horses, mules, cows, sheep, goats or swine (pigs) within the city limits ……

Past Businesses - 1960's #10

 Duck-In Beauty Shop – 1614 4^th Avenue SE – Edith Bondly – proprietor ….. T&T Tire Service – Highway 83 North – Sold US Royal tires ….. Westland Oil Company – Operated gas stations throughout Minot and the area. The Westland Refinery was located at Williston but the home office was on Central Avenue in Minot ….. Parker Motor Company – established in 1922 – located on 1^st Avenue SE (across from the old YMCA). On the top floor of the Parker Motor Company was the Parker Auditorium. The Auditorium was the home to many conventions and when not used for that had a roller skating rink. Pictured below is the Parker Motor Showroom in the 30's or 40's and a view of the Parker Auditorium. This portion of the building was destroyed by fire in the 50's. Also a picture of a Westland Oil Sign and the Westlamd Oil gas station on Central Ave and 6th St SE. The Westland Oild headquarters were in the building behind the gas staton

 

1st Lutheran Church

First Lutheran Church – The first pastor was Rev Torjus Reishus who preched his  first sermon in Minot on July 4, 1886. The first services were held at the home of Peder Ramstad which was located in what is now Roosevelt Park. IN 1892 on land donated by Erik Ramstad, the first church was built. It was a brick structure, 28 feet x 50 feet. The second and larger church was dedicated on May 5, 1908. The congregation grew and the cornerstone for the present church was laid on July 8, 1951. The Pioneer Memorial Chapel was added in 1956. Shown below is the 1st Lutheran Church about 1910 and the second picture is of 2nd St NW (Broadway) in the flood of 1923. You see 1st Lutheran and the Congregational Church.

NSP - Predicts the Future

NSP – Look into the Future – In 1961 NSP placed an advertisement in the newspaper predicting some of the things that would come to be in the future….. some of these were Instant checkout in stores – Electronic devices will scan purchases and add the bills to give you your total due ….. Automatic Cleaner – A machine that will vacuum, wash, rinse, dry and wax floors by itself then scoot back to the its niche in the baseboard , empty any waste and wait for the next job…… Automatic Wall Painter – Walls will be built with panels that incorporate a chemical that will change color when electricity is applied….. change your wall colors to match your mood……. Cooling Blanket – A blanket that will heat and/or cool at your discretion ….. Make Disposable Tableware - with a touch of the dial and throw them away afterwards – or If using your finest china, you will be able to clean and sterilize in 3 minutes with ultrasonic waves. Pictured below is NSP on Main Street in the 50's and a 1935 NSP Service truck