MANDAN Historical Society

Working to Preserve & Promote Mandan's Heritage since 2004

Welcome

Membership

Activities

Ag Stn Centennial

History Harvest

TR-Coe Exhibit

WWII Exhibit

Museum & Office

Area History

Book: "Mantani"

The 1880s

Mandan Rodeo / Fair

School System History

The 1890s

The 1900s

1901 Pan Am Expo

1903 TR Visit to NDak

The 1910s

1910 Spring Flood

1911 Fair & Airplane Demo

1912 TR Whistle-Stop

The 1920s

Prohibition in Mandan

Mail Order Kit Homes

The 1930s

FDR Visit August 1936

The 1940s

The 1950s

1958 Lincoln Stamp FDC

Custer Drama / Trail West

The 1960s

The 1970s

The 1980s

The 1990s

1st of the 21st

2010-Present

Area Landmarks

Cary Bldg - Mandan Drug

CCC Camp Chimney

Christ the King Church

Collins Av Civic Bldg

First Lutheran Church

First National Bank Bldg

First Presbyterian Church

Great Plains Academy

Great Plains Expermt Stn

Lewis & Clark Hotel

Mandan Hill

Mandan Theatre

MV Produce Warehouse

Methodist Church

NP Beanery

NP "Colonial" RR Depot

NPRR Freighthouse

NP Rail High Bridge

Roughrider Statue

St Joseph Church

WWar Memorial Bldg

Youth Correctional Center

Gone Forever

Central School

Collins Ave Courthouse

Cummins Building

Deaconess Hospital

Eielson Field

Emerson Inst/Opera House

First St Federal Building

Havana Club

Hotel Nigey

InterOcean Hotel

Liberty Memorial Bridge

Mandan Creamery & Produce

Mandan Flour Mill

Merchants Hotel

NP "Queen Anne" Depot

Original Passenger Depot

Palace Theatre

Peoples' Hotel

Rock Haven

Topic Theatre

Young's Tavern

Heritage Homes

Altnow-Smith Home

Dunlap-Harris Home

Ellis-Uden Home

Freeburg-Esser Home

Lyon-Weigel Home

McGillic Home

Olson-Brick Home

Parkins-Cooley Home

Stutsman-Wyatt Home

Swanson-Reichman Home

Welch-Ness Home

Endowment Fund

Genealogy Links

Biographies A-C

J D Allen

Franklin Anders

Richard Baron

James Bellows

George Bingenheimer

Margaret Bingenheimer

Philip Blumenthal

Elijah Boley

Frank Briggs

Leo Broderick

William Broderick

Frank Bunting

Lyman Cary

James Clark

Henry Coe

Viola Boley Coe

Daniel Collins

Elizabeth Custer

George Custer

Biographies D-L

Alice Dahners

Henry Dahners

C E V (Charles) Draper

Esther Davis

Tony Dean

Joseph Devine

Ronald Erhardt

John Forbes

Palma Fristad

Gilbert Furness

Aloysius Galowitsch

Frederic Gerard

Zalmon Gilbert

Charles Grantier

James Hanley Jr

James Hanley Sr

Mary Harris

C Edgar Haupt

Michael Lang

William Langer

Albert Lanterman

William Lanterman

Richard Longfellow

Rolland Lutz

Hiram Lyon

Biographies M-R

George Marback

Gary Miller

Lee Mohr

Margaret Naylor

John Newton

Anton Ness

John Osterhouse

George Peoples

Arthur Peterson

Nels Romer

Hoy Russell

Walton Russell

Antonie Rybnicek

Ervin Rybnicek

Hynek Rybnicek

Biographies S-Z

Margaret Schaaf

George Shafer

Benjamin Shaw

William Simpson

Anna Knox Stark

Mary Stark

Benjamin Stephenson

J O Sullivan

John Sullivan

Era Bell Thompson

Andrew E Thorberg

Ida Thorberg

C L Timmerman

George Toman

Earle Tostevin

Edwin A Tostevin Sr

Edwin D Tostevin Jr

Walter Tostevin

Felix Vinatieri

A B Welch

Levon West

Frank Wetzstein

Harry Wheeler

Philomena Yunck

View Collections

Artifacts - Miscellanous

Newspapers

Pottery and Glass

Photos - Buildings

Photos - Downtown

Photos - Floods

Photos - People

Photos - Rail and Trains

What's New

"Oil" Boom and Bust 1980-1989
Downturns in the farm economy and easier access to larger shopping centers (i.e. the completion of the Expressway Bridge to south Bismarck’s Kirkwood Mall) led to many retail store closures in Mandan.  Especially hard hit was the downtown business, aggravated by the discovery of an oil plume floating on the groundwater table.  Impacts from the ground oil, real or perceived, stopped attempts to renovate or restore abandoned buildings to other uses, unlike numerous other small communities throughout the Great Plains which experienced the same commercial effects. 

Another oil boom and bust cycle impacted Mandan.  Crude oil (and gasoline) prices peaked in the early decade after a second worldwide oil embargo.  Just as Amoco Oil Company's Mandan refinery underwent a major expansion in '81-82 to eliminate the use of lead compounds in gasoline, oil prices (and profits) plummeted in the middle of the decade and squeezed operations and staff levels.

1984
The Mandan Park Board approved construction of new rodeo grounds on the former landfill site south of Memorial Highway.  The estimated cost was $200,000 for just the grandstand, plus an added $56,000 for water and sewer. The original fairgrounds/rodeo stands will be reclaimed for the construction of additional softball diamonds.

After six months of traffic tie-ups, a new Highway 6 bridge was opened across the Heart River.  The bridge was designated as the Custer Bridge by the city commission.

An outlet from the national chain McDonald's fast-food restaurant openned at an east Main Street location in December.  Four video rental businesses were established.  This newest form of entertainment allowed people to rent movie videos & the associated video player to take the equipment home and connect to their televisions for $24 a day with 4 movies. Among these stores was Feist TV and Electronics. Andrew Feist moved the store over from Bismarck.

The year also marked the innaurgation of Mandan's "Care and Share" program, geared to helping local families facing hard times.  In its first year, more than $15,000 was collected which helped 283 families in need.

1985
The four-lane Bismarck Expressway Bridge opens across the Missouri River tying the I-94 Business Loop in east Mandan to south Bismarck.  While improving commuter times for residents of both cities, traffic was also diverted away from Memorial Highway.  Mandan shoppers would also shift activity (and sales tax dollars) to Bismarck's large regional shopping centers.  Mandan's J. C. Penney's store, for example, closed in April, after 65 years in operation in the city. The Gambles store closed in December. 
1986
The loss of Main Street retail stores continued.  The Collins Department store closed in January 1986.  The site had continousily hosted a clothing store starting with "Tubbs & Cummins Clothiers" in 1881, the same year the city of Mandan was incorporated. 

1987
 
Mandan High School's new 600 seat auditorium opened for performances in January.

1988
On March 11, the Mandan Creamery and Produce building at the corner of Main St and 4th Ave NW would close after 90 years of operation at the site.  The company, now known as Cloverdale Meats, would open a new $6 million facility in northwest Mandan which refocused its operation to pork and pork products.

The decline of the downtown retail sector continued with closings of several additional landmark stores including Dakota Four Seasons Clothing and Mushik Shoe Store.

John Mushik came to Mandan in 1909 and started his operation on east Main Street.  The cobbler moved to bigger quarters in and sold exclusively men's shoes at 110 West Main in 1913.  He shared the business with tailors A. S. Brazda and Mike Gish.  In 1917 his son John Jr. joined in in the trade.  Mrs. Mushik ran the store while the sons served in WWII.  John III ran the store until his retirement in 1962.  Jerry Hoff, a longtime employee bought and operated it until its close.

On October 15, the Mandan held the Grand Opening of their new home at 1408 Collins. The club boasted over 1000 members.

1989
The Mandan Jaycee Rodeo was held for the last time at the Syndicate Rodeo Grounds over the July 4th weekend.  Hot air balloon rides were a special feature of this year's event.

 
In July, the Joersz family celebrated the opening of their new 38,000 sq ft building on west Main Street, now home to their Bill's SuperValu store.  The grocery store, previously at 511 1st St NW, has been in operation since 1976.

The MHSoc's museum and office is located at 3827 30th Avenue NW; PO Box 1001; Mandan, ND 58554
Contact us at info@mandanhistory.org


Last Updated 03/28
/23    ©  2007-2023  Mandan Historical Society   All rights reserved