MANDAN Historical Society

Working to Preserve & Promote Mandan's Heritage since 2004

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Ag Stn Centennial

History Harvest

TR-Coe Exhibit

WWII Exhibit

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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

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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

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Artifacts - Miscellanous

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What's New

Benjamin Washburn Stephenson (1860-1925)
Benjamin W. Stephenson was a major stakeholder in Mandan's flour mill for 30 years. He was initially involved when it operated as the North Dakota Milling Association, later as Missouri Valley Milling Company, and beyond its merger with the Russell-Miller Milling Company. He retired as its Western Region Manager.
 
He represents Mandan's connection into the national flour mill industry of the day. One uncle William Washburn and partner would start the Pillsbury-Washburn Milling Company in Minneapolis.  His uncle Cadwallader Washburn and partner started the Washburn-Crosby Milling Company which today is known as General Mills.

Occident is No Accident, p. 25 1909
Benjamin W. Stephenson 1909
Benjaman W. Stephenson was born on October 1, 1860 in Galena, Illinois.  He was the child of Charles L. and Martha Benjamin (Washburn) Stephenson, who traced their ancestry back to Revolutionary and Civil War heroes. He lived there until July 1878 when he moved with his family to St. Paul.  His father spent the majority of his life in the government service and was best friend with his wife's younger brother, Cadwallader Washburn.
 
Benjamin W. Stephenson obtained his education in the public schools of his native city.  After putting aside his textbooks was employed as clerk in a grocery store for two years. Subsequently, he worked for the St. Paul-based Northwestern Fuel Company.  He remained in that city until 1885 where he occupied a clerical position with a wholesale dry goods busi­ness.  His next position was with the freight department of the Burlington Railroad where he stayed for eight years.

In 1893, he entered the flour milling business at Grand Forks, North Dakota working for the North Dakota Milling Association until 1897. He then embarked on his own in a milling venture at Morristown, Minnesota.
 
He returned to fulltime employment with the ND Milling Association the following year as a sales agent in Buffalo, New York. In July, 1898, he returned to North Dakota, rejoining the ND Milling Association at its Mandan location as its Mill Manager. 

He was among the three partners which purchased the flour mill in June 1899.  Together with John Newton and led by Hiram Lyon, the Missouri Valley Milling Company grew to eventually own and operate three flour mills in Dickinson, Bismarck and its largest in Mandan.  Stephenson served as the corporate treasurer through 1907.  He held the position of the Mandan mill's manager through 1909.

Russell-Miller Milling Company Mandan Mill (March 1925)
In June of that year, the three partners would sell their holdings in the mills and eleven grain elevators to the Russell-Miller Milling Company. Hiram Lyon also sold additional grain elevators he owned.  The men and their families relocated to Minneapolis to join its corporate management team.  Stephenson served at the Western Area Manager for the Russell-Miller Milling Company.
 
In 1909 Mr. Stephenson was united in marriage to Margaret Artz. He gave his political support to the Republican Party.

While living in Morton County, Stephenson was involved in both public and business organizations. He was a director of the State Bank of New Salem and the State Bank of Hebron since their incorporation. He was also elected to the Mandan City Commission in 1910 and was also a member of Mandan's Commerical Club.
 
In Minneapolis, he was an active member of the Civic & Commerce Association.  His uncle Cadwallader Washburn left money in his estate to establish an orphanage in Minneapolis, initially known as the "Washburn Memorial Orphan Asylum."  Stephenson would serve on its Board of Trustees and specifically Treasurer starting in 1911. Benjamin Stephenson was associated with the Church of the Redeemer.

He  supported social organizations including the Minneapolis Athletic, Interlachen, Lafayette and Automobile Clubs.
 
He remained life long friends with Hiram Lyon.  Both men and their wives retired to the Pasadena, California.
 
Stephenson died on January 27, 1925 in Pasadena.  His wife Margaret died April 13, 1950 also in Pasadena.  Both are buried the family cript in Lakewood Cemetery in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

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
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