Minot Daily News SATURDAY, APRIL 3, 2021
History
MinotDailyNews.com • Facebook • Twitter
Y EARS OF DEVELOPMENT
Submitted Photo
ABOVE: This photo shows the Minot fair in 1941. 1966 marked the first year of the official North Dakota State Fair held in Minot. MDN File Photo
TOP LEFT: : Minot was named for Henry D. Minot, an associate of Great Northern Railway “Empire Builder” James J. Hill,
Minot got its start with railroad pushing through area By ELOISE OGDEN
Regional Editor eogden@minotdailynews.com inot, in the valley of the Souris River, or the Mouse as some prefer to call it, got its name through the influence of the Great Northern Railway “Empire Builder” James J. Hill whose railroad pushed through this area in the late 1880s as it moved westward. The city was named after a Bostonian, Henry Davis Minot, who tragically lost his life in a railroad accident when he was 31 years old. Henry D. Minot was an eastern investor and associate of Hill. He reportedly never set eyes on the Mouse
M
A
Jill Schramm/MDN
LEFT MAIN: The railroad has had an important role in Minot throughout history. This photo is looking south on Main Street in downtown Minot in this June 2020 photo. River Valley. He was also an ornithologist and friend of Theodore Roosevelt. Minot, a rather “young” city compared to many others in the United States, “has grown from wild and woolly, devil-may-care formative years to an age its constituents herald as respectable and progressive” wrote the late Bob Anderson of The Minot Daily News in a story published in a June 30, 1964, issue of the newspaper commemorating North Dakota’s 75th anniversary of the admission of North Dakota to the Union. The story went on to explain: “Business and building followed the railroad boom. Tarpaper shacks grew into Main Street buildings sub-
GEM IN THE
stantial dry goods and general stores grew into being, carbon lights illuminated the streets, the few there were. “The homesteaders were here making their claims and enhancing the growing business of the community. “In 1907, Minot labeled itself as “Northwest North Dakota’s largest commercial center.” (In 1890, a year after North Dakota became a state, the population of Minot was 575. In 1962, when a special federal census was taken Minot’s population was 33,477. Other population totals have been: 1900, 1,277; 1910, 6,188; 1920, 10,476; 1930, 16,099; 1940, 16,577; 1950, 22,032; and 1960, 30,604. Counting Minot Air
M INOT
Roosevelt Park Zoo: A special part of Minot history
Force Base and developed areas immediately outside the city limits, it’s estimated that between 45,000 and 50,000 persons now reside in Minot and nearby, according to the June 30, 1964, edition of The Minot Daily News.) Minot was growing by leaps and bounds, and new businesses were continually being erected. The story continued: “It was still the railroad influence for the city. As the city grew, so did the railroad, which now has its $6 million Gavin Yard east of Minot. “Prohibition had its effect on the city and, whether good or bad, brought some money into the area. Minoters resorted to their “blind pigs”
COMMUNITY
and the city gained somewhat of a reputation as “Little Chicago.” It was on the gin mill run from Chicago and Minneapolis to Regina, Saskatchewan. “Maybe that railroad conductor wasn’t all wrong when he used to yell ‘Minot, next stop. Prepare to meet your God.’ “Carbon lights and neon lights weren’t all the lights Minot had. It had its share of red lights. Minot’s “Third Street” with its houses of ill repute was known throughout a wide area. “Through the efforts of the Junior Chamber of Commerce, highway construction and the city’s illuminating See MINOT — Page 2
By ELOISE OGDEN
Regional Editor eogden@minotdailynews.com “Minot is to have a zoo. This will delight the youngsters and some of the older boys and girls as well,” the Ward County Independent newspaper in Minot reported in April 1914. Roosevelt Park Zoo is the oldest public zoo in the state of North Dakota The history of the zoo dates back to 1914 when a decision was made to open a zoo in Minot. In the winter of 1914-15 a road was constructed through Riverside Park and the zoo was started. The first animals in the zoo reportedly were 12 fox squirrels and 12 gray squirrels. The park board decided to buy two buffalo in South Dakota (a bull and a cow for a cost of about $600), some coyotes, foxes, bears and raccoons. Plans were to also install a cage of monkeys during the summer. Park board members said the parks already had the squirrels. The first animals for the zoo arrived in February 1915, at Riverside Park. A 1927 Minot Parks souvenir book said the zoo had several families of monkeys, buffalo, elk, deer, African lions, mountain lions, kangaroos, bobcats, raccoons, lynx, coati, badgers, foxes, guinea pigs, 21 kinds of wild ducks, eagles, silver black foxes, flying squirrels, swans, alligator, pheasants, talking parrots, cockatoos and others. The Zoological Building, now the Aviary, was built in 1921. The first exotic animals, a pair of Nubian lions purchased for $250, arrived between 1924 and 1930. On Sept. 11, 1924, Riverside Park was renamed Theodore Roosevelt Park and a bronze statue of Theodore Roosevelt on his horse was dedicated.
Submitted Photo
TOP RIGHT: This photo of the Zoological Building is undated but the vehicles at the left side of the photo indicate it is likely from the 1920s. The building was opened to the public in December 1921.
Eloise Ogden/MDN
ABOVE: Roosevelt Park Zoo, the oldest public zoo in North Dakota, is observing its centennial this year. The centennial is based on the zoo’s first building. The Zoological Building now is the zoo’s Aviary. Darius T. Ritchey, who was parks superintendent from 19451971, is often credited for helping to grow the zoo. The Minot Park Board broke ground in August 1972 for a new feline house for the large cats in the zoo. The facility was financed with the help of the Greater Minot Zoological Society, the City of Minot and many donations. A nonprofit organization, the Greater Minot Zoological Soci-
Visit us online at www.MinotDailyNews.com
ety, created in 1970 to promote the zoo, later changed its name to the Zoo Crew. About a year ago the organization went back to its original Greater Minot Zoological Society name. A children’s zoo was opened a number of years ago within the main zoo. Reached by a walk-bridge, the area covers about a halfSee ZOO — Page 4