JC Penny in Minot Part 3– by Susan Gessner

JC Penny in Minot  Part 3– by Susan Gessner

1952 – J C Penny Co. – On January 17, 1952 the store again moved to new location, across the street to a corner building at 101 South Main. The building was newly constructed. The lot had stood empty since 1943. It was the location of the Waverly Hotel which was destroyed by fire in January, 1943. By this time the store was simply called Penny’s. March 21, 1980 – Penny’s closed its downtown location and moved to its current location at the Dakota Square Mall. That move ended 64 years of Penny’s in Downtown Minot. 

1916 – J C Penny Co. – Part 2

JC Penny in Minot Part 2   – The Golden Rule Store – by Susan Gessner

as of January 1, 1916, the Minot store’s name was changed to JC Penny Company. Back in 1913, Penny and his partners decided to change the name of their stores to distinguish them from other stores with the Golden Rule name, the Penny really liked that name. The JC Penny Company was incorporated that year. Soon the existing company stores began to change names and new stores opened with the JC Penny Co. name. 1919 was also the year the store moved from the Boyer Block to the building immediately north, The Masonic Temple Block. A 10 year lease was signed for the main floor and basement. This location provided about twice the space. On March 25, 1919 the new store opened.

JC Penny in Minot – The Golden Rule Store – by Susan Gessner

1916 – Golden Rule Store Part 1 – The first J C Penny Co. store in Minot opened on April 8, 1916. It was located in the Boyer Block on the west side of Main Street between 1^st and 2^nd Avenues south. The store was called The Golden Rule which was the original name of J. C. Penny Stores. The manager was C.A. Clapp who would manage the store through 1921. Minot’s store was 112 of 125 at the time for the j C Penny chain. (In 1914 the company the company opened its first North Dakota stores in Fargo, Grand Forks and Whapeton: they were also the company’s first Midwest stores).

Henry’s Drive-In—King Leo’s Drive-In –

 an ad in the newspaper in September 1964 for Henry’s Drive-In boasted they were the “Home of the Bigger, Better Fifteen Cent Hamburger.” Apparently Henry’s also featured family dinners…. A chicken dinner – 82 cents…. Shrimp dinner – 83 cents and a Steak dinner – 74 cents. Every dinner included a generous portion of French fries, onion rings and a roll. Henry’s Drive-Inn was locate at the intersection of Highway 83 North (North Broadway) and 21^st Avenue. On the other end of town was King Leo’s Drive-In. , home of the 15 cent hamburger on South Broadway. , home of the 15 cent hamburger on South Broadway

More Past Businesses of 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. 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 ….. 

Great Northern Ice House Fire – Dec. 5, 1907

– In one of the largest fires known in Minot at the time, the new Great Northern Ice House which was recently completed but never used, burnt to the ground about 9:00 Sunday evening. It was not known how the fire started but a number of workers were camped out in the building and may have set the fire accidently. The building was about one half mile east of Minot Flour Mill. The fire department was called out but did little good as the fire hoses only reached about half way to the building. Eight box cars, loaded with lumber, hay and coal, were lost in the fire. Also two old cabooses used by workers as cooking cars. The fire was so hot the rails of the railroad were melted and ended up shaped like bows. This made it impossible to move rail cars to safety. The building was 375 feet long and 50 feet wide and cost over $10,000.00 to build. The loss to Great Northern was considerable as they planned to fill it with ice to supply cities between Minot and Spokane.

1961 -- Predictions for 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