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Minot

  • At 11:15 a.m. on this date in 1934, “a lone bandit” robbed the Merchants Bank in Rugby. He made off with $429. In the bank at the time were its president, cashier and a farmer, who happened to walk in mid-holdup. The robber quickly fled in a vehicle stolen the day before from a veterinarian in Minot. The robber also held up a gas station attendant in Granville and stole 10 gallons of gas. The Associated Press called the crime the first bank robbery in Rugby’s history.
  • It will supply Missouri River water to Minot and other cities.
  • In 1984, Law enforcement searches of illegal gambling operations led to the first statewide grand jury in North Dakota history. The Legislature had passed a law allowing for statewide grand juries in 1977. Six years later, in December 1983, law enforcement officers searched bookmaking operations in Fargo, Grand Forks and Mayville, the culmination of a yearlong investigation.
  • Today we continue strolling down memory lane, recalling past concerts in North Dakota. Perhaps you’ll remember some!
  • This date in 1989 was a day of anticipation for school teacher Lola Gellner from Perkett Elementary School in Minot. The next day was Saturday, when she would demonstrate a new educational video game at Dakota Square Mall called, “Where in North Dakota is Carmen Sandiego?”
  • Two young men, one short and one tall, sat in a booth at Friendly Tavern in Minot North Dakota around 10pm in the early days of February in 1955. Both wore Levi jeans and made unremarkable conversation with one another. The bartender, Tommy Oster, made his way over to the pair. One of the two looked young, so Tommy asked for his ID. It was a North Dakota license, and it said the man was born in October of 1933. The men politely ordered their drinks and played a few songs on the jukebox. They stayed until close and drank three beers a piece.
  • In February 1912, the city of Minot celebrated the new library in town. After funds were secured with money from the New York philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, construction quickly followed. Carnegie offered $15,000 for the construction, with additional money from the Minot Women’s Literary Club for furniture and decorations.
  • For many, Valentine’s Day is a time for love and gratitude for the people in our lives, and it’s been celebrated since the early 1700s. Around this time in 1910, you could attend a Valentine’s Day social in Bismarck, or buy a card that professed your love and devotion from Finney’s drug store.
  • The Souris River flood of 2011 was devastating in Minot. Even though people banded together to strengthen flood defenses, the water still flowed over levies on June 22. Thousands of homes were destroyed.
  • The phrase “pulp fiction” makes most people think of the 1994 Quentin Tarantino film. But the phrase actually comes from magazines of explicit content that used to be printed on wood pulp paper. The first example dates back to 1896, and the format's height of popularity came in the 1920s, 30s, and 40s.