Back in Time 2025

Unknown Photographer                 Photo courtesy of Dave Kline                  Linda Oster - Researcher

     The First Annual Boy Scout Merit Badge Exposition Parade on Mitchell’s Main Street in 1934 showcased the Sioux Area Council. This view is looking north towards the intersection of Fourth Avenue and Main Street. Notice the phone booth on the right side of the photo.
    Businesses along the east side of Main pictured are: Gilbransen Pianos-Redline Piano Co at 316 N. Main under Clayton Rackliffe; Central Market under Kusler and Spratford; Nicholls Drug Co under Biersdorf with a sign on it advertising Gilpin Radio Service at 111 E 4th owned by Kenneth E. Gilpin; Blynn Shoes at 321 ½ N Main under Raymond Blynn in the J.N. Crow building; Mitchell Hardware at 400 N Main under Lavrits Peterson.
     No other details of the parade could be found, if you have any details please let us know by emailing info@mithellcarnegie.com or call the Carnegie Resource Center at 996-3209.

Published in the February 1st, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Unknown Photographer Circa 1950’s Linda Oster - Researcher

Railroad Avenue looking west in Mitchell, SD after a major blizzard. The wrecker truck shown is from Mitchell Motor Company located on the right at 124 South Main Street. The building shown behind the wrecker truck to the south is Pepsi Bottling Company. The Milwaukee Depot sat to the left (east) of the Pepsi building.

Published in the February 8th, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Photographer Unknown East Side School/Lincoln Linda Oster - Researcher

     The East Side School pictured was built in 1884, near the middle of the block between East Fifth and East Sixth Avenues, where the present day Cathedral Squares Apartments are located. The school’s name was later changed to Lincoln School.
     It was decided in 1907 to build a new High School; the new High School was to sit at the location of Lincoln School. Consequently, Lincoln School was moved to the northwest corner of the block and some rooms were used to house some of the Senior High programs.
      On August 11, 1933, it was voted that the Lincoln School be abandoned for the coming year and the teachers transferred to other schools. In 1934 the Lincoln building was remodeled into offices for the superintendent, clerk and some high school classes. The administration was on the north side of the first floor and high school students would enter through the south entrance to the area where the band practiced on the south side of the first floor. Shorthand and Typing classes were held on the second floor and Journalism was in the basement.
     The old Lincoln School building was razed in 1963 and the Administrative Offices were moved to the old Post Office building at Fourth Avenue and Lawler Street. Another move put the Administrative Offices at the Mitchell Middle School. Today, Mitchell School District 17-2 offices are located at 821 North Capital.
     According to The National Center for Educational Statistics for the 2023-2024 school year the Mitchell School District has 9 schools with a staff of 390.19 and a student count of 2,711.

https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/districtsearch/district_detail.asp?ID2=4648390

Published in the March 22nd, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

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Unknown Photographer Armour, SD circa 1890’s Linda Oster - Researcher

Armour, Douglas County, SD was established in 1885 and is named after the industrialist of meat packing fame, Philip Danforth Armour. The City took on the name of Armour because Philip Armour was the chairman of the railroad that eventually went through the town in 1886 from Tripp to Armour for a total of 20.47 miles of track by the Milwaukee and he donated a bell to the local Congregational Church. The population of Armour in the 1890 census was 482.
Every once in a while a picture shows up in the archives at the Carnegie Resource Center that raises some questions. This is one of those photos. There is a crude corral made of wagons and farm machinery. Apparently some type of contest is taking place with the barrels and the man with the bull (highlighted). There is a man standing on a ladder behind the barrels on the left (highlighted), perhaps he is the judge. The sign on the side of the building on the right says it’s a real estate office and the sign on the front says Reservation Land Office. On the same side of the street is a Furs and Grocery store. The left side of the street has a Billiard Hall, a hardware store selling corn stoves and a drug and jewelry store. If anyone can shed some light on what is going on in this picture and help satisfy our curiosity, please let us know at the Carnegie so we can add to our knowledge base. You can call 605-996-3209, email info@mitchellcarnegie.com or stop in and have a chat with us at 119 W 3rd Avenue (open from 1-5 pm - Monday-Saturday).

Published in the Jan 4th 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Photographer Unknown                        March 26, 1914                  Linda Oster - Researcher

     This theatre was built by L.O. Gale at 311 N Main and opened November 10, 1906. Mr. Gale was one of the men who came up with the idea of the Corn Palace in the summer of 1892. The theatre towered three stories and had seating for 1,200. It boasted twelve dressing rooms, two balconies and eight boxes. It should be noted that the population of Mitchell around this time was approximately 4,000.
     At 8:50 a.m., March 26, 1914, this impressive building had smoke coming from it, and by noon nothing was left but four walls. The call to the fire department was hampered and when firemen arrived, the new water hydrant was frozen and had to be thawed by pouring hot water over it. The ladders at the time were made of very heavy wood. Each piece had to be hauled and attached with another to reach higher levels. The hoses being used were cotton – not very fire safe. These fires were very dangerous for the firefighters. The rubble seen in the foreground is from the Alexander Mitchell Hotel fire (November 3, 1913).

     Rebuilding took place on this spot and opened under the name of the Metropolitan Theatre in 1915. This prime site has seen several transitions over the years: 1932 - Paramount Theatre; 1952 – the Minnesota Amusement Co. (State Theatre); 1972 - Jeff Logan showed the last movie in 1989; Logan sold to Area Community Theatre (ACT) and during remodel in May 2004 the building again burned. The lot where the Gale originally sat is now a vacant lot.

Published in the February 15th, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Schlimgen Sign Linda Oster - Researcher

This sign was used by Edward E. Schlimgen for his transfer business. The sign reads” E.E. Schlimgen Baggage and Transfer à You Call We Haul”. Edward was in the transfer business for 54 years called Draymen in the early years. Customers could leave orders for Schlimgen at Hotel Widman and Hotel Mitchell or call for service. Schlimgen also hauled the wet hoses back to the fire station for the Mitchell Fire Department. In 1959, Schlimgen was honored for being with the Mitchell Fire Department for 60 years and named an honorary Chief. The sign measures 43” x 17” x 1” and hangs in the Lyle Swenson Gallery at the Carnegie Resource Center.

Published in the January 25th, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Back In Time 2025

122 Years Young

Postcard found in archives at Carnegie Resource Center                  Linda Oster - Researcher

     The Carnegie Library building, now the Carnegie Resource Center was built in 1903. On February 3, 1902, Andrew Carnegie agreed to provide the city of Mitchell, $10,000 to construct the library if they agreed to spend $1000 on maintenance and operation of the building. An additional grant of $2,000 was later obtained from Carnegie to finish the building and add aesthetic enhancements such as decorative hand-carved oak elements on the interior and cut stained glass windows. After the second amount of $2,000, Carnegie required that the city guarantee a sum of $1,200 yearly for upkeep.
     Additions were made to the building in 1930 and 1960. After the library materials were removed from the Carnegie building in 1971, it was leased to the Mitchell Area Arts Council for a dollar a year. After the Oscar Howe Museum moved out of the building, it was used by the YWCA for a few years and set empty until the Mitchell Area Historical Society (MAHS) got possession of the building in 2006.
     This historic building is 122 years old this year and has served Mitchell in several roles over those years. The Historical Society has had possession of the building for 19 years and is looking forward to a celebration of the 20th Anniversary of ownership in 2026. Please look for details as the time grows closer and help MAHS celebrate “Saving the Carnegie” because it would not have been possible without the support of many donors and volunteers that helped preserve this treasure for Mitchell, SD.

Published in the March 8th, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Unknown photographer Porter Motor Co Circa 1950 Linda Oster - Researcher

Porter Motor Co, 601 North Main, Oldsmobile Dealer circa 1950, is now the current location of the Chamber of Commerce. Porter Motor Company owned by Leon Porter, was located at 200 East 2nd Avenue before it moved to this location at 601 North Main, circa 1948. In 1958, it was then known as Dakota Motor Company owned by Delmer W. Olson and Wilson Tire Company owned by Ernest G. Wilson. Olson later moved Dakota Motor Co. to 1409 North Main. In 1959 Wilson started selling Volkswagen's and changed the name to Import Motor Company. In 1974 Wilson sold the business to Ray Case and Darwin Webb. Import Motors was at this location until 1976, when they built a new building at 1901 North Sanborn Street.

Published in the January 11th, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Photographer Unknown        First City-Wide Marble Contest          Linda Oster – Researcher     This photo is a record that Mitchell held marble contests. Beyond that, very little information can be found on this Mitchell sport picture; it possibly dates from around 1935. We know that Mitchell held marble shooting contests in 1940 and 1941. If anyone knows the identity of these participants we hope you would share your information with the Carnegie Resource Center.
     Marbles have existed since the time of the Romans. England held a tournament in 1588 when marbles, after a contest of twelve other sports was completed resulting in a tie between the participants, was the choice of Joan from Tinsley Green, a milk maiden, to settle who would win her hand between two suitors, Giles and Hodge; Giles won.
     Tinsley Green, West Sussex host the British and World Marbles Championship on Good Friday each year with traditions dating back to 1588 for the tournament. Teams of six players, open to any age or nationality, compete to win the title and a silver trophy. Events were cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid 19 pandemic, but the tournament returned on April 15, 2022. Australia, Belgium, Canada, Estonia, Ireland, France, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, Wales and the United States have participated with the English teams.
Both the 2020 and 2021 events were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the tournament returned in 2022 The next event will take place on World Marbles Day, Bank Holiday Good Friday, April 18th, 2025.
     In the United States “the National Marbles Tournament was first held in 1922. The "mibsters"(marble shooters) compete for national honors, college scholarships and numerous prizes and awards. The mibsters will play more than 1,200 games over the four-day tournament. Champions selected from local tournaments held in cities and counties around the United States represent thousands of competitors and will converge on Wildwood for a week of serious marble competition and fun on amusement rides and boardwalk attractions. The national committee operates the tournament which is composed of a group of volunteer men & women from around the country that have a common interest in the game of marbles. National Marbles Tournament Inc.is a Non-Profit organization under US tax code 501(c)(3).”   https://www.nationalmarblestournament.org/ held at Ringer Stadium, Wildwood, NJ

Published in the April 19th, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Follow-up to an ad featured last week printed in the Mitchell Gazette on March 25, 1898
Linda Oster - Researcher

Online information about the entrepreneur who wanted to study law after graduating from Wittenburg College at Springfield, Ohio in 1884 with high honors says that John William Kiser found that he couldn’t pursue his dream of a career in law. He was the son of a very successful farmer and stock raiser who taught him the value of hard work and looking for opportunities.
O.S. Kelly Company in Springfield, Ohio offered him a job as a “traveling collector and adjuster of litigated claims.” This was not to be his final position as he resigned in 1889 and started working for the Chicago Sewing Machine Company. He rose to a managerial position and carefully built his fortune over the years. The Monarch Cycle Manufacturing Company was born from the sewing company in 1892 with the capital outlay from Kiser; he made the company a leader in the field. He eventually sold the cycle company in 1898. The automobile was becoming the thing; he invested and the result can be seen in the ad shown above. Note that he kept the Monarch name. A Runabout without the top cost $500 while a Runabout with top cost $550. The speed that could be gained in the Runabout was advertised as 4-22 miles per hour on high speed clutch. It boasted planetary transmission, two speeds forward and one reverse. In addition all parts were accessible and all speeds operated by one lever.

https://onlinebicyclemuseum.co.uk/1898-monarch

Published in the April 12th, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Ads found in the archives at the Carnegie Resource Center, Linda Oster – Researcher

In March of 1919 excavations for Mitchell’s newest amusement house, the Dreamland Ballroom, under the building direction of A.J. Kings & Son. The structure was made of brick and was located across the street from the Elk’s on Main. It measured 50 x 142 feet. The front of the building was a Spanish Mission design with “cream colored stucco trimmed in red Rugg brick and Polychrome Terra cotta with Faience inserts (fine tin-glazed bricks) in harmonious colors;” the Imperial show roof over the entrance was tile. In addition, there were niches on the front for statue inserts and trellis to enable the use of vines. Dreamland was scheduled to be ready for operation June 30, 1919.
The inside of the building had a smoking room for the gentlemen and a ladies parlor. The dancing floor measured 50 x 100 feet with no posts and a balcony overlooking the dance floor that held 200 people. Windows were plentiful in the building for ventilation, especially in the summer months, along with a cooling device for a better environment. Soft drinks and ice cream was served in the lobby. It was owned and operated by Dreamland corporation of which Dr. C.L. Patrick was president, H.C. Cross secretary and H.E. Slaughter treasurer. Daily Republican - Saturday, March 22, 1919
The ad for the Days of “79” says that the event was to benefit the Mitchell Baseball Club. It further goes on to say, “The gambling devices, the old time bar, and the costumes of the pioneer days will be faithfully reproduced. Cowboys, Two Gun Dick, Wild Bill and Outlaw Sam and all the wildest badmen that ever rode the plains of South Dakotas will be there. Following “Badmen” will be armed to the teeth:----” Notable citizens included in the list of desperadoes were: Ellwein, Scharnweber, Weller, Herbert and Hitchcock. Gambling games were provided with participants able to buy $1,000 of play money for $1. Ladies were “ESPECIALLY INVITED.”
This facility served Mitchell in several capacities: it hosted benefits for many causes, among them the baseball club and money to send boys to Boys State; dances were chaperoned with dance tickets only costing 10 cents and no liquor was allowed; Lawrence Welk and Duke Richarson performed here; waltz competitions were held; in 1927 and 1941 the American Legion leased the building; after It was remodeled in 1932 a Radio Station was housed in the upstairs (KGDA); in later years it became a roller rink.
The building to the north of Dreamland was occupied by Western Chevrolet, but in 1950 they moved and Montgomery Ward took possession of the building. This move impacted the Dreamland building which closed in the mid 1940’s. Montgomery Ward expanded their building and the Dreamland building was torn down.

Published in the March 15th, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

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Rozum Motor Co.                                   1922 – 500 North Main                                  Linda Oster - Researcher

     This photo, donated by Dick Rozum to the Mitchell Area Historical Society, shows Rozum Motor Company building (500 North Main) under construction. Mark Wold Construction Co. out of Brookings, SD is the contractor shown in the photo.
     Rozums got their start in 1917 when Anthony J. Rozum purchased the Ford Dealership in Mitchell from Art Miller. The first building was located at 200 North Lawler and was relocated to 105 North Main in 1919.
    Another move took Rozums to a location that had formerly been the site of the second Corn Palace torn down in 1920; Rozums remained at 500 N Main until they built a new building at 2300 North Main in 1980. The 500 North Main location was sold to Boyd Reimnitz; the city eventually got ownership and made it into a city parking lot.
     The 2300 North Main location was sold to Scott Krantz in 2006 and was operated under the name Mitchell Motors. Vern Eide Ford is now located at 2300 North Main.

Published in the January 18th, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Photographer Unknown               Interior of John D. Lawler Home        Linda Oster – Researcher

     The Lawlers’ home certainly represented the time period. Many Victorian style homes were decorated with wallpaper, including the ceiling. The patterns often seemed to be floral, had a high border and molding around the room and ceiling. Decorated ceilings remained popular into the 20th century; there was a school of thought that held the belief that plain ceiling were too dull and gloomy. Notice the many patterns involved in the decorating of this room located at 205 East Fourth Avenue. This house was originally owned by L. Beckwith and sat on the southeast corner of Fourth and Lawler.
     John and his new bride, Ella, moved to Mitchell in 1886 and purchased Beckwith’s house. The Beckwiths built another house located on the northwest corner of Lawler and Fourth Avenue (This house now sits at Dakota Discovery.).
     Ella’s background included Debutante Balls with tables of imported food, receptions at the White House and the general frolicking of the big city. She lived in St. Louis and Washington, D.C. for six years before meeting and marrying John D. Lawler. She had become accustomed to the social status that her families (Sturgis and Wilcox) enjoyed. Mitchell had to have been a culture shock for her. John’s family owned a lot of land and had business interests in Mitchell which brought the younger generation to the area. Their first child, Eleanor Jerusha, was born in 1887 in Davison County. Their other three children were born in St. Paul or Minneapolis because Ella was very unhappy here. She spent most of her summers in St. Paul and travelled to Washington, D.C. often. According to a book by Eleanor Lawler Pillsbury, “Mitchell didn’t have enough culture and she didn’t want her children playing with other children who were of lower class or poorly dressed.”
     John D. Lawler is an important person to the history of Mitchell. His father, John Lawler, SR. on May 5, 1879, purchased the original land on which the railroad was going to put a station and start the town of Mitchell (320 acres and another 160 acres on July 2, 1881, for $1.25 per acre.) beating out Firesteel that sat two miles east. John D. was the President of the First National Bank in 1883 and was in the process of selling his shares when he passed away on February 18, 1896. Mitchell has a street named for the Lawlers. Consequently, the Lawler name is associated with many businesses that sat on Lawler Street.

Published in the March 29th, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Photographers Unknown The Ice Business - Circa 1917-1950 Linda Oster - Researcher

Cutting ice on Lake Mitchell was done during the winter to supply ice for the entire year to ice house customers. Ice Houses had a driver go around from house to house to deliver to their customers. Residents could either call their order in or place a card board sign in their window as to how much they wanted the driver to leave. Young children would follow the drivers down the street and beg for ice chips to eat, like they would follow an ice cream truck in later years. The top photo was taken on Lake Mitchell circa 1940’s or 50’s. World Wars I and II helped keep the ice industry alive. “The government worked to promote the use of natural ice to relieve the burden of the shortage of ammonia and coal used in the production of artificial ice. After the wars, the natural ice industry collapsed into insignificance, and the industry turned to artificial ice and mechanical cooling

systems.”

https://www.antiqueicetoolmuseum.org/cool_timeline/world-wars-helped-to-boost-the-natural-ice-trade

The middle photo shows blocks of ice after they have been harvested from the lake. The ice companies would harvest the ice blocks in the winter from the lake, store the blocks in buildings or pits until summer when the demand for ice was high. Anderson Ice Company located at 119 East 11th Avenue had delivery wagons like those shown in the bottom photo. This ice company was started about 1917 by William Anderson and later run and owned by his sons, John, Joseph and Charles. They supplied the needs of Mitchell residents and businesses and provided ice for the many railroad cars stopping at Mitchell that had refrigeration. The delivery wagon photo was donated by Lee Anderson of Spearfish, S.D.

The featured ad was placed in The Daily Republic on May 18, 1928. As the ad states the average bill for Mitchell families in the summer was $2.84 a month; with this the family could store all their cold food items. The Ice Houses went out of business as electric refrigerators became more affordable.

Published in the February 22nd, 2025 Mitchell Republic.

Found in archives at the Carnegie Resource Center 1898 and 1912 Linda Oster - Researcher

The Monarch and Defiance Bicycles ad was published in the Mitchell Gazette on March 25, 1898. In 1884 John William Kiser came from St. Paris, Ohio to work with O.S. Kelly Company in Springfield, Ohio. He next started working for the Chicago Sewing Machine Company and became a manager. Out of the sewing-machine company was evolved the Monarch Cycle Manufacturing Company, which was organized by Mr. Kiser in 1892 with a capitalization of $500,000. Monarch Cycle was a leader in the field of cycles. In 1899 he sold his interests to the “Bicycle Trust,” just in time to avoid the banking panics. He then turned to the automobile which he thought would be of greater value. https://onlinebicyclemuseum.co.uk/1898-monarch

L.E. Stair was a local photographer with a studio at 113 S. Main Street in Mitchell, but he also dabbled in just about anything that could bring in money. Photo supplies, motor cycles, bicycles and Bush cars were among the items available from Stair’s. He also repaired items of various kinds and was a locksmith. The Corn Palace was a yearly favorite subject; one season he sold 30,000 postcards of a single design. Buildings in Mitchell adorned his postcards with more than 60,000 views. This ad was published in 1912 in the Crocus. He died in 1948.

Published in the April 5th, 2025 Mitchell Republic.