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It is time to close this blog after 12 years. I have enjoyed keeping you informed of the Anamoose happenings. LeRoy Becker , the bridesmaid for “Joe and Anna’s wedding” back in June, 2008, said it best with his cute … Continue reading
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AACF GRANT AWARD COLLAGE 2020 Pictured in collage from left-right: AACF President Norma Martin presents grants to following recipients-Steve Heim, Superintendant of Anamoose-Drake Public School; Laurel Schnase, Anamoose City Auditor; Karisa Gahner, Park Board member; Mardell Helm, Tri-County Meals Program; … Continue reading
Taken by Mike Rudnick
Taken by Mandy Weninger
We all knew the day was coming but yet hoping it would be delayed. Anamoose will no longer have a water tower with a happy moose greeting all those who drove by or into town. The tower may be gone but the many memories and stories will not soon be forgotten. One can’t help but feel like a bit of history and character has been discarded, all in the name of “progress” and/or “unnecessary risk”. Could we have done more to save our tower? We will never know that answer. The year 2020 seems to be the year of change, not much of it good. Never before has there been a year with so much tragedy and sadness -all over the world. Compared to all of it, losing a water tower may seem quite insignificant, but yet to the small community of Anamoose, it is a huge loss.
Went to the Capital A Craft Fair at capital grounds in Bismarck. Right away I run into Dave Wangen who lives south of Anamoose.
Dave was displaying his lime green 2014 Mustang at a car show. He has been a member of the Mustang/Ford of the Dakotas Car Club for 6 years. Approximately 30 impressive cars were shown by their owners.
Dave Wangen’s Mustang
A severe storm moved into Anamoose about 12:30am Wednesday, July 8th The severe damage lasted about 20 minutes and the rain continued on till 1:30am.
The Arthur Company Agronomy Center, west of Anamoose on Highway 52, was heavily damaged. The aerial picture was taken by Russell Gust, son of Rose Weninger, with his drone. He has a business in Minot, 51 Drones.
Matt Sieg, who will be 97 the end of July told Joe Weninger “First storm in my whole life that a storm scared me. That was a nasty one”
Father Tom Graner told his congregation “If that wasn’t a tornado that is the closest I would ever want to be to one”.
Since I live in Bismarck, I called Rose Weninger for details of the storm. She told me “The first time in 35 years that we went to the basement for a storm. At first residents were overwhelmed by devastation and the loss of all the trees, but it could have been worse. It was a real blessing that no one was injured and to see the community come together for clean up”.
Some of 7 trees downed in Joe Weninger yard
Large trees were down all overe town and branches blown every which way, even sideways. Joe and Rose Weninger lost 7 large trees in their yard.
Some of the other structural damage was:
Anamoose sign by south entrance-destroyed
Anamoose Housing-4 garage doors damagedSurrounding farms also had damage to trees and buildings. Many volunteers in Anamoose came out to help pick up trees and branches. Mayor Frank Ewert told residents that if they pulled trees and branches onto the boulevard, the city has hired Volson Construction to pick them up and take them to the dump.
A generous person drove around town donating water and gator aid to all workers. As the power was off till 4:30pm, Connie Rudnick, Anamoose Cafe, made breakfast on a grill in front of the cafe. JoAnne Selvedt, Harvey, brewed up mega amounts of coffee. With the help of Faye Weninger, they drove around in a golf cart passing out coffee.
Sheriff Trey Skager said that this was the worst damage in one area that he had seen in 20 years.
Mike’s new greenhouse is 7,680 square feet that is full of blooms! It is a sight to see just in itself, not to mention the other 7 green houses in Schmaltz’s Greenhouse and the shop that is full of yard decor and much more. He also has trees and plants outside on the south and west sides of the shop plus garden seeds, potting soil and peat moss. All the greenhouses cover 30,000 sq. ft. So many drive to Anamoose just to see the beauty of it all, and of course are unable to leave without a few (or many) treasures to enjoy at home.
Mike said he has many new colors and varieties in flowers with a lot more yard decorations. Mike said he could never do all the work there is to be done without the help of Kailey Lemer. She is very dedicated and capable of accomplishing any tasks that have to be done with the greenhouse. Part time workers are: Tiffani Schmaltz, Brittney Schmaltz, Tori Dosch, Matt Jund, Bobby Jo Kuntz and Brenda Merck.
The hours are: Monday-Friday 9am-8pm; Saturday 9am-6pm; Sunday noon -6pm.
Thirty years ago Mike purchased the greenhouse from Helen Mehl.
Signs for event
Anamoose found a way to stay connected during this Pandemic. Tony Martin made a comment that he wished Anamoose could do a drag main night like other towns. Connie Rudnick sent Linda Dusek a message about it and later that morning she and her coworkers Ryan Filler and Jodi Isaak jumped on it and put out posters and everyone was game with the help of local busineses. So within 4 days time the CRUISEN MAIN IN ANAMOOSE was planned for Saturday, April 25th from 6-8pm
The 1909 Steakhouse offered slider baskets at a special rate; also Nacho and Sampler Platers, carry out only where the orders were delivered to the vehicles. The First State Bank and Insurance Agency handed out free ice cream sundaes from the Anamose Cafe as vehicles passed by. KB’s Bar also distributed free bags of fresh popped corn to vehicles that passed by the bar. All was done according to the COVID 19 Regulations.
Keitih & Brenda Reinowski
Shawn & Tami Palmer
Robbie Schindler
Bob Becker
Richard Helm, Butte
Kevin Reinowski
Lowell Dusek
Allen & Cheryl Hagerr
Darrell Sauvegeau
Bob Isaak
People of all ages drove up and down Main Street, just like days of old, with smiles on their faces having a great evening of enjoying what the vendors had to offer as well as waving to one another, and seeing friends and neighbors. Approximately 100 vehicles took part. There were several drivers from neighboring communities that joined in the fun. Some drivers polished up their pride and joy vehicles for everyone to enjoy. It was a beautiful and most enjoyable evening. Anamoose really came to life for a couple of hours and some of the vehicles brought back memories of days gone by.
Thanks to all those who made the evening so very special and enjoyable.
Brad Wagner and sister Beth Housh
Brad Wagner was born and raised in Jamestown, ND. At the age of 16 he started his first job as a dishwasher at one of the city’s fine dining steakhouses, WagonMasters Restaurant and Lounge. At the end of his junior year, he began cooking and did so for another 11 years until the establishment closed. He worked closely under the supervision of Jeff Kundert, the head chef, during his time there and learned a large portion of his culinary knowledge because of him. He attributes much of his success to Jeff and would not be where he is today without his mentoring.
After WagonMasters closed, he accepted a position at Perkin’s Family Restaurant for several years-learning valuable aspects of management from the owner, Chris Mikkelson, as well as a vast amount of skill being a breakfast cook. It was there that he and a co-worker, Kyle Kukowski, decided to branch out on their own and give entrepreneurship a try. In October of 2013 they moved to Maddock, ND and were the original operators of Harriman’s Restaurant and the Bobcat Bar.
After a year, Brad choose to go out on his own and left Harriman’s. For a time, he searched for another suitable place, where he chose LaMoure, ND. He purchaserd the old Wanda’s Place and began renovation. He officially opened Cornerstone Grub & Pub in January of 2016, although the kitchen waan’t complete. During the kitchen construction, a board member from Maddock reached out to him and inquired about returning to Harriman’s to help as the other tenant was leaving and the town had no other candidates. Brad of course said yes because of how much he loved Maddock and all who lived there. So, while the kitchen was beinig built, he moved up North once again and operated Harriman’s for the second time around. When a replacement was found, he moved back to LaMoure and launched a full menu.
After almost 3 years, and with a heavy heart, Brad chose to close Cornerstone due to extreme lack of qualified workers. It was impossible to continue without help and all possibilities were exhausted. It was during this transition he was contacted by a city council member in the tiny town of Hague, ND. After much deliberaton he decided to give it a shot as he never ran a small-town cafe before, and it may prove fulfilling.
In October of 2018, he re-opened The Hague Cafe. It took off very well with his creative dishes that the area was not used to having, and he managed to build quite the following from other areas. It also encouraged him to go outside of his comfort zones culinary-wise and try new things that this German Russian community was wanting. The pros of his time there were how he made himself grow as a cook and he added another variety of cuisine to his resume. When asked to reflect, he said he was fortunate to have the opportunity and the people were very nice, though when it came down to it, most just wanted pie and coffee and a burger here and there and “that’s just not me”.
In spring of 2019, Cheryl Linardon, city auditor of Anamoose, reached out to Brad about the steakhouse project. Brad decided to make a visit and liked the progress he saw. He was mostly impessed with the story of how they didn’t want another historic building demolished and so chose to restore it. Rather than tear down they wanted to build up and it reminded him a lot of Maddock. Their vision was a steakhouse with a small bar and that lined up perfectly with his roots. He had never operated a steakhouse since his time at WagonMasters, decades ago, and that was truly his passion.
After meeting with the Job Development Authority of Anamoose many times, he was chosen as the candidate and accepted. It was a tough wait as the construction process fell behind by 10 weeks, though it was worth it now as the place is taking off quite well.
He says the menu is ever-changing and this first one is a “test run” to see how the patrons respond to the dishes. He does a different special each day that is not offered on the core menu and will be creating new options all the time. For now, he’s featuring 5 different fresh-cut steaks, his secret recipe hand-pattied burgers, melts, wraps, salads, sandwiches, seafood, in-house smoked ribs, pastas with made from scratch sauces and a few desserts.
His sister, Beth Housh, has decided to relocate to help him run the 1909 Steakhouse. Brad says,”She compliments me to almost every degree. Her work ethic is amazing, and her skills and imagination have no limit. She will be integral in certain parts of the business where I can’t dedicate a lot of time to. She will excel in all areas though her focus will be on the front-of-the -house while mine is in the back.”
Brad is very grateful for this opportunity and looks forward to serving this community and it’s many surrounding areas for a long time to come.
Historic 1909 bank- June, 2019
Desserts
Open House
Desserts
After many years of planning, the 1909 Steakhouse is now open for business. The Open House for the 1909 Steakhouse was held on December 7th. In spite of the bad weather there was a good crowd. The official opening was December 11th. The Steakhouse is open Monday-Thursdays 4-9pm, Friday and Saturday 4-10pm and Sunday 10-3pm. Burgers and fries are served every Thursday evening. The menu is on Facebook under 1909 steakhouse.
Brad Wagner is the owner/general manager. He has such a long resume that I have decided to put it as a separate article..
Many years ago Bill Davis of USDA stood on Main Street and told me that the historic bank shoud be made into a restaurant. At the time this seemed like a pretty far fetched idea. But in 2011 the historic bank building was purchased by 12 Anamoose citizens, the windows painted and curtains put up for the 100th Anamoose School Reunion. The group was called Save the Bank, but later decided to improve Main Street, and changed the name to MainStreams. A new roof was the first major improvement in 2011.
Bonnie Helm
Bonnie Helm, McHenry Co. Job Development Director, wrote several grants from USDA Rural Development with the first grant of $218,460 in 2016 and the second for $67,866 in 2018. Fundraisers were held throughout the years, including pinnocle tournaments; 4 Christmas Tour of Homes with soup, bread and dessert bar, 2011-2014; Christmas goodies sales; Christmas sunday brunch 2015; dinner theatre 2015″ You Think My Tractor’s Sexy”; and suppers served at the Market in the Park.
MainStreams sold the bank to the Anamoose Economic Development Committee in 2016. Andy Melton and his assistant Troy Barrington, Anamoose, were hired to do the remodeling. Keven Duchsherer, Drake, redid the front entrance. He removed the entire front, rebuilt it, and restored it.
Dining area with safe at the east end
Door to the kitchen
east wall
Stairs to second bathroom
Handicapped entrance on north east side
Hair Studio 701 officially opened for business on Friday, December 13. Ashley Schmidt, owner and operator, has always dreamed of being able to open her own business and now her dream is a reality. Hair Studio 701 is located on Main Street Anamoose. Ashley received her degree from the Bismarck School of Cosmetology in 2009 and has been practicing ever since. She was working at Hair Oasis in Drake but is excited to be able to have her own business in Anamoose where she lives, and her children attend school. Hair Studio 701 is open for business Tuesday’s through Saturday. Ashley can be reached for appointments by calling 701-399-9858 or can be messaged on either her personal Facebook page
Ashley Schmidt, owner & operator of Hair Studio 701
Mardi Helm, customer at Hair Salon 701
or her Business FB page: Hair Studio 701.
Ashley provides basic haircuts for all ages as well as highlights, Malibu treatments, tape in Hair Extensions, deep conditioners, and waxing. Ashley has hair products availabe on hand but is also able to order products if they are not.
Ashley and her husband Josh live in Anamoose and have two children.
Anamoose 