Mondak, Montana
Encyclopedia
Mondak, Montana is a ghost town in Roosevelt County
, which flourished circa 1903-1919, in large measure by selling alcohol to residents of North Dakota, then a dry state.
Mondak—a name derived from the adjoining states—was created in 1903, mostly by local investors who realized that profit could be made by selling beer and liquor to North Dakotans. Because of its strategic location on the Missouri River
and the Great Northern Railway, Mondak quickly became a thriving village. The first building was constructed in 1904, and Mondak soon boasted a bank, two hotels, three general stores, and several grain elevators. It also eventually had a church, a newspaper, a two-story brick school, and a part-time electric generating plant. Locally raised grain and cattle were shipped to Minneapolis on the Great Northern, but the town’s most profitable business remained alcohol sales.
During its heyday, Mondak had at least seven saloons and a number of warehouses to store alcohol. Gambling and prostitution were never legal but always winked at. There were many accidents involving inebriated men, and the crime rate was high for the size of the community. On April 4, 1913, a black construction worker killed the sheriff and a deputized citizen and was promptly lynched
by the residents.
Mondak’s prosperity was short-lived. The area entered a drought cycle in 1916; and the Snowden Bridge, completed in 1913, reduced ferry traffic across the Missouri. In 1916 a fire destroyed several saloons and a warehouse and badly damaged a hotel and a general store. In 1919 Montana instituted prohibition
. Although Mondak was never entirely dry, prohibition “cramped Mondak’s style.” When the county seat, provisionally located in Mondak, moved to Poplar
in 1920, Mondak’s decline accelerated. That year the railroad station closed, and the bank, the town’s last viable business, closed in 1925. In 1928 another fire destroyed many remaining buildings.
The scant remains of the ghost town are on private property within a mile of Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site
and within two miles of Fort Buford State Historic Site
, North Dakota.
Roosevelt County, Montana
-National protected areas:* Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site * Medicine Lake National Wildlife Refuge -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 10,620 people, 3,581 households, and 2,614 families residing in the county. The population density was 4 people per square mile...
, which flourished circa 1903-1919, in large measure by selling alcohol to residents of North Dakota, then a dry state.
Mondak—a name derived from the adjoining states—was created in 1903, mostly by local investors who realized that profit could be made by selling beer and liquor to North Dakotans. Because of its strategic location on the Missouri River
Missouri River
The Missouri River flows through the central United States, and is a tributary of the Mississippi River. It is the longest river in North America and drains the third largest area, though only the thirteenth largest by discharge. The Missouri's watershed encompasses most of the American Great...
and the Great Northern Railway, Mondak quickly became a thriving village. The first building was constructed in 1904, and Mondak soon boasted a bank, two hotels, three general stores, and several grain elevators. It also eventually had a church, a newspaper, a two-story brick school, and a part-time electric generating plant. Locally raised grain and cattle were shipped to Minneapolis on the Great Northern, but the town’s most profitable business remained alcohol sales.
During its heyday, Mondak had at least seven saloons and a number of warehouses to store alcohol. Gambling and prostitution were never legal but always winked at. There were many accidents involving inebriated men, and the crime rate was high for the size of the community. On April 4, 1913, a black construction worker killed the sheriff and a deputized citizen and was promptly lynched
Lynching
Lynching is an extrajudicial execution carried out by a mob, often by hanging, but also by burning at the stake or shooting, in order to punish an alleged transgressor, or to intimidate, control, or otherwise manipulate a population of people. It is related to other means of social control that...
by the residents.
Mondak’s prosperity was short-lived. The area entered a drought cycle in 1916; and the Snowden Bridge, completed in 1913, reduced ferry traffic across the Missouri. In 1916 a fire destroyed several saloons and a warehouse and badly damaged a hotel and a general store. In 1919 Montana instituted prohibition
Prohibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
. Although Mondak was never entirely dry, prohibition “cramped Mondak’s style.” When the county seat, provisionally located in Mondak, moved to Poplar
Poplar, Montana
As of the census of 2000, there were 911 people, 325 households, and 206 families residing in the town. The population density was 3,406.0 people per square mile . There were 350 housing units at an average density of 1,308.5 per square mile...
in 1920, Mondak’s decline accelerated. That year the railroad station closed, and the bank, the town’s last viable business, closed in 1925. In 1928 another fire destroyed many remaining buildings.
The scant remains of the ghost town are on private property within a mile of Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site
Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site
Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site is the site of a partially reconstructed trading post on the Missouri River and the North Dakota/Montana border twenty-five miles from Williston. It is one of the earliest declared National Historic Landmarks of the United States...
and within two miles of Fort Buford State Historic Site
Fort Buford
Fort Buford was a United States Army base at the confluence of the Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers in North Dakota, and the site of Sitting Bull's surrender in 1881....
, North Dakota.