City - Ft Dodge IA - Central Ave 1907 - Panorama - Side by Side

by Mike Savad

Title

City - Ft Dodge IA - Central Ave 1907 - Panorama - Side by Side

Artist

Mike Savad

Medium

Photograph - Hand Colored Photo

Description

Hand colored photo from 1907, June
Original title: Ft. Dodge, IA
Photographer: Frederick J Bandholtz
Location: Corner of 8th St & Central Ave, Ft. Dodge, IA

This panorama is the northeast corner of 8th Street and Central Avenue in Fort Dodge, Iowa, was once home to the Oleson Building, a prominent structure constructed in 1894 by Norwegian immigrant and local businessman Nils Oleson. This three-story brick building originally housed the Oleson Drug Company on the first floor and basement, while the upper levels contained offices and apartments. The third floor also served as a rehearsal and meeting space for the Grieg Male Chorus, a Norwegian-American musical group founded and directed by Oleson in the early 1890s.

At the time the Oleson Building was erected, Fort Dodge was experimenting with wood block paving in parts of downtown, including along Central Avenue. Wood streets, typically made from creosote-treated cedar or pine blocks, were seen as a quieter and smoother alternative to cobblestone or brick, making them particularly attractive for busy commercial districts and horse-drawn traffic. Wood was also abundant and relatively inexpensive in the region at the time. However, wood paving proved vulnerable to water damage, rot, and heavy wear from growing automobile traffic. As a result, many of the city's wooden streets, including those near the Oleson Building, were gradually replaced with more durable brick and eventually concrete through the early to mid-20th century. By the 1930s, most of Fort Dodge's wooden streets had been removed.

Oleson himself was more than a businessman, he was a generous civic leader and philanthropist. He and his wife, Julie Haskell Oleson, donated land that became Oleson Park in southeast Fort Dodge and Leif Erickson Park on the city's west side. He was also instrumental in the founding of Lutheran Hospital. After his passing, Julie continued their legacy of community support, contributing generously to the hospital, the YWCA, and other public institutions. Upon her death, she bequeathed more than $2 million to Lutheran Hospital.

The Oleson Building stood as a central fixture in downtown Fort Dodge for nearly a century before it was ultimately demolished. Today, the site is part of the City Square (formerly City Green) parking lot, adjacent to Central Avenue's historic business district, a location that still echoes with the civic spirit and rich heritage of early Fort Dodge.

Color notes
Boy this panorama is pretty big, rather complex, but super neat to get into, there is detail everywhere, from the Indian chief on the left to Mr Punch on the right. They shot 3 of the 4 streets at this corner, and it must have been quite the spectacle, as not only is everyone stopped to get a picture, everyone is smiling or smirking, people are sticking their heads out the windows, the one single car stopped. There is just something about a camera that makes a place stop and want to get into the shot.

Now this image was shot in 4 images, and they were not overlapped, in fact parts are missing, and I had to rebuild the image, especially on the left, which took a while. But I felt the time was worth it as this has so much detail. That red building has hammocks in the window for sale $3.60 which is over a $100 today. Magazines in a doorway, little dogs under a carriage on the right, heads out of different windows, you can sort of see into the pharmacy.

The streets are made of wood in this, usually its cobblestone, and I would have colored it that way but I found they removed the wooden blocks in another image. Its not a lot of difference but wood blocks are darker. There are pavers only on one side, today its on all blocks and really fancy too. Today few of these buildings exist, mostly that clock tower, which lets you center yourself, and a couple of others, most are gone.

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April 16th, 2025

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