Bemidji, during the 1930s Depression era, was a mixed bag of tough economic times, resilient individuals who helped each other out, the construction and development of roads, buildings, and lakeshore, and promotion of year-round tourism. The October 1929 stock market crash and the Dust Bowl that followed in waves throughout the 1930s put much of the country into a tailspin, but Bemidji adapted and survived. The three main banks in Bemidji at that time — First National Bank, Security State Bank and Northern National Bank — remained open and endured. Downtown businesses like the Bemidji Woolen Mills, Gill Brothers, Bemidji Hardware and others survived. Money was tight for most people, so they adapted — grew bigger gardens, foraged more, hunted, raised chickens and traded what they had for what they needed. With everything that occupied them, they still found ways to entertain themselves and to celebrate.