Mark’s Drug Company, Fosston, Minnesota

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H. F. Mark and Peter M. Mark standing in front of their store. Courtesy of the East Polk Heritage Center via Minnesota Digital Library.

"The dull days, the restless nights, the disturbances of digestion, the condition known as "out of sorts," are the evidences that health has slowed us down."

Mark's Household Book of Valuable Information

The Mark's Drug Company of Fosston, Minnesota, was headed up by Dr. Peter Mark, a licensed pharmacist. Dr. Mark arrived in Fosston in 1892. At that time, Fosston was literally at the "end of the line," as it was the terminus of its railroad line. Dr. Mark used this location to his advantage. By setting up business on the frontier, he was able to reach a new brand of consumers: railroad workers, loggers, and lumber men.

In addition to providing wholesale pharmacy supplies, he also compounded a variety of patent medicines in a factory he set up in a former bank in downtown Fosston. This "Mark's Medicine Factory" produced wares that were sold directly out of his drugstore as well as being distributed to rural areas via his specially built wagons. Salesmen visited small railroad towns, logging camps, and rural settlements using these sturdy wagons.