JAMESTOWN — Construction is ahead of schedule on Bison Bend Mini Golf at Frontier Village in Jamestown, according to Allison Limke, Jamestown Frontier Attractions board member.
“Our contractor, Adventure Golf & Sports, was able to get here and place the hole placements and the interactive pieces that they fabricated this month rather than in the spring,” Limke said. “We were very excited about that timeline and what it means for us opening up in the summer of 2027.”
Bison Bend Mini Golf is an 18-hole miniature golf course located east of the amphitheater at Frontier Village.
Limke said Adventure Golf & Sports uses an interlocking grid system with turf over the top for the miniature golf course.
“That interlocking piece underneath really helps the longevity of it because it can expand and contract with the seasons and keep everything nice and supple and the way you want it to be,” she said.
Limke said landscaping work needs to be completed at the miniature golf course. She said landscaping work includes installing native prairie plantings, grass seeding and planting a few trees. She said the site will also need benches and picnic tables.
Kepida Contracting is the general contractor for the $905,000 project.
She said the grand opening for Bison Bend Mini Golf is expected to be on June 1, 2027.
“Before that, if we are able to open early, we’ll probably be holding sponsor events or donor programs so that they can get in on the course early,” Limke said.
Each hole includes a theme about local history that includes signs with interpretations as well as obstacles related to the theme.
John M. Steiner / The Jamestown Sun
She said adding a miniature golf course at Frontier Village will help extend the time visitors stay in Jamestown. From Memorial Day to Labor Day this year, she said 164,000 people visited the World’s Largest Buffalo at Frontier Village.
“It might result in adding a lunch or a supper meal onto their day in our community, and we’re just hoping that they’ll get to experience a little bit more of what we call home,” she said.
Limke said work needs to be done to make sure the putt hut is ready to go. The putt hut will serve as place where people will pay for their round of miniature golf and will include beverages.
She said the Unison Bank Picnic Pavillion, which is the amphitheater, will have picnic tables and will serve as a place for people to gather.
The front nine holes for the miniature golf course will be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Limke said Triumph Inc. is helping with recommendations for the front nine to be ADA compliant.
Bison Bend Mini Golf will be designed to be entertaining and educational, with each hole highlighting a story, landmark or piece of history connected to Jamestown and North Dakota.
“Our whole thing up there is to educate while having fun, and this is just another awesome way to do that,” said Luke Zimmer, site supervisor at Frontier Village. “You can walk through the Village and get those same experiences and then go play a round of golf and continue to learn about local history, so it really fits in with our mission in that way that we are educating with engaging and fun activities.”
Each hole includes a theme about local history that includes signs with interpretations. Zimmer said a University of Jamestown history student is helping with the interpretations.
Each hole will also include obstacles related to the theme.
“It just gives people a really good opportunity to take in the local history in that way, and we have all 18 picked, everything from native history to more modern history with windmills and stuff,” Zimmer said.
For example, hole 18 includes a miniature version of the World’s Largest Buffalo as an obstacle. Limke said hole 18 will tell the story of how the World’s Largest Buffalo was built in 1959 and will include information about the monument and how it put Jamestown on the map as the Buffalo City.
She said Bison Bend Mini Golf also has two other holes related to the bison theme. She said the second hole is all about bison bones and how Native American cultures used every piece of the mammal, including the bones. The fourth hole includes two bison hooves that depict the steps the mammal takes.
Limke said the holes will be tied to a sponsor.
For example, the third hole, which is sponsored by Jonny B’s Brickhouse, will include a theme about Anton Klaus, who is known as the “Father of Jamestown.” Limke said red was chosen as the color of the bricks that go around each hole and that commemorates Klaus’ brick factory that he added to Jamestown in 1882.
She said bison patties, or bison chips, are the hazard on the course. She said one hole, sponsored by Otter Tail Power Co., has a theme about bison chips and how people on the prairie used that to heat their homes.
“We’re having a lot of fun tying different pieces of our local history to current supporters of our community and big names that we love to see participating in this endeavor,” Limke said.
Sponsorship opportunities
About $600,000 of the $905,000 project has been secured through grants, investments, sponsorships and donations, Limke said.
“Since Sept. 11, a little over a month ago, we’ve been able to raise another $100,000, which is pretty exciting,” she said. “We’ve got a lot of grant applications pending, and we’ve got a lot of asks out there, and we’re hoping to meet with a few more people.”
Zimmer said hole sponsorships are not available. He said businesses or individuals can sponsor other items on the course, including benches, shade awnings or planters.
“Anyone that donates $250 or more goes onto our sponsorship board that will be posted inside the picnic pavilion,” he said. “Their names will be on the course forever.”
For more information on sponsorships or to make a donation, contact Zimmer at (701) 509-7232 or email
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