Rick Smith on the left, Andy Cohen on the right
It’s difficult for most anyone to think of the Village of Lake Nebagamon without conjuring up thoughts of the Dairy Queen — a community staple for nearly seven decades. According to the Lake Nebagamon history book, printed in 1986: “Eric and Evelyn (Kangas) Johnson were operating a store in Chicago but the call of the Northland was too tempting so they came to Lake Nebagamon in 1953 and opened the popular Dairy Queen drive-in just up the hill from the public beach.” Evelyn had returned to her Lake Nebagamon roots to care for her ailing mother, who was the daughter of one of the village’s early settlers.
Ownership has changed hands on occasion over the years, but one thing that hasn’t changed much is the appearance of the building. In fact, a story from a decade ago in the Superior Telegram suggested that Lake Nebagamon’s DQ just might be the oldest in the state: “When the national DQ organization changed the appearance of its franchisee buildings, it recognized the historic significance of the Lake Nebagamon DQ and decided it should retain its original character.”
So the building has hardly changed — and neither has the trip into town. Well, not much. Here are some photos and captions about one cabin’s Cruiser Day DQ adventure:
