By Marci Narum

Bismarck’s business community has another new kid on the block. But she’s been around the block and can tell you all the highlights, stories, and history of it too.

In September Annette Willis launched the Bismarck Tour Company. It offers a variety of tours of Bismarck for groups of ten or more; conventions, reunions, or friends enjoying a night on the town.

“When you walk through a community you don’t know the stories,” Annette explains. “You can appreciate the architecture and a busy street full of activity but something happened to create that street. There are people that lived there and stories that happened. Peacock Alley is filled with stories. Bismarck was once called the “Wickedest City in the West.”

“I want to make sure those stories don’t get lost. A lot of local people don’t know there are underground tunnels downtown and those tunnels are still running and functioning.”

Annette has been giving tours for the Bismarck-Mandan Convention and Visitors Bureau for about 18 years. The CVB calls on her when a bus group is in town and requests a tour of the city. She will continue to provide step-on tours through her new business, along with walking tours of downtown Bismarck, ghost tours with Stacy Sturm, and Native American tours led by Dakota Goodhouse. Click here to find out more.