Heading West

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Left Sioux City, Iowa at 8:30 this morning. Headed to South Dakota. Stopped in Mitchell, SD to see the Corn Palace. This is a very large interesting building (sorry, I have pictures but haven't got them on). This building was built in 1892 when the city was just 12 years old. Early settlers displayed their agricultural products on the building's exterior to prove the fertility of the soil and to attract immigrant farmers to settle there. Each fall they had a festival to celebrate their harvest. Each year a new theme is chosen for the outside. The old products are stripped and new corn, rye and oat heads are used in patterns created by local artists. Roughly 275 thousand ears of corn are sawed in half lengthwise and nailed to the building. There are also murals made of corn inside. The designs inside stay the same but the corn is changed about every 10 years. Very interesting. Also passed DeSmet, SD - the home of Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of The Little House on the Prairie. We are staying the night at KOA Kampground at Kennebec, SD.

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