Johnny's Journeys : SOUTH DAKOTA 1977

---

JOHNNY’S JOURNEYS : SOUTH DAKOTA 1977


December 09, 1977 (Friday)

I have been anticipating this trip for quite a while now. This is my first trip out west.

Final exams are over and I am **ready** for Christmas vacation. Of course, any plane

flight out of Montgomery, AL routes you to Atlanta, Georgia. Not much of a layover.

Then our Delta flight takes us over the Midwest to the eastern edge of the Rocky

Mountains. I have four hours in Denver, Colorado and sure won’t stay at the airport. I

quickly catch a bus to downtown Denver. The area is a sea of orange. The Denver

Broncos NFL football team is having a wonderful season, and there is speculation of a

trip to the Super Bowl.

Downtown Denver, the mile high city. First stop is the U.S. Mint. I will visit

where our money is actually made. Have been a coin collector for many years. This is

something I have always wanted to see. Got to watch the process from virtually start to

finish. And there was a souvenir shop downstairs. Purchased some freshly minted D-mint

mark pennies. My first tour of a U.S. mint. Maybe I’ll visit Philadelphia one day.

A few blocks away is the capitol building. Took a close-up picture of the 15th step on

the west side: 5280.000 feet above sea level. This truly is the Mile High City! A few

minutes later, I join a guided tour of the inside of the capitol. Lots of history here. Very

enjoyable. I comment to our guide, as we finish, that my state capitol building is under-

going renovations also. She asked where I’m from, then says that her brother-in-law is

flying in from Montgomery in another hour. Her husband picks us up at 5:00 and they

take me out to the Denver airport. I meet the college student, who is in Vet. School at

Auburn University. We wind up exchanging Christmas cards a few weeks later. Such a

small world!

Soon I’m landing in Rapid City, South Dakota. Joe Newsom is waiting for me. He was

my Delta Tau Delta fraternity “big brother”. Joe introduced me to the Southwestern Co.

and was my roommate for two summers on the bookfield: Lima, Ohio in 1975 and North

Vernon, Indiana in 1976. Plus, we worked on the school newspaper at Goodwyn Junior

High School in 8th and 9th grade in Montgomery. Went out for dinner. Then tried planning

our vacation itinerary.


December 10, 1977 (Saturday)

Our first stop today is The Badlands National Park. I have never seen a landscape like

this before. 244,000 acres containing sharply eroded buttes, pinnacles and spires blended

with the largest protected mixed grass prairie in the U.S. The Badlands contain the
world’s richest Oligocene mammal fossil beds, dating back 35 million years. There are

56 different types of grasses. Don’t recall seeing a single tree. Enjoyed getting out at the

scenic overlooks and staring off into the vast emptiness. Established as a National Monu-

ment in 1939, it is designated a National Park in 1978. It contains the largest expanse of

protected prairie ecosystem in the National Park system. There are deep canyons and flat

topped tables among the buttes. Erosion is ongoing and seems to have the largest impact

on this land. It was amazing to see the striated formations. Seemed to go on for miles and

miles.

There are eight designated hiking trails in the park. It was mighty cold that day, but we

had to try a few of them. Concerning the wildlife, the brochures said we might be able to

see buffalo, black-tailed prairie dogs, coyotes, foxes, magpies, rattlesnakes, bobcats,

porcupines, bighorn sheep, and black-footed ferrets. Well, they sure were shy that day,

or maybe cold, or just did not want to be photographed. Most of this national park seems

to be incredibly desolate. You truly feel that you are in the “middle of nowhere”.

This was certainly a different kind of “beautiful”. Now it is time to drive on over to

the town of Wall. There seem to be hundreds of signs across South Dakota and the Upper

Plains which advertise “free ice water” at Wall Drugs. Just a wide spot on the map, the

owners came up with the gimmick of free ice water to travelers.

Ted and Dorothy Hustead bought the only drugstore in town in December 1931. There

were only 326 people in Wall, and all were poor. Business was not good at all in this little

prairie town. On a sweltering hot July afternoon in 1936, Dorothy came up with the idea

of giving away free ice water to all the travelers going by on Route 16-A. After making

dozens of signs, it took a few people several hours to put up these signs on the side of the

road. By the time they returned to Wall, the experiment had been a success. Families,

businessmen, and tourists were coming in to the drugstore for free water, ice cream cones,

and directions. Such a simple idea, but it caught on.

Soon, Mt. Rushmore would be opening. Work had begun in the summer of 1927.

Seems like just about every first time visitor to western South Dakota has to visit Wall

Drugs. It has really grown over the years. And, yes, it really has a pharmacy to fill your

prescriptions.

This place has grown to the point that it is now an American Experience, standing at

76,000 square feet. It features a 520 seat restaurant, containing the largest privately

owned art collection in the country. There are more souvenirs than you could imagine.
One of my favorites is the jackalope. This “critter” is the combination of a jack rabbit and

antelope ears. The store sells all things western and native American. Out in the back,

there is a branding iron arcade, panning and mining experience for fossils and gemstones,

a Train Station water show, animated T-Rex, and picture taking props in the picnic area.

It is a destination unto itself. There are pictures of signs of Wall Drugs on 7 continents.


December 11, 1977 (Sunday)

South Dakota has something that south Alabama does not: snow skiing! !! Joe and I

ride over to Terry’s Peak. It is located three miles west of Deadwood. Sitting at over 7000

feet high in the Black Hills, it is one of the highest peaks between the Rockies and the

Alps. Snow skiing began in this area in the 1930’s and the area receives 150 inches of

snow yearly.

This is my first time to ever snow ski. Oh the excitement! Joe and I start with basic

lessons. We wanted to learn with the beginners and in a little while we were on our own.

What a blast! And the cold mountain air just seemed to add to the experience. Of course,

I expected to fall quite a bit. And I certainly lived up to those expectations. But I could

certainly tell some improvement by the time we left that day. Lots and lots of fun. I think

I could do this again.

Our next highlight of the day is a trip to Mount Rushmore, known as the Shrine of

Democracy. This epic sculpture features the faces of four great American presidents:

George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln. The

faces are 60 feet high and are 500 feet above ground level. Gutzon Borglum started his

sculpture in 1927. With a crew of 400 men, it took 14 years to complete this priceless

creation. If Borglum’s name sounds familiar, it is because he had headed the Confederate

Memorial project at Stone Mountain near Atlanta, Georgia.

Mount Rushmore stands at the gateway to the west, where The Black Hills rise from

the Plains as a geographical prelude to the Rocky Mountains. Standing here in the cold

16 degree winter air, looking out into the distance, has a way of humbling you. This is an

awesome place to visit.

Joe suggested that we try to find the Crazy Horse Memorial that is being created

nearby. We drive 17 miles to see Crazy Horse in progress. This was actually begun in

1948 by Korczak Ziolkowski, after talking to a Lakota Indian Chief Henry Standing

Bear. This memorial is designed to honor the culture, tradition and living heritage of

North American Indians. A museum was completed in 1973 and holds thousands of

Indian treasures, art, artifacts, crafts, etc. There is a long range plan to establish a college,

primarily for Native Americans. This carving the mountain / sculpting job looks like it

will take decades to complete. I want to come and visit again when I am an old man.


December 12, 1977 (Monday)

Today is the day where Joe shows me where he works and what he does. He finished

Auburn University in 1976. After some training in California, he has been assigned to

Ellsworth Air Force Base in Rapid City, South Dakota. This Air Force base is involved

with the Minuteman Missile Program.

We drove for several miles out onto the open prairie. The two of us went down into

his missile silo. I got a full tour of the underground launch control center. Stayed down

there for about three hours. And I asked lots of good questions.

The Minuteman Missiles are set in silos all over the western part of our country. All

these missiles are equipped with nuclear weapons and, if launched, would head toward

the Soviet Union. I read where these missiles held the power to destroy civilization. Yet

this same destructive force acts as a deterrent which has kept the peace for many years.

This has been a most informative and interesting tour.


December 13, 1977 (Tuesday)

Joe has to go back to work today. I drive him to the Air Force base and drop him off at

8 a.m. I will be on my own today. I am heading to the old west town of Deadwood. The

city was founded following the discovery of gold in 1876. It was named for dead trees

which were found in the narrow canyon, that is now called Main Street. Gen. George

Custer led an expedition here that started the Gold Rush of 1874. My only stop here today

on this snowy morning was to the Mt. Moriah Cemetery. This is the final resting place for

Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane. The streets were uncomfortably icy as I was leaving.

The next stop on my journey today is in Lead. The sign reads “The City With A Heart

Of Gold.” This city of 3000 is in the heart of mining country. And there are several

museums to visit, mostly dealing with the glory days of the late 1800’s.

I pull out my atlas to decide where to drive to next. Wyoming sure is close. And so is

Montana. Since I have not been to either of these states, it is time to go northwest. Did I

mention that I like to take pictures of state welcome signs? I drive through Spearfish, then

Belle Fourche. At the state line, I stop and look at the welcome sign: Welcome to BIG

Wonderful WYOMING.

I am only in the Cowboy State or Equality State for about 15 minutes before I am out

out of it again. I stop again at another state line and this time there is no one on the road

for miles. This was a wooden sign on posts: The Gate Is Open… Welcome To…

MONTANA… Stayed there just a few minutes, admiring the Big Sky Country!

Nearby is Devil’s Tower Monument is northwest Wyoming. Wish I had looked at

the map more closely, because I sure missed this one. I passed Bear Butte State Park on

the way back. The atlas had a point of interest, which is the geographical center of the

U.S.A. I tried wandering the back roads in the snow, until I finally saw the sign. Drove

for miles on a remote road, but never did see the site.

As I get back into Rapid City, I drive by the Dinosaur Park. There are three concrete

dinosaurs overlooking the city, from high upon a hill. What a wonderful view. Time to

get back to Joe’s apartment and pack. I’ll be flying back tomorrow. What an incredibly

beautiful country I have seen this past week. I can see myself coming back, many years

from now.


December 14, 1977 (Wednesday)

Up early for breakfast, then Joe takes me to the airport. It sure is nice having a window

seat. I have a 60 minute layover in St. Louis, Missouri. Wow, this is my 5th new state on

this trip. Didn’t have enough time to leave Lambert-St. Louis International Airport. But I

did call one of my fraternity brothers, Bo Ward. Bought a few postcards and viewed the

Spirit of St. Louis. This is a replica of the single engine plane flown by Charles Lind-

Bergh in 1927. It hangs from the ceiling of the airport. I see the Gateway Arch.

There was smooth flying to Hartsfield-Atlanta International and I was soon flying into

Montgomery, Alabama. Home sweet home.

---