In 1763 the British established a Hudson Bay Company trading post along the Big Sioux River at the site that was to become Flandreau. The first permanent settlers arrived in 1857, but abandoned the area within a year because of threatening activities from the Yankton Sioux Indians. Then, in 1872, twenty-five Christianized Sioux families from the Santee Reservation resettled the area. In 1892, the Riggs Institute opened for educating Indian children and it is still in operation toady as the Flandreau Indian School. The school is a restricted entry campus, but there is a nice culture center that is open to the public by permit. (Permits are available from the guard at the entrance gate.)
Pipestone National Monument is located in Pipestone, Minnesota, which is just across the border from South Dakota.
No one knows when the Indians first started mining in the Pipestone Quarry, but there is evidence that pipestone has been mined at the site for at least 2,000 years. Before European settlers arrived, pipestone was a highly prized commodity with the Indians and was traded all over North America.
In 1684 a French explorer wrote that pipes made from red stone were most esteemed and their use "had the same effect as a flag of friendship among the Whites."
Today, only American Indians are allowed to quarry pipestone in the National Monument.
The "Three Maidens" are large granite boulders that were once a large single boulder about 50-feet in diameter. There are various Indian legends about the boulders and they are a popular landmark in Pipestone.
The annual Hiawatha Pageant was held at Fort Pipestone for a number of years, but we were told that the pageant was discontinued abut eight years ago.
The largest Peace Pipe in the World is located in front of the historic Rock Island Depot. In 1996 the depot was purchased by Keepers of the Sacred Tradition of Pipemakers and the interior of the building was restored with a grant from the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community. The building is now used as a Native American Indian gift Shop and art gallery.
The Calumet Inn is a historic landmark in downtown Pipestone. The lighter colored stone was taken from quarries at Pipestone and the darker colored stone for the trim came from quarries at Jasper (a few miles to the south). In 1978 the state fire marshal ordered the hotel closed because of unsafe wiring and other conditions, and the building was going to be destroyed. Instead, the building was completely restored and is now open with 38 guest rooms, many furnished with period items, and the elegant dining room has been reopened.
The Geyerman's Clothing Company Building was built in 1884 and was originally known as the Syndicate Block. Building construction was Tripartite with stone pilasters marking each division. A ribbon of sandstone was placed across the top of the building to contrast the colors and texture.
The county courthouse was completely renovated in 1996, but the interiors and exteriors of the building were kept as close to original as possible. There is a Civil War Statue on the grounds, along with a WWII RA M4 Sherman Tank, and other war memorials.
The historic 132-foot tall concrete water tower was designed by L.P. Wolff of St. Paul, and is one of only two such water towers in existence. The tower was constructed in 1920 and holds 150,000 gallons of water.
Split Rock Creek State Park and the adjacent stone bridge were constructed by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1935, using locally quarried Sioux Quartzite. In 1993 the area around the spillway broke, sending a torrent of water downstream, but the dam was repaired in 1994 and has now been reported to be in better condition than ever before.
Jasper (population 633) likes to boast that it is "built of the same stone on which it stands." (Most of the downtown buildings are built using locally quarried quartzite.) Free walking tour maps are available that explain the town's main points of interest. Quartzite is still mined in Jasper, but the local stone quarry is not open to the public. For those interested in the quarry, a video is available for viewing at the Jasper Historical Museum.
After visiting with a Minnesota Highway Patrolman about the speed limits in Minnesota, we headed back to South Dakota.
Garretson (population 1,201) is located near three really nice parks - Palisades, Devil's Gulch, and Split Rock.
Garretson was originally called Palisades and located in the area now known as Palasades State Park.
In 1872 the railroad decided to build a diversion point switching yard where Garretson is now located, so the railroad offered free lots if people would move to the new location. The original Palisades was abandoned and some existing structures were physically moved to the new location, while other new buildings were constructed using stone from local quarried quartzite.
When the town was settled, the local businesses primarily supported "sodbusters" that were moving into the area to take advantage of the rich clay-loam soil. At the time, the "sodbusters" used horses to pull two-row planters, while today 31 row planters are not uncommon.
Palisades State Park now has a campground, camper cabins, a group tenting area, and a lodge that can be reserved for private events. There are hiking trails throughout the park and rock climbing is permitted on the quartzite formations.
In 1876 the Jesse James Gang tried to rob the First National Bank in Northfield, Minnesota, but they were recognized by local residents and two gang members were killed while Jesse and Frank fled town with a posse in hot pursuit. Frank and James went in different directions and the posse followed Jesse. When Jesse reached Devil's Gulch he realized he was trapped, so he backed up and at full speed he coaxed his horse to jump the gulch. The posse looked at the distance to the bottom of the gulch and decided not the follow Jesse. Once again, Jesse evaded the posse. Jesse was later shot in the back by Robert Ford for the $10,000 ransom money. Frank was captured a short time later and found not guilty of his crimes by a sympathetic jury. Frank did not ever serve any time for all of the robberies he committed.
During the 1930s the Works Progress Administration (WPA) built Split Rock Park that featured a dam with a waterfall, bathhouses, bridges, and rock walls with flowering gardens. All of the improvements were constructed using local quarried quartrzite. The park has a nice campground and pontoon boat rides are available on the Split Rock River.
Valley Springs (population 759) was named for the many springs that are found in the area. The town is also known as "The Front Door to South Dakota" because this is the first location that the first passenger train stopped in Dakota Territory. After arrival of the railroad, the town started to grow. Soon, there were four hotels, two blacksmiths, a bank, numerous stores, a jail, a toe mill, a creamery, two elevators, and a roller mill that produced four brands of flower - Gold Medal, Choice Family, Economy, and Dakota Best. The town also notes that on occasion the James Brothers "borrowed" horses from the nearby farms.
At one time, Valley Springs was the largest grain shipping point in South Dakota. However, as with many small towns, the population centers changed and most of the businesses left Valley Springs.
South Dakota State Beaver Creek Nature Area was originally homesteads by John A. Samuelson from Sweden, who settled here in 1869. He was the first settler in Split Rock Township, which is now part of Minnehaha County. The Samuelson log cabin is still located on the original site within the Park. If you are in the area, a Homesteaders Day Harvest Festival is held in the park annually on the first Sunday after Labor Day.
Brandon (population 9,923) is the largest suburb of Sioux Falls and is located on the original plains Indians' hunting grounds near a prehistoric Indian village site.
The city was founded by the railroad to serve mostly Norwegian settlers. Historical records indicate that the first school was built from sod and wooed shipping crates for a total cost of $9. There is a nice veterans memorial park in town that contains an observation tower; however, it is difficult to see anything from the observation tower because the surrounding trees have grown too tall.
A prehistoric fortified Indian village and the Eminija Burial Mounds are located just outside of Brandon (GPS coordinates: 43 33 49.25, -96 35 29.34).
The village contained at least 37 lodges and was protected from attack on three sides by V-shaped ravines. A fortification ditch that was dug by the villagers protected the fourth side of the property. An extensive excavation and study of the site was conducted in 1939-40 and it was concluded that the inhabitants were ancestors of the Missouri River Mandan tribes.
The Eminija Mounds are the largest and most numerous burial mounds in South Dakota. At one time there were at least 38 dome-shaped mounds scattered irregularly for nearly a mile along the north bank of the Big Sioux River. The original height of the mounds is unknown but is believed that the mounds were originally between 60 and 100 feet in diameter. Only 15 mound remain substantially intact. The other mounds were destroyed by artifact hunters or leveled by farming and natural erosion. Sometimes the artifact hunters used destructive methods to search the mounds, including scrapers and dynamite, so many of the artifacts were lost.
In 1883 a large 10-foot high mound was excavated that had outlines of a turtle and two large fish on opposite sides of the mound. Burials were found in the center of the mound, including objects of bone, red ochre, varied ornamental beads, disks made of local and marine shells, and ceramic pot shards. Several additional mounds were excavated in 1921. The remaining 15 mounds are now protected by a law that requires the mounds to "...remain completely undisturbed as a cultural and historic resource for the people of this region." (There is a tree growing on the top of one mound that is known as "Soul Tree.")
Time to head back to Las Vegas
No comments:
Post a Comment