Why Pierre:
I booked a flight to Sioux Falls for a long weekend. Having visited 31 state capitol, I set my sights on South Dakota’s capitol building in Pierre.
June 15, 2024: Pier
After spending the night in Sioux Falls, I set out to the west around 8:00. After an hour on I-90, I reached the town of Mitchell. Michell’s iconic attraction is the Corn Palace.
The Corn Palace was built in the 1890’s just after South Dakota had become a state. At the time, nearby cities had created “crop palaces”. By covering a building in corn or another crop, the attract settlers to their town by showcasing the city’s rich soil and industrial prowess. 34 cities had built corn palaces including most notably Sioux City Iowa. Additionally, Plankinton just 10 miles west built a Grain Palace. By the early 1900’s all the grain palaces were demolished except Mitchell’s. In 1921, it was decided that the Corn Palace would be rebuilt using a professional architectural firm.
Today, the Corn Palace is a multi-purpose arena hosting high school basketball and concerts. In 2013, I attended a Dwight Yoakam concert at the Corn Palace on a cross-country road trip. During the day, the Corn Palace is open to the public and houses a gift shop on the arena floor.
The outside of the arena is re-covered in corn every year with a new design. The 2024 design is Famous South Dakotas. My favorite mural is of Bob Barker!
Heading further west, I reached the Missouri River, the longest river in North America and the bisecting line between the two halves of the South Dakota. More than just splitting the state geographically, the Missouri River is a cultural dividing line too. East River is midwestern, farms, is humid, is in Central Time and has most of the state’s population. On other hand, West River is Western, ranches, is dry, is mostly in Mountain Time and has most of the state’s tourist attractions.
Overlooking the splendid river valley is a massive statue called Dignity of Earth and Sky. It was gifted to the state in 2014 for its 125th birthday and honors the numerous Plains Indian tribes that inhabit South Dakota.
Now solidly west of the river, I headed north on the oh-so-desolate US-83 to reach Pierre, the capital of South Dakota. Locals pronounce it “pier”.
Pierre is on the east bank of the Missouri River. It has an interesting distinction of being a town with two time zones. Its suburb, Fort Pierre, is located west of the Missouri River and on Mountain time. For practical purposes, residents of Fort Pierre use Central Time, but there are a few instances where Mountain Time is advantageous, most notably bar closing times. The public transit system takes an average of 120 people per night across the river at 2am Central to take advantage of the extra hour of drinking. I am sure that the New Year’s Eve here is a good one.
Pierre is also the 2nd smallest state capital in the US with just 14,000 residents (Only Montpelier, Vermont is smaller). There is not much going on here except for the state capitol and government complex.
The capitol complex is very pretty and full of trees. It was built from 1905-1910 by the same architectural firm that built the Montana capitol in Helena a few years earlier. They gave the South Dakota capitol very similar features.
Inside, the capitol was pretty standard with a rotunda and house and senate chambers. South Dakota kept their Supreme Court in the capitol, which is rare.
I also had to stop by the Governor’s office. South Dakota’s current governor, Kristi Noem, is currently quite the controversial figure. She recently released a memoir where she admitted to killing her 14-month-old dog because it was “less than worthless” at hunting. The story was supposed to gain sympathy but instead received an almost universal backlash. Since then, she has doubled and tripled down on the story, creating even more of a backlash. Additionally, Governor Noem insinuated that tribal leaders are profiting from the cross-border drug trade. This caused the tribes to ban her from their lands. I am not sure this is enforceable, but nevertheless a strong condemnation.
I picked a great day to visit Pierre because there was a festival going on. The festival had live music, a carnival, vendors, plenty of alcohol and a cornhole tournament. The vibes were good and VERY Midwestern.
For lunch, I ate chislic, a uniquely South Dakota food. Chislic is cubed meat (typically lamb but sometimes beef). It is served in a bowl and eaten with toothpicks- usually as an appetizer. The dish was introduced by an Crimean immigrant in the 1870’s. Every region of South Dakota supposedly has a different variation of the dish; in Pierre the meat is battered. However, I received the normal version.
For dessert, I stopped for ice cream at Zesto, the town’s classic dessert stand.
Having seen everything in Pierre, I crossed into Fort Pierre (and Mountain Time) to see the remains of the historic fort. The French first came here in 1743, burying a lead plate proclaiming the land as part of the Kingdom of France. After acquiring the Louisiana Purchase, the US established Fort Pierre as a trading post in 1817, making it the oldest continuously occupied white settlement in South Dakota.
Despite all the history, the fort was abandoned and demolished and the modern town has very little going on.
As I was driving out of town, I noticed a sign for a rodeo and decided to stop. It turned out to be the South Dakota high school state rodeo championship. It was starting in an hour, so I had to stay.
Compared to other rodeos I have seen, this one felt more authentic. All the contestants were there for pride and the crowd was all very knowledgeable and most likely ranchers themselves.
After a prayer to Jesus for the Seniors, the introduction of corporate sponsors, a second invocation and the national anthem, it was time to start. For timing reasons, I could only stay for the solo roping, barrel racing and bareback bronco riding. Compared to the pros, the high schoolers are not as good, but are still impressive. I had a blast!
Thinking back to East River vs West River, at least 80% of the competitors were from West River. The rodeo powerhouses appeared to be the towns of Wall and Belle Fourche. Spearfish had a strong showing too.
I then drove two hours south to Valentine, Nebraska.
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