Growing Places
Growing Places
America 250: Dr. Ben Jones, SD Histroical Society
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In this episode of Growing Places, host Tyler Tordsen sits down with South Dakota State Historian Dr. Ben Jones to unpack the America 250 initiative. They explore how small towns, local traditions, and civic volunteerism help tell America’s story, from Liberty Trees and time capsules to parades, potlucks, and preservation projects. Listeners will hear practical ideas for celebrating 2026 in their own communities beyond the July 4th celebrations.
Today's conversation is about history. It's about growth, community pride, tourism, civic engagement, and the stories of our small towns and what they tell about themselves. 2026 is a very special year. As we all know now, too. America marks its 250th birthday, its anniversary. Across South Dakota communities are finding creative ways to celebrate from flags and parades to liberty trees and time capsules, potlucks, banners and local events and even national events that are bringing all of us together. So with that, I'm really excited to have one of my, I would consider a good friend. Hopefully you consider the same, uh, Dr. Ben Jones. He serves as the South Dakota State Historian, uh, the director of the South Dakota State Historical Society, chair of our South Dakota America 250 Commission. Uh, and I'm probably missing a couple other things, but Dr. Jones, thanks for joining us today.
SPEAKER_01Well, thanks for having me on, Tyler. And uh absolutely considered you a friend. It's great to get to know your organization as well.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, well, it's been great partnering with you on this stuff. It seems like a lot the last probably year or so, kind of leading into some of the partnerships of how communities and organizations, obviously, our organization, Sue Metro Growth Alliance, uh, was quick to sign up uh and super easy to sign up as a community partner for uh the South Dakota 250. Um, but to tell tell our listeners a little bit more about uh what is kind of the America 250 initiative this year.
SPEAKER_01Sure. Well, uh a little backstory or history, which is what I'm uh good at. The Congress set up the America 250 Foundation in 2016, and at the national level, they've been gathering partners, uh sponsors, uh, and as well as planning events. Um they have a fantastic robust website that's America250.org, I believe. Yes, America250.org. Um and uh four or five years ago they started reaching out to states that uh had not had any kind of formal organization. And in 2024, Governor Noam established the South Dakota's uh America 250 Commission and asked me to be the chair, and so that's done by executive order um uh July 4th, I think, is the date of that uh order, 2024. And so we put uh 18 or 19 different South Dakota on that commission to kind of uh help do the work and uh provide some input and good ideas about the things that we should be doing. Um and so just as the national one had reached out to set up state partnerships and state agreements and corporate sponsorships and so forth, uh, we started reaching out largely to organizations such as yours, um develop uh economic development organizations, local museums, local libraries, um tourism entities, and say, hey, in in uh 18 months or two years, or whatever the timeline would be, uh the nation's gonna be having a big celebration, and you should think about what 2026 looks like for you. And so right at as of now we have well over a hundred. I think we're approaching 130 different partners. Everybody from uh the state American Legion, the DAR, Daughters of the American Revolution, um Girl Scout Council at the state level, and then a lot of local museums uh started signing on, and they started thinking about what's the programming that we'd like to do in 2026. And so um I would say by the spring of this year, March, April certainly, but probably December of last year and January of this year is when people really started thinking, oh that's 2026 is here, and oh by the way, it's uh our 250th birthday. And for those of you who are listening who might remember the bicentennial, it was pretty quick to realize that hey, that I remember the bicentennial being a very big thing, and uh what's what's going on at the national level, what's going on at the state level, and then also uh organizing to do things at the local level. So a lot of energy got behind it. The mayor of Rapid City and the Rapid City community has really uh kicked it in gear, and they're this all this week they're gonna have not only fireworks and things downtown, but they're gonna do a 5K, a drone show, uh kind of across the week, starting, I think, uh Wednesday.
SPEAKER_03The the city, the city of presidents, the big community next to Mont Rushmore, uh going all out there.
SPEAKER_01A little bit of uh coincidence there, and certainly um not everybody won a ticket to the lottery to be able to go to see the fireworks show, and so they knew that that that there was going to be a great deal of demand, and so they've uh they have uh organized all these events to kind of uh give uh uh an admirable and worthy and suitable substitute for not being perhaps at the mountain, but uh in the city of Red City.
SPEAKER_03I've really stuck. I've really appreciated your team too. On the, you know, um, I kind of begged Governor Noam's team to consider appointing me to the South Dakota 250 commission uh just for having pride in country and pride in state. And so I've been fortunate to do that with you and have you see you serve as our chair and help lead us. And it seemed like it was a little bit of a slow start externally, trying to get some other partners on, but to see that list grow and all the different logos, and you guys have them hyperlinked to different events or those community pages, uh, it's just been phenomenal to watch it grow and see um like the Chamberlain uh Chamber of Commerce and I I think Redfield or Clark County's got something going on, like everybody's participating now. Uh I'd be lying if I didn't say like a year ago, I was kind of nervous, like, oh man, is anybody gonna do anything? You know, and then pretty soon all these events have really pulled together and people have really buckled down, and it's been I see the uh 250 flags, the South Dakota version and the national version everywhere now. Yeah, everywhere.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's been uh speaking of nervousness, it was you and me, buddy. Uh uh yeah, a year ago, I was really um I don't know if concern is the right word, but uh it was it was beginning to be um a sense of urgency about it. Uh but like I say, I think in December, January, um people uh it really needed the calendar to flip, I think, to flip the switch in people's minds that okay, this is coming. We at the at our booth at the state fair, um starting three years ago, we started talking about this to people, and I could tell most passers by at the state fair weren't interested three years ago. Two years ago, there was a little bit last year that was like, okay, yeah, I yeah, this this should be a big deal, and and we would prompt them to think about what do you want to see in your town, and so get some buzz going like that.
SPEAKER_03Uh I do I do think having uh a South Dakota-made kind of Liberty 250 themed beer probably helped a little bit too last year at the safe air, but right get the get the buzz going for excitement for 250.
SPEAKER_01Right. Well, and there was things that we did, we we got the the beer going, and again, that was just something that could be a South Dakota-made product that would be part of the summer um uh environment. And we wanted to people to see that on menus, to see that on places where they were going to to uh be with friends and family, and uh you know, you're out in your boat on the lake. Um, you know, we wanted to kind of be part of that. The other thing we did was we raffled off a one-of-one really uh exquisite rifle with a company in Sturgis that's been making rifles in one way, shape, or form for decades. And uh they agreed to donate the rifle. Uh we wound up raising $15,000, and I'm talking about Parquest Arms and Sturgis donated that rifle. Um fortunately or unfortunately, it was won by a non non-South Dakotan because we we marketed it uh across the country, and a gentleman uh from Alabama won the rifle. I've not seen that yet. I I I think it's on the final path to finishing. Um, and we'll do some more uh word about that. But just uh uh again, that was something to market, to uh talk about things. And then we saw oh, and then we we uh commissioned a poet to write a poem commemorating the America 250. Jody Bottom, Joseph Bottom has has uh got that work. It was out published in March. It's just a beautiful suite of of five poems, uh reflecting kind of South Dakota's perspective on the Declaration, but also life uh as pioneers, life on the prairie, and what it means now. And we, in fact, that wound up, we had a special version of that fabricated to put in the nation's time capsule. So that and a letter from the governor is going in the time capsule that'll be opened up in 250 years for the nation's quincentennial. I probably missed that one, but yeah, I won't be around for that, and neither will Jody. I I when I broke the news to him that uh the commission approved picking that and sending that into the uh he said, Well, I've never heard of such a thing. This is I'm I'm delighted and bemused. I don't know what to think of this. And so um, so anyway, but the a normal copy is available uh for folks to go to South Dakota Historical Society Press, SDHS Press, and get a copy of that poem. So uh and then other things that were done kind of on their own. The USD music professor uh composed uh orchestra piece about South Dakota, kind of prompted by the 250. Um uh and uh uh that was really neat to see, and we'll work out ways for it'll be performed again, I think, in the coming year. And uh yeah, there's just tons of other stuff going on.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Well, and and I think you and I know too, but but maybe for kind of our listeners, obviously all the countdown clocks go to July 4th, 2026. And so now we're within striking distance of that. Uh, but I mean what's what's your take, or how do you explain to people and encourage people that it's not just July 4th, 2026 that we're celebrating? It's bigger than that. It's it's it's all this time leading up to July 4th, but it's also after that. Like July 5th and beyond is not just okay, well now we're done, right? I mean we elaborate on that a little bit.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, we wanted to see uh not only celebrations on the 4th certainly be uh uh um more profound, or perhaps it doesn't mean necessarily more or louder fireworks, right? It it uh do things that would be memorable, particularly for kids. And uh what I mean by that is I'll just give you my personal uh Yeah, I was gonna ask you anyway. So yeah, okay. Well, for the bicentennial, uh I grew up in Sioux Falls and went to Mark Twain Elementary, a school that no longer exists. Uh they tore it down, I think, in 2015 and built Susan B. Anthony on the playground of where the playground for Mark Twain existed. In 1976, nine-year-old Ben Jones participated along with all his classmates and uh schoolmates at Mark Twain in burying a time capsule for 50 years. And so for 50 years, we've been patiently waiting for the clock to go by while we lived our lives and looking forward to the day when we unearthed the time capsule. And a couple of years ago, I contacted the principal at Susan B. Anthony and said, Hey, you still got this thing? And he said, Oh yes, it's still in the ground, and we're we're we uh due to the construction, it was moved a couple of times, but we will have that open for for 2026. Okay, great. So um uh unbeknownst to me, or maybe something I didn't appreciate, was one of the teachers whose first year teaching, uh Bev Hamrick, uh, was also very enthusiastic about getting that going, and she organized that event. And so on May 20th of this year, the school opened up that time capsule, and uh I was on hand along with about 150, 200 other people, and and uh to see what was inside. Um unfortunately, it had some moisture uh invade it, and so many of the paper products, most of which were paper, weren't in very good shape, and there was some mold and so forth, but there was a lot of things that uh did survive okay. There was a tether ball, uh there was uh a lot of artwork from students, just a couple of different Argus Leader copies from the day before that were put in there. Um also that is something that added a lot of flavor to the day was 50 years ago, Mayor uh Rick Noby spoke. And uh on May 20th of this year, former Mayor Rick Noby spoke. So it was great to have him at both events, along with that uh a couple of teachers who were there for then and then and then all the kids who'd since grown up and gone on. And we had people back from uh the West Coast and Missouri, and uh most folks are in the region, but uh uh a few still lived in Sioux Falls, and and then some like me had moved away and come back.
SPEAKER_03So yeah, it was it was very cool to see. I mean, it being in Sioux Falls, it was convenient, so I was able to pop over and even though I had I had no connection other than just South Dakota knowing you, and I was surprised at how many other people were in your same, maybe not in your class specifically, but were there at the same time that were students there that I know from other other roles and stuff too. And um yeah, to see some of the artifacts and it was eye-opening and it taught me a lot. Um, and if I recall correctly, I think the Pledge of Allegiance or something like that. Um, there must have been audio from like Hello Land News must have covered it when you guys were all students, and so to have them play that back into the microphone this year, uh to have those kid voices that were probably in attendance that sang or did the Pledge of Allegiance for the for the crew was was pretty special. Right. That was a that was a nice touch.
SPEAKER_01It was, and I was that shocked me. I hadn't expected that. I I've come to realize that Kello TV has done an incredible amount of work over the years to maintain their own archives of their material. And so when I heard it was Kellow's, I thought, okay, that makes sense to me, because yeah, they they probably came to cover the event, and then uh they came this time as well that and it covered the the event, and uh other outlets were there and the Argus was there, and so uh it was good to see that. And the donor of the um time capsule was a cement manufacturing company, and when the principal called the number from the invoice from 1976, he got the same uh company, you know, to answer the phone, and uh they were thrilled because there were things in there that they remembered their dad had put in for them, and so family business and uh but I think what that speaks to is get kids involved in the in the semi-quincentennial that's going on now, you know, plant a liberty tree, do a time capsule. Um and we can do this all through the fall. So to answer your question, I think in two different ways. One is to it doesn't end on the fourth, it didn't really begin on the fourth. We've been doing things all year, and it won't end on the fifth, uh, continue the ride, and as school opens up in the fall, uh it would be great to see a lot of time capsules be put in the ground to commemorate that, and so particularly kids uh elementary uh in particular, but middle school as well and all ages, and uh even as we found out, you know, teachers who are starting their career, they will be back and remember this in 50 years, and we hit because we did have two or three that were teachers at the time.
SPEAKER_03So yeah, it it it was inspiring for uh for me. And uh, you know, I got three little kiddos now, and I got my oldest uh just finished up kindergarten here in Sioux Falls. And so uh I've talked to his principal already about hey, we should uh we should try to pull something together this fall for uh to commemorate, uh just and mainly all based off of me knowing your story from uh from Mark Twain. And so I want to try to pull that off this fall for for my kid and his class and his teachers and uh and then hope to celebrate it, you know, 50 years from now and kind of see. I will say the the Rapid City, I saw the Rapid City one virtually when they opened up their time capsule down at City Hall and um was was just in Rapid City over the over the weekend and saw where they placed kind of the the new one. I saw the kind of the granite, I don't know, capstone in the ground of where where they buried the 2026 one. And I think they had a little bit of kind of moisture uh that got into theirs from before too. And so really want to be mindful of I'm gonna try to if I can pull it off, I want to make sure we get one that's about as waterproof as we can get, just uh just to try to learn along the way, you know.
SPEAKER_01But right. The national time capsule, I saw a story on uh CBS News Sunday morning uh a few weeks ago. They the National Institutes of Standards and Technology designed the time capsule for this. This was the only thing in the federal law that was directed that the America 250 Commission do was to have a time capsule for 250 years. And so the engineers and science that go into this time capsule to repel moisture for that length of time is quite substantial. So I would recommend something. Uh don't assume that cement will keep uh moisture out because it's often failed.
SPEAKER_03And uh just maybe maybe saran wrap and tape just for good measure or something too. So I think uh what people think of American history and maybe the 250 stuff too, you know, obviously the big national locations come to mind like Philadelphia or DC or battlefields. Now we're fortunate we have Mount Rushmore, and obviously July 3rd uh with the fireworks and the president coming to town. But what role do small towns in South Dakota play in in telling America's story?
SPEAKER_01Well, I think, you know, that's a good question. And uh we have spent a fair amount of time uh answering that particular point that's stated in one way or another about well, all that stuff occurred in the original 13, you know, what does that have to do with us? I um obviously we're a part of the United States, and this is the founding document of the United States, the Declaration of Independence's birthday. It expresses more clearly and firmly of any other document the nation's founding ideals, and it's it is in many respects its charter. Um and so celebrating that since South Dakota came into the Union in 1889, uh under the under a constitutional process, in many ways laid out by the ideals expressed in the Declaration, I think. Uh the fact that uh you know, George Washington never slept here, that kind of stuff didn't occur here, is is in a broader sense really not as important as the fact that uh the ideas behind the Declaration and the Constitution and all of that provided the sense of liberty and freedom and the rights that we enjoy today and continue to work on uh making uh real for us and our kids.
SPEAKER_03And so um through this process and maybe even um with the State Historical Society and stuff too, do you think maybe small towns are even better equipped to uh to create kind of these meaningful civic kind of moments in time?
SPEAKER_01They are, and I think one of the things that astounded uh uh De Tocqueville, one of the earlier observers of American society, was volunteerism that seems so uh automatic in early America, and that civic volunteer work made things happen. You know, if you need if somebody's house burns down and everybody's sitting in their uh little town lamenting this and they realize, okay, well, we need a volunteer fire brigade. Uh so who's gonna be in this and how are we gonna provide for it? Who's who's uh Buggies and wagons and buckets and you know material are we using and so forth. Uh and so that type of pitch it in to get it done and not wait for the government to do it is part and parcel of colonial life, and it's certainly part and parcel of South Dakota life, and it is uh evident in spades and small towns across the state. So uh and that is I don't know that it's uniquely American, but it's something that as broad based as it tends to be in American communities, um is is certainly emblematic of what it means to be American.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, we got some pretty pretty good examples and stuff too. And I I know uh we we got you to uh be quoted in a story in our region, kind of lifting up some of our Sumetro territories of a lot of different examples and events that they do every year, but um even maybe so more so amplified uh with 2026 and the 250. I'll give a couple examples, but I'm curious on your take too on maybe some local traditions that you're seeing in other communities across the state of uh how they're celebrating 250. So um I'll I'll I'll lead off a little. So I know like Hartford just had their um 250th celebration and then also did a Hartford 130 uh for their communities founding. Um Garretsen, Jesse James Days just finished up and they got a couple, quite a few parks. They do a big firework display every year. They were a recipient of one of the 250 grants that the Daughters of American Revolution have done in South Dakota. I know they have a lot of big things planned this year. Obviously, Lennox, you know, with Sioux Falls canceling the the Independence Day parade in previous years, um, Lennox has really benefited and I think grown on top of what they already were doing with their huge old-fashioned Fourth of July celebration. So I think the they were probably the first community to fly that huge 250 flag. They were. Yeah, that doesn't surprise me.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Well, and that kind of came together through um, you know, like a lot of things, somebody knows somebody and they they have the wherewithal. They had just built a new branch of their bank and they had installed a very large pole. And so the our vendor who's helped us um uh get the flags out and about uh knew of that and so contacted them and they volunteered to do it. And so, yeah, on a on a beautiful uh blue sky sunny day in late January, we we hoisted the first uh flag raising that has since taken off and largely led by the American Legion Post around the state. Um Madison had one, Spearfish did one, um Chamberlain and Brookings are the most recent iterations of that. The Spearfish event inspired somebody who worked at the car dealership where that was being where the flag was being raised so profoundly he wrote a song. And uh they just come out of the of the recording studio. I listened to it uh when I uh a couple days ago, and so now we've got music, original music about these uh flag raisings and the flag. And I think what he found so inspiring was seeing veterans with school kids uh take down the American flag that was on the pole, fold it properly, and then raise the South Dakota um 250 flag, which is a great design. I mean, we've gotten uh tons of positive response to when people see the logo and the flag that uh sports the logo on there with a buffalo on there, and um it's very um uh emblematic of South Dakota.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, Badlands in the background.
SPEAKER_01The Badlands in the background and the buffalo in the foreground and the people keep liking it so much.
SPEAKER_03I keep giving getting rid of my lapel pins and I'm I'm out again. I gotta be a special issue. I gotta make a stop and and pick up a couple more here before I miss out.
SPEAKER_01I think they're still on sale in the gift shop at the at the Capitol, which uh sells them online too, I believe. So I'll I'll have to get in and place an order quick.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. So there's there's a couple other um, so we talked about Lennox and and Garrett's. I think all of our communities are doing something. Um, you know, one, two, uh Alcester is one of our symmetric communities down south, and every year uh they do a huge firework display. They're city finance officer and uh the mayor, they put on a um outdoor kind of rural South Dakota outdoor concert food venue, and I think he said it's like three trailer loads of fireworks. Wow. And uh, you know, and and they use that as a fundraiser, I think, for uh children's toys that they donate uh to kids during Christmas time. Um he he grows a pretty gnarly beard, and so he turns he converts into Santa Claus in the winter and uh basically Uncle Sam in July. So uh but just it's great to see those things going on. One that I've I've liked that I know other states, I think Utah was a big one that does it on top of the parades and the fireworks and the banners and the school programs and that kind of thing. Uh oh, and Alcester is also doing a Liberty Tree dedication. I know that they're planting the Liberty Tree here tomorrow, uh, which is really good too. But the um like potlucks, the great American potluck, right? Um so 4th of July is on Saturday this year, July 5th, encouraging your local church or neighborhood association or community to everybody bring a dish and get to know each other and just unify as a community, unify as a country. Uh that one is pretty exciting. I kind of like I like that.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I love the idea. And the delegation in Utah came up with this, and they've got a website, and people can go on and put their kind of potluck literally on the map. And uh, if you want to make it a public event, you can do that or you can keep it private, but uh at least put it on the map. Their goal is to get 25,000 potlucks around the country uh on Sunday, July 5th. And uh I haven't looked in the last few days, but I I think they're on their way to making it. But it yeah, it just speaks to coming together, sharing a meal, um inside or outside, doesn't matter. And uh there's no one way to potluck, they said. So whatever the food might be, whether it's chiselick or barbecue or barbecue chislic, right? I mean sure. Yeah. Uh do something, and uh, I'm sure the people bringing hot dish uh could think of that and and enjoy that.
SPEAKER_03So so putting a bowl on 250 in the state um and nationally too. So post 4th of July, you know, we talked about time capsules in the fall. You can still plant a Liberty tree. There's still some other community engagement stuff you can do, um, maybe even you know keep keep the party going all the way to the anniversary of the of the Constitution or something. But what um any other suggestions? How do you envision this? I guess the state 250 commission kind of winding down in the months or year ahead or so.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, one of the things that the executive order asks us to do is to provide a report out to the governor and the legislature on on uh activities such as this. And so we'll continue to monitor that. Game Fish and Parks has a seat on the commission. They they are shooting for four or five time capsules this fall, largely based on input from those who come to visit the parks this summer. And so they've got uh outreach going on, looking for ideas about how to um or what artifacts uh largely that uh emphasize being outdoors and hunting and fishing and hiking and boating and all the things you can do in state parks and to contribute to uh time capsules. And so that's that'll probably be as far as the state's commission focus, that'll probably be the main effort. Um uh I think USD is gonna do some things as school opens uh in this fall, uh and uh other universities might as well. I'm teaching a uh class at SESU on the pursuit of happiness. So we'll have I've got uh some students signed up for that.
SPEAKER_03Yes you would be pretty popular. We could probably you'd probably get millions of people that want to sign up for that.
SPEAKER_01Well, you would think, but uh I think I've got ten. And I think it's capped it. You know, there's obviously I can't teach millions of students, but um yeah, uh there's a great book uh by Jeffrey Rosen that I highly recommend called The Pursuit of Happiness, and that'll be the bulk of the course, but the the book anybody can read that. It's available broadly on Amazon and any other places where you get books. Um I highly recommend it. It's uh something that you can read and savor for a long time. It talks about what the founders meant by that phrase, the pursuit of happiness. And we often use the term happy to think of you know, kind of personal satisfaction or doing something uh exciting or fun uh or personally rewarding. That's not really what they meant. They meant the ability to live a good life uh over the long term, and that that came with managing uh bad times as well as good times. That came with growing your character, understanding virtue, um, disciplining yourself, and using reason to govern your passions. That's what they meant by that. And so that they they were obviously mad at King George, who was unable to provide uh atmosphere in which the colonists could pursue happiness, so they were going on their own and gonna set up a government where they could do that because the king was no longer worthy of governing such a people. And so that's what they meant by that. And so that's Jeffrey Rosen's book is is uh each chapter he takes one of the founding fathers and talks about how they personally sought happiness and uh used reason to govern their own passions. And it's quite I mean, they're all human beings and they all had passions, and they all sought uh um guidance from uh ancient wisdom and the Bible, and it talks about how they um uh what philosophers and what what uh type of uh religious guidance they sought in order to achieve that. So Tom Jefferson, John Quincy Adams is in there, uh, and it goes to some of the people after the founding too. So John Adams and his son John Quincy, Frederick Douglass also plays a prominent role in that, and it's really interesting to see how these people thought about that issue.
SPEAKER_03I might have to check out that book, or uh uh I I don't know if my USDNS could uh convince me to sign up for an STSU class, but I'd I'd take a class from you. That sounds really good. I'd like to find a pursuit of happiness like that, regardless of the definition of the media. That sounds good. Yeah, I do want to kind of pick your brain a little bit on just kind of history broadly. I think we spent a lot of time on 250, which is just an exciting moment in our nation's history and in our state's history and our opportunity to to gather and kind of remind be remembering that. You know, I know um two years ago and last year, it was nice to, you know, just given some of the the partisan, uh, the partisanship in in this in the country and the divisiveness and just kind of the passions around politics and the frustrations around politics and government. You know, 250 was an opportunity for us to try to cut through all that. And it seems like at least in South Dakota, um, or specifically in Sioux Falls too, uh 2026 is the election year that'll never end. Uh you know, we got runoff recounts and primaries and uh general yet, and uh, we'll see. But uh but overall it seems like this has been a really good, really good movement and stuff too. But shifting to kind of history broadly, um, you know, at Sumetric Growth Alliance, we're a nonprofit, regional, kind of economic development-minded group, and we often talk about trying to empower our communities to grow, but also protecting their identities and protecting what makes them unique in that way too. So not just growing to where now you double population, you lose who you were, you lose your people, you lose your background, your events. Not about that at all. It's all about kind of preserving that. How can history kind of help uh help a town understand their identity? But then also how can local history maybe even be an economic development tool that they could use?
SPEAKER_01That's a great question. I think people um well, I grew up in Sioux Falls in Desmond, and I moved to Desmond just after I buried the time capsule actually in the summer of 76. And and then uh joined the Air Force and left Desmond to go to college and in the late 80s. I I've always as I go back and I have friends that live there talking to them, I'm always so impressed with how the town of Desmette has maintained its um energy and its vibrancy uh despite the you know the farm crisis of the 80s and a lot of the economic headwinds that are that they've uh taken head on. And they do that by doing what you just said. You know, Lauren Gills Wilder is a huge presence in DeSmet. Uh Harvey Dunn's another um presence and uh nationally known artist. So we've got uh or DeSmet has this this um nationally known writer, nationally known artist, and they do th do events about those things. Um Old Settlers Day is their issue. So I guess to get to your question that um I think pick uh some of those characteristics that are unique to your town and just run with it. And um and and figure out ways that that can speak to a new generation. There are ways you have to keep it fresh, ways that you have to meet the moment, but I think it also needs to be authentic, otherwise people know you know, this is this is just a gimmick. And uh and that can be a tough uh road to kind of navigate. I would say you you know, local newspapers, which are increasingly available uh uh online uh through a couple of different ways. And um I would I would spend some time reading those. If you really want to get a sense of what the town was like in 1910, 1920, 1930, you can you can dive in and just kind of sample that and see what people were doing that um resonated across time. And I I I've been pleasantly surprised how music uh is uh often a common theme and how uh types of music change, but the performances in one way, shape, or form continue. You know, it might be a local jazz band, it might be church choirs, it might be municipal bands and so forth. People always turn out for that. And so that's something that's a resonant theme. Certainly hunting and spending uh time outdoors is a is a theme, and then the activities of of school kids is a theme. So some of those traditions, right?
SPEAKER_03I mean, even if it is hunting and fishing or or just the annual community events, you know, I'm being a tribal member from Sisseden, you know, we have our Fourth of July powwow is one of the longest running uh events in the country and and in the state too, and I think one of the oldest powwows in the in the nation. But uh yeah, a lot of different events like that. I think of I think the Smith, I think I was just hearing a couple days ago that there's a new show or series coming out soon, uh like Little House on the Prairie is kind of getting a revamp or something.
SPEAKER_01So they're probably gonna see Netflix of all places is doing new Lorangles Wild or Little Little Town in the Prairie. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03So they're they're probably they're probably gonna fortunately they probably have some of those pieces already, and so they're they're equipped for visitors. Uh but I'm sure it's gonna they're probably gonna see an uptick, which is gonna be an economic driver for people passing through and convenience options and hospitality and whatever else it may be too.
SPEAKER_01Right. I think you you have to um think about what has meant a lot to your town, and then the next question is how can we help this make something meaningful for people to come and see it?
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Uh whatever that might be. And I think, and then stick to things that are true, you know, don't make stuff up or try to be too gimmicky or whitzy. Uh, but just stick to what people what's true. I I spent a couple of days last week in the Great American State Fair Pavilion for South Dakota, and uh people really appreciated the fact that real South Dakotaans were in the pavilion. A lot of states hired local um event companies to staff their pavilion. And so when they came to ours and they talked to people who were really from South Dakota, that they appreciated that. That's and I think that's something, you know, it's the real thing, right? So um stick to stick to that.
SPEAKER_03It does seem like there's uh, you know, obviously visual aids and things like that that make it easy for people from all ages, or if they have a lot of time, or if they have a little bit of time to be able to kind of embrace and and see and kind of understand some of the histories of the small towns. Some of the ones that I think are growing uh the way that they want to and preserving their history while still being forward thinking. Um, we took a group of our kind of mayors and city councils and city staff over the border to Lamar's, Iowa. Uh they're growing, uh they're doing a lot of things. You know, they're the blue bunny, you know, ice ice cream capital of the of the world or whatever. And they don't want to be exclusively that identity, but they have a lot of artwork and history and plaques kind of all throughout their community that's easy and accessible. So telling their story there, um, you know, a community like Garrettson, they their mayor is a historian and kind of runs their local his uh history. Um, but there's a lot of small-town museums and stuff too. I I would I'm curious on in your role with the historical society, maybe what resources that you guys provide, uh, or assistance, even technical assistance, or any different kind of grants or other programs that you guys are aware of, maybe if even if you don't have them, for um some of our mayors or chamber directors or schools or service clubs or business owners that maybe are listening from some of our small towns, what what would be some resources or or some suggestions or tips that you could leave with them uh to help preserve some of their history and maybe use that for for their community?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think that's that's another draw, is that people want to uh visitors want to see what it was like back back in the day, right? So if you if you don't have any buildings that still stand, then it's it's almost for the visitor like it's your history's blank. So preserving some um some of the original buildings when and if possible is really important. Certainly local courthouses, county courthouses, and uh city structures, even post offices. I know Yankton has um uh a post office that's now being preserved by a private owner, and that person is it's taken it's been quite a process, but that person is on their way to establishing a commercial business and uh in in maintaining that building, um, which is kind of a waypoint in the town's history. So as far as resources and support, the Deadwood grants for many of many such projects, you know, you might qualify for a Deadwood grant, so I would recommend that you go to history.sd.gov, uh click on preservation, and then find the information about Deadwood grants and preservation grants that might uh help buttress your efforts in fixing the shingles on that old roof or redoing the windows to the original um specs or uh or at least upgrading the facade of the old storefront, um things like that that uh really evoke you know the 1880s look or the 1920s look that you that you might be going for.
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SPEAKER_03Why then yeah go ahead. I was gonna say I know Daughters of the American Revolution kind of year-round, not just for 250, have certain grants available too if it's got a kind of a civic focus or tells some of the history. Um that's been used in some of our communities before to help pay for different uh presentations or displays or um flags.
SPEAKER_01The Mary Chilton uh foundation and part of the DAR, they've done excellent work. And people might think that they'd only be interested in things directly related to the revolution, but you know, here in this state, there's there's not a lot of that. So they have they have uh well we've we earned a grant to restore spotted tail headdress um and preserve that to uh you know to speak to its original uh meaning. And there's a lot of things out there. They the the Mary Chilton Foundation of the DAR has done a lot to help uh a wide variety of South Dakota. Uh in the past and then this year with your American 250 grant program that has been phenomenal.
SPEAKER_03Good. Well, Dr. Jones, I really appreciate your insight as always and stuff too, and all the many hats that you wear, the impact you've been able to make in a variety of the different positions. We didn't even spend that much time on your background uh like I normally do with your uh Air Force background, and I think you taught at the Air Force Academy, was that right? That's right. Yeah, and then I know you served as our state um you know secretary of education for a bit, and I know that you um have taught before and kind of dean of arts and science was at DSU. Uh lot lots of other stuff I'm sure we're missing and leaving out, but I just appreciate your kind of passion to giving back one way or another um over your time and your insights. Anything else that we didn't cover that uh that that you wanted? I know you got um some construction projects that have finally probably wrapped up there in Pier at the the State Museum.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, the uh State Museum opens on the first. Uh well cut the ribbon on the on the first three exhibits on the first of July. So that'll be open on the fourth of your uh in the Pier area, or even if you're not, uh uh beat beat a path to the new State Museum. I think you'll be very impressed. It's uh we've got a couple of exhibit halls that are quite uh eye-catching and very revealing in the state's history, and then a temporary exhibit about America 250 from South Dakota's perspective that I think people will really enjoy.
SPEAKER_03I'm looking forward to seeing it. I haven't been there in a while since probably right as construction was started. Uh and growing up, anytime we were in Pier, uh that's probably why I have so much passion for our state and for our country. My mom always uh drug us over there to go do some tours and check in and see the exhibit. So it's changed, uh changed a little bit, changed probably a lot, but uh excited to go go see kind of the new museum. So yeah, I encourage you to uh reach out to the State Historical Society, reach out to Dr. Jones and his team if they uh could ever be helpful or point you in the right direction, check out the the state museum there. And um, I think the big takeaway kind of for me is through this process and in visiting with you that you know America 250 especially doesn't have to be complicated. History doesn't have to be complicated or expensive or limited to just kind of one day or one annual kind of celebration. But every community has a story, every town has those people that are worth honoring and remembering, uh those businesses, the schools, the children, like we've talked about, service clubs, museums, libraries, uh city halls. There's a lot of different ways to participate.
SPEAKER_01Right. And get kids involved. I mean, the whole point of marking a an anniversary or birthday is to have another one, right? So I keep telling people get kids involved, so the tricentennial is something that they find very meaningful because of what they the Liberty Tree they planted or the time capsule they planted or the parade they were in, or something that makes this even more unique in their memory. Well, excellent.
SPEAKER_03Well, Dr. Jones, thank you again for joining us today. Appreciate all that you do, and from all of us to make the plants.