Tag: #rapidcity

17 June 2018

On my way to Rapid City South Dakota I stopped at Wall Drug in the town of Wall on the edge of the Badlands of South Dakota. So many people told me that I must stop there but I didn’t expect it to be such a commercial tourist attraction, although the many signs throughout the beautiful countryside should have alerted me. Many people do enjoy this tourist spot as evidenced by the big crowd of people there, in the middle of nowhere and pouring with rain. I saw it as “just” another shopping centre, however, the history behind the original store beginnings and how it has become a mega tourist attraction is interesting.

It was set up as a pharmacy in 1931 by Ted and Dorothy Hustead and business was not going well in Wall, known as the town “in the middle of nowhere”. Dorothy decided to put up signs on the highway to attract customers to their store by offering “free ice water” or “cold root beer”. This was so successful that they continued to expand the pharmacy to include food, clothing and this town in the middle of nowhere caters to 2 million tourists each year.

They even have a Harley Davidson store.

It is a popular spot to stop on the way to Rapid City and Mount Rushmore. There are apparently signs all over the world depicting the distance to Wall Drug including signs put up by American GIs around the world during WWII. Wall Drug Signs

Later when I arrived in Rapid City I did a walk around town and they have statues of a USA president on each corner.

I just photographed some of my favourites, not necessarily politically. There isn’t one of Obama yet and that should be unvieled around September.

A couple of Rapid City buildings in the historical centre.

I then went to a pawn shop looking for some Indian tribal paintings and the gun section shouldn’t have surprised me but it is disturbing.

I then went to Mount Rushmore, although I wasn’t expecting to be able to see anything as a thick fog hanging around all day got worse. Hopefully it will clear tomorrow.