Four tons of food...and counting!

Spearfish area scouts went door-to-door Saturday (12/12/09) collecting more than 8,342 pounds of food during the annual Boy Scout Food Drive for the Spearfish Community Food Pantry.

After enduring some near-record low temperatures earlier in the week, Mother Nature was kind to the Boy Scouts and the Food Pantry, providing a clear and calm day with temperatures "soaring" to about 40 degrees.

“It was a great day and a great turnout,” said Pantry President Evonne Welsh. “It was fun to see the kids and leaders in their scout uniforms.”

Expressing appreciation on behalf of the pantry Board of Directors and the many pantry volunteers, Welsh went on to say, “Every year we have this food drive, it seems the folks of Spearfish hearts get bigger and bigger. What a great place to live!”

The enormous outpouring of support was a great boon to the food pantry, which is housed in a temporary location at 3100 First Avenue (Suite #2) across from the Walmart store in south Spearfish. The pantry lost its lease at its previous location and is in the final throes of finalizing a permanent facility at the Spearfish Recreation Center in north Spearfish.

In addition to the many Boy Scouts canvassing the Spearfish community, dozens of other volunteers -- young and old alike -- pitched in to help make the drive a smashing success.

We snapped a few additional pictures during the receiving and sorting of food at the pantry. Take a peek in our Pantry Gallery.

Of special note is the photograph shown here. Three long-time pantry volunteers -- all members of the Board of Directors -- took a breather at the end of the Boy Scout Food Drive. Shown left-to-right are President Evonne Welsh, Marie Post, and Roberta Engesser. Marie, a Board representative from the United Methodist Church, is stepping down from the Board after 13 years of service to the pantry. Well done, Marie, and thank you!

The Spearfish Community Food Pantry provides nutritional assistance to individuals and families in the Spearfish and St. Onge, South Dakota communities who identify themselves as in need of food to feed themselves and their families. While continuing to provide this valuable assistance, the pantry is in the midst of a fundraising campaign to raise some $45,000 to modify their planned new home at the Spearfish Recreation Center. Thus far, they've raised just over $15,000 towards that goal.

For more information about the Spearfish Community Food Pantry, call 642-0940.

A run for food...

Eleven hardy souls braved the cold late Saturday afternoon (12/5/09) to participate in the Mistletoe Mile Fun Run and Walk in downtown Spearfish and support the Spearfish Community Food Pantry.

Held as part of the Spearfish Downtown Business Association Christmas Stroll, the 11 holiday-clad competitors each contributed at least one non-perishable food item to the Food Pantry, which is in the throes of a drive to raise money for its new quarters at the Recreation Center, while continuing to provide food to needy residents in the Spearfish area.

Entrants gathered at 6th and Main at about 3:30 p.m., hitching a ride to the Spearfish Rec Center, where they donated their food items and hit the starting line for the Mile-Long trek back downtown.

A light wind – blessedly behind them as they ran south toward downtown – the runners were escorted by a squad car of the Spearfish Police Department.

Prizes were given for race winners and “Best Dressed” entries for the holiday event. We don’t yet know the names of all the winners – but you’ll see their faces in our Pantry Gallery. They’re all winners in our book…..helping the Spearfish Food Pantry in its continuing effort to provide food to needy residents in the Spearfish area. You can click on this photo to see a larger image of these good folks.

The Food Pantry was located on South Colorado Boulevard for many years, but lost its lease on that building earlier this year – forcing them to relocate. Thanks to the cooperation and support of local businessman Bob Meyer, the Food Pantry has taken up temporary quarters in a building across from the Walmart store in south Spearfish.

The pantry is now in a campaign to raise some $45,000 to remodel space at the Rec Center in north Spearfish. The City of Spearfish has made space available in the facility, but it’s up to the pantry to pay for necessary work in remodeling the northwest corner of the building.

At last report, some $14,545 had been raised. Persons wishing to support this initiative may mail their tax-deductible contribution to the Spearfish Community Food Pantry Building Fund, 3100 First St. - Suite 2, Spearfish, SD 57783, or leave their donation at Pioneer Bank and Trust or at city hall in Spearfish. For further information, call the pantry at 605-642-0940.

Barns of Lawrence County

When it’s a hot topic, even bitter cold weather won’t keep history buffs away! It was standing room only last night (12/1/09) at the Spearfish Senior Citizens Center as more than 75 folks crowded the hall for an incisive look at the images and histories of many “Barns of Lawrence County.”

Long-time SDSU County Extension Agent Leo Orme – now retired – was the speaker for the December meeting of the Spearfish Area Historical Society. Click on any of the photographs shown here, if you'd like to see a larger image.

All 42 barns included in Orme’s research are at least 50 years old. Many, of course, are even older. More than 2,000 photographs were taken as part of a project done about 10 years ago to document barns in Lawrence County. Asked if those barn photographs included any interior shots, Orme noted that most are “so full of stored stuff, that you can’t get any pictures inside.”

“We’d be here all night, if I tried to cover all 42 barns that I’ve researched,” said Orme, who shared the histories of more than a dozen barns among the many scattered across Lawrence County. Orme had worked with Bob and Ann Matheney in assembling an exhibit about the barns back in 2000. It was part of a display at the High Plains Western Heritage Center, which was a local sponsor of a national Smithsonian Institution traveling exhibit about barns.

A native of Colorado, Orme came to South Dakota in 1959 to lead a U.S. Fish and Wildlife project at the McNenny Fish Hatchery west of Spearfish. As a 4-H leader, and later as an SDSU Extension Agent, he became well acquainted with agricultural interests in the region, including many of the barns included in his research.

Orme said he’s hoping to publish a book on the barns of Lawrence County sometime in the future. At right is one of the interesting barns included in his research. It belongs to Ralph and Becky Crago and is located near the Red Water River just north of Spearfish. A few snapshots from this December meeting can be found in our History Gallery.

A more contemporary structure – but one of great popularity these days – is the Thretheway Pavilion in the Spearfish City Park. That’ll be the topic of the January gathering of the Spearfish Area Historical Society, when veteran writer Paul Higbee shares the history of the pavilion. His presentation will be at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, January 5, 2010, and the public is invited to attend.

Homestake - It isn't over

Long an economic powerhouse for the region, Homestake Mine operated for more than 125 years and was the deepest – and most productive – gold mine in North America. It closed its doors in 2002. With the people of South Dakota as new owners and an eye on science, the once prolific gold mine has started a transformation that – if and when completed – promises to make it a top-flight international research laboratory.

“The game isn’t over,” says Dr. Jose Alonso, a nuclear astrophysicist who spent 30 years at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California before heading up the Sanford Underground Laboratory at Homestake. He is now director emeritus.

“One should be aware that the game isn’t over yet. The fine print on the selection was…IF the underground lab is going to be built in the United States, it will be built at Homestake.”

Alonso said the $15 million set aside to prepare a Preliminary Design Report isn’t nearly enough. Some $500 million will be needed to actually build the lab, with about half of that amount going for infrastructure – the rest for experiments. It’ll likely be some three years before we know if Congress will actually appropriate the funds for the project.

But that point didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of a couple of dozen folks who filled a downstairs room at the Adams Museum in Deadwood last Thursday (11/19/09). The museum strutted its stuff by hosting a terrific double-barreled presentation that focused on both the past and the future of Homestake. Author Steven Mitchell and scientist Dr. Jose Alonso teamed up with The Adams, the Deadwood Historic Preservation Commission, and Black Hills State University to present an all-afternoon presentation called “Homestake: Its Past and Its Future.”

With an impressive array of incisive historical research and compelling photographic images, Mitchell set the stage with a journey into both the history of the peoples and the geology of the Black Hills region. A life-long resident of the Black Hills, Mitchell holds degrees from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, but he belied his academic training and career as a mining engineer by demonstrating a gift for storytelling based on well-documented facts.

Reaching back to the Treaty of 1851 that sought to settle tribal territorial disputes and stabilize the precarious relations between the American Indians and westward-migrating settlers, Mitchell also shared details about the Great Reconnaissance Act of 1853 to explore the west, primarily in search of routes for expanding rail transportation. With the discovery of gold in the Black Hills in 1874 came an onslaught of entrepreneurs, many of whom became the stuff of legends.

Homestake Mine is the focus of Mitchell’s new book, Nuggets to Neutrinos: The Homestake Story. From early mining claims and extraction techniques to wily business strategies and modern technology, Mitchell seemed to cover all bases right up to the closure of the mine. He discussed several significant reclamation projects that have occurred in recent years, laying the groundwork for development of a deep underground science and engineering laboratory.

After a short intermission, the focus moved from the past to the future. Dr. Jose Alonso talked about the transition of Homestake, providing a chronology of the scientific and political maneuvering that have occurred in the last few years. Once a director of the Sanford Underground Laboratory at Homestake, he remains a champion for the project and serves as emeritus director.

Alonso walked the audience step-by-step through the “bureaucratic” solicitation process that proponents of the underground lab have followed in seeking approval for funding from the National Science Foundation.

In 2006, between the political advocacy of Governor Mike Rounds and a $70 million gift from the deep pockets of T. Denny Sanford, Homestake had “stacked the deck” against its challenger, Henderson Mine in Colorado. Barrick donated the mine – 186 surface acres – to the State of South Dakota, and Homestake had secured a $120 million war chest that could be spent to get things going early. This was an enormous advantage for Homestake – giving them a three or four year head start. It was a very enviable position in the pursuit of a world-class underground laboratory. And Alonso said there was something else that made Homestake more attractive to scientists.

“Henderson is an operating molybdenum mine… and continues to operate…and it’s very clear when you are there, even as a guest, their first interest – bottom line – is mining. So you are really a second class citizen there. You have certain case times, you have certain things you can do, certain things you cannot do. You have little control over schedule, resources, or anything else.”

“Over here (Homestake), science owns the mine. And that is huge.”

By July of 2007, the National Science Foundation endorsed a recommendation from a 22-member independent panel that tapped Homestake as the site for a University of California-Berkeley design proposal for a DUSEL (Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory).

Alonso laid out the NSF timetable for awarding the $500 million to actually build the underground laboratory, noting that much more than $15 million is needed for the preliminary design phase – to be completed next year – probably something on the order of $75 million. With a final approval from NSF expected in May 2011, the $500 million project would have to be funded by Congress, and it would likely be a part of the federal FY 2013 budget request. That would require Congressional approval by about October of 2012.

If the costly and somewhat complicated funding process is a bit confusing – it pales compared to the esoteric but significant science projects on the drawing boards. In fact, early science projects are already being planned or are underway. Dr. Alonso’s animated enthusiasm for the projects may not have been enough to keep a few of us luddites in the audience on the edge of our seats, but many of the late afternoon hangers-on were themselves scientists or budding researchers, anxious to talk science with the dynamic Doctor Alonso.

Even using lay terminology, Alonso’s efforts to shine a light of nuclear astrophysics knowledge into the dark recesses of a few unscientific minds in the audience was probably fruitless. But his unrestricted enthusiasm and lively exchanges with tekkies in the audience was almost mesmerizing. “Fuzzy science” took on a somewhat different meaning as the good doctor covered the scientific landscape all the way from the “Coulomb Barrier” and “Gamow Peak” (which are not remote holiday getaways) all the way to “Neutrino Double Beta Decay!” And we’re still in the dark regarding planned “Dark Matter” experiments.

Nonetheless, this was a rare afternoon of enlightenment – even if much of the scientific gobbledy-gook flew over the head of this History major.

We’d gladly camp out on the doorstep of the Adams Museum for the opportunity to participate in another such session. For Mary Kopco and the folks at The Adams Museum and House, it was another excellent event – helping to inform and inspire area residents about the wealth of history and resources in the Black Hills. Resources that will one day likely include a fully-operational, world class deep underground laboratory.

And then it really won’t be over. It’ll be just the beginning.

Far from the sea: Dewey, South Dakota

Whether or not there was a veteran of the Spanish-American War living in southwest Custer County in the early 1900s, we don’t know. But there was someone with enough regard for Admiral of the Navy George Dewey to name a town after the military hero.

Fifth generation resident JoAnn Boggs shared that and other stories about Dewey, South Dakota this week (11/3/09) during the November meeting of the Spearfish Area Historical Society at the Senior Citizens Center. Boggs and her husband ranch near the Custer County hamlet – and they also run a saw mill and pellet plant.

Boggs’ interest in genealogy helped her uncover the fascinating story of Dewey, which is nestled along the Burlington Northern Railroad tracks close to the Wyoming border in Custer County. It’s about 40 miles west of Custer on the flatland just west of Elk Mountain.

“Go to the edge of the earth, turn around and go back a quarter of a mile, and you’re there!” says Boggs, quoting another resident of Dewey.

Boggs says her ancestors arrived in the county in 1878 at about the same time that the S & G Ranch was formed there by the Union Cattle Company out of Laramie, Wyoming. It was one of five major ranches in the region, according to Boggs, and once ran as many as 10,000 head of cattle. But the blizzard of 1888 forced the ranch into receivership, ending up in the hands of Goshen Irrigation, which – says Boggs – was a part of the Union Cattle Company!

Thanks to the availability of water in the area, the Burlington & Missouri Railroad chose to build a station and stockyard at the S & G in 1889. Boggs says the facility was important to the area, and it rivaled Belle Fourche as a livestock shipping center for a time.

While there was a post office for a short period in 1899, it was moved to Edgemont until about five years later when mail service returned to the community, and the name Dewey was chosen for the post office. By 1908, the railroad station also changed its name to Dewey.

Boggs recounted the creative ways that some couples would file for homesteads before getting married, thus providing them with larger property holdings after marriage. It also gave rise to a home being built on skids, allowing it to be moved back and forth from one property to the other, thus assisting the homesteaders to “prove up” their land as required by the government.

While there were never many buildings in Dewey, it did have a general store, post office, and school. Hard times and lightning have seen the demise of several buildings, though one of the older homes still stands in the community. JoAnn Boggs has agreed to share some of her photographs with us, and we'll post them to our history gallery when we receive them.

Ranching remains important to the region, and Dewey still feels the rumble of some 60 to 70 coal trains per day passing through – but never stopping – at the old town.

Bentonite was once important to the region, but no more. Boggs says uranium exploration has spurred new activity in the area.

The Spearfish Area Historical Society expressed appreciation that Ms. Boggs would make the 115 mile trek to Spearfish for the program, which sparked many questions from the audience. As always, there were treats and good conversation following the presentation.

The next meeting will feature Leo Orme sharing photos and stories about the Barns of Lawrence County. Mark your calendar for 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, December 1st!

Eagles nest in Black Hills

After walks in rain and fog earlier this summer, hikers on the final Black Hills National Forest Moon Walk for 2009 enjoyed perfect weather! Nearly 160 people turned out for the short trek to the north shore of Deerfield Reservoir west of Hill City last Saturday (9/5/09) to learn about bald eagles. That may not be a record number of hikers, but it certainly exceeds numbers we’ve seen this year.

It’s a testament to a wonderful program sponsored by the U.S. Forest Service. While the Forest Service gets thumped alongside its head for a variety of decisions it has made across the country, they surely deserve a pat on the back for their Moon Walk program.

Of course, the monthly hikes – scheduled around full moons during the summer months – give USFS personnel a chance to mend political fences and increase public understanding about the terrific resource available to citizens in this region: the Black Hills National Forest. They’ve been doing the walks for 14 years, according to Amy Ballard, who’s been coordinating the events since their inception,

Our guide for the September outing was Lou Conroy, a native South Dakotan who grew up at Pine Ridge and later earned a degree in Biology from Black Hills State University in Spearfish. A wildlife biologist out of the Mystic District office, Conroy also has a Master’s degree from Colorado State University in Fort Collins and has been with the Forest Service for some 12 years.

The real stars of this Moon Walk were bald eagles. Alas, they were in absentia, but that didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of Conroy or the throng of hikers who eagerly listened to the story about bald eagles and the discovery of their nesting at Deerfield Reservoir – believed to be a first in the Black Hills.

Perched in the trees along the north edge of Deerfield Reservoir is a nest that Conroy and his cohorts say is the first nesting site for bald eagles in the Black Hills. While it’s fairly common to see bald eagles wintering in this region, it’s a first to find them nesting and raising their young here.

Conroy says the Deerfield Reservoir nest was started in 2007, but then abandoned for some unknown reason. The bald eagles came back in 2008 and were successful in raising at least one eaglet that flew from the nest. Observers were anxious to see similar results this spring.

“Everything was on schedule this year, but by the second week in May they were gone,” said Conroy, who believes that April and May storms may have caused a problem in the nest. Whatever the reason, the nest was again abandoned, but hopes are high that the eagles will return and begin the nesting process again this winter.

You’ll find more information and photographs of the “Bald Eagles” Moon Walk to Deerfield Reservoir in our Moon Walk Gallery.

A tip of the hat to Amy Ballard and the many other Forest Service specialists who contributed to another great year of Moon Walks across the Black Hills National Forest.

We’re already anxious to see the schedule for next year – perhaps visiting some new locations and re-visiting other favorites for 2010.

Partners saving Meeker Ranch

-

The weather simply wasn't cooperating.

Early evening rain and lightning nearly caused cancellation of the August Moon Walk to the historic Meeker Ranch homestead near Custer on Saturday (8/8/09). But Mother Nature relented, and about 100 people weathered the storm to enjoy another terrific educational hike sponsored by the U.S. Forest Service.

At first, the weather was sunny and mild, followed by clouds, rain, and then – the bane of all hikers – lightning! They tell us that only lightning will force cancellation of a Moon Walk. Fortunately, the small storm pushed rapidly through the hills east of Custer, and by 7:15, skies were clearing. It turned out to be a delightful evening for a hike – even with a few pesky mosquitoes nipping at our necks.

This place has been the catalyst for some interesting partnerships.

Five years ago this month – August 2004 – the Meeker Creek Habitat Conservation Project celebrated a partnership between the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Ina Davis family. The goal was to conserve the 278-acre parcel of land known as Meeker Ranch.

But it wasn’t until 2008 that the ranch captured more widespread attention. That’s when well-known Black Hills artist Jon Crane (left) helped elevate it into public consciousness. Crane’s advocacy in getting the Forest Service to alter plans to either burn down or tear down buildings on the scenic ranch had all the elements of a good news story. Bernie Hunhoff wrote one such story for the March/April 2008 edition of South Dakota Magazine.

Crane, like most of us, was apparently mesmerized by the beauty of the ranch, and enlisted others – including the media – to get the government to reconsider its initial plan to get rid of buildings on the ranch. The Forest Service was confronted with a myriad of safety and liability issues; retaining the buildings and fixing them up would be costly.

One senses that the road to the current “partnership” between the U.S. Forest Service and the Black Hills Historic Preservation Trust – which Crane helped organize – was probably full of potholes and detours. Nonetheless, there now seems to be a united effort to preserve and restore the Meeker Ranch property, including volunteers and private contributions.

As one meanders down the road to the open meadow that is home to the Meeker Ranch, it’s easy to see how Jon Crane, and all of us, could fall in love with this place. Crane has also dedicated a portion of his Meeker Ranch artwork sales to help with restoration.

On this particular cool August evening, Forest Service archaeologist Matt Padilla (left) was our Moon Walk guide, providing not only a good overview of Meeker Ranch history – but sharing a few early photographs of the ranch and its founder, Frank Cunningham Meeker.

Born in Ohio, Meeker made his way west in the late 1870s and worked on cattle drives from Texas to the northern Plains. Padilla says the young Meeker also worked as a Pony Express rider before pursuing a ranch of his own in the Black Hills. After working on a ranch south of Custer, he homesteaded on the current ranch site in 1882. They called it “Willow Creek.”

Ownership passed from the Meeker family to the Davis family in 1952. Some 52 years later, in 2004, the property was purchased by the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, which subsequently sold it to the U.S. Forest Service. All have seemingly agreed to the Davis’ intent that the land not be developed. Less certain was how to deal with the buildings.

Perhaps the oldest building on the surviving ranch site is the Meeker home, built in 1887. Several additions have been built over the years, but no one has lived in the structure for more than 50 years. There’s a cool cabin about a half mile southwest of the main house, and it’s there that the Davis family – Dave and Ina – chose to live in the 1950s.

Each of the buildings on the Meeker Ranch has its own story – and this Moon Walk stirred up considerable interest in the venerable ranch. The huge turnout for the August event (including U.S. Forest Service District Ranger Craig Bobzien and his wife) is a testament to its popularity.

Our Moon Walk Gallery offers several photos and a bit more information. More importantly, perhaps it’ll stir your curiosity and put you on the road to Custer to explore the remarkable Meeker Ranch.