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West River Wintertime
December 15, 2016
Winter is settling in over the Black Hills, bringing many opportunities for beautiful photography. Photos by John Mitchell.
Foliage at Friendship Tower
October 10, 2016
Seth Bullock built Friendship Tower on Mount Roosevelt for his close friend Theodore Roosevelt. John Mitchell visited recently to photograph fall color.
Fall in the Canyon
September 26, 2016
... highlighted by the sharp contrast of the dark emerald-green pine and spruce evergreens.” But Boyer warns to beware of the alluring red leaves near the ground — they are poison ivy.
John Mitchell visited the canyon this past weekend. Here are some of his photos.
Coming Home
September 13, 2016
The sights and sounds of South Dakota are a relief after traveling the country. Photo by John Mitchell
Cool Classics
August 30, 2016
Over 600 classic and customized cars rolled into Deadwood last Thursday for Kool Deadwood Nights. Photos by John Mitchell.
After the Blaze
August 16, 2016
Lightning sparked a fire that blazed across Crow Peak near Spearfish from June 24 into July. John Mitchell recently explored its popular trail.
July/August 2016
... corn near Utica. Photo by Bernie Hunhoff.
How High's the Corn?: Our top cash crop's cultural heights.
Back Seat with Fish: Henry Hughes experienced fishing, football and faith in Mitchell.
Swinging on the Rocks: Bouldering — a blend of gymnastics and rock climbing — was born in the Black Hills.
Naming Jett: Reviving a Native American christening ceremony. ...
The Golden Oldies
... on Literature, two of Short Stories, two of Winning Orations (Compiled), one on School Law and one on Ethics.”
Coursey, a writer, teacher and lecturer who operated the Educator Supply Company in Mitchell, chronicled the lives of many early South Dakotans, including Senator Alfred Kittredge and General William Henry Harrison Beadle, but it’s his unique first-hand account of homesteading in South ...
Crow Peak Wildfire
June 28, 2016
Crews continue to battle a fire raging on Crow Peak near Spearfish. Photos by John Mitchell.
Grabbing Life By The Horns
... seconds, but fighting them was in his blood. “That was the thrill I was looking for, and I had to have more,” he says.
He studied psychology and sociology at Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell, but he was already planning a rodeo career. For 14 years he was a full time bullfighter, working rodeos across the country. Winning the World Freestyle Bullfighting Championship in 1998 is the highlight ...
New Days in Aurora County
May 3, 2016
... it would be “the greatest display of grain ever shown by any country.” It drew a mighty crowd for its festival, including a band from Lennox and trainloads of spectators from Sioux City and Mitchell.
The next year Mitchell decided to build a grain palace of its own, and the friendly competition between the neighboring cities induced the people of Plankinton to build an even larger palace for the ...
A Cache of Immigrant History
April 28, 2016
... prairie wind, but we found a few comments from satisfied geocachers online:
“Very interesting history. Thanks, South Dakota Magazine. I am part of the Goonies cachers — family members from Mitchell, Sioux Falls, Rapid City. We have found all of your caches so far except the first one. The door was locked to the tower and it was on a Sunday with nobody around to let us in.” — Buffalodon
“SEEK84 ...
Spearfish Canyon in Winter
January 28, 2016
Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway ranks among the most beautiful 20-mile stretches in the USA. Photos by John Mitchell.
Hyde County: Always Divided
January 26, 2016
... … Hinkle was going to protest nude dancing by removing his own clothes at the establishment in question. Of course he said that when it was a whole lot warmer outside.”
Hinkle has moved to Mitchell, but he still posts periodically on a Facebook page.
Then there was this exchange when Bernie Hunhoff tried to track down John Zilverberg. Locals told him that Zilverberg was a national horseshoe champion. ...
Mount Moriah Winter
January 5, 2016
Mount Moriah Cemetery, named for the land in Genesis 22, looms directly over Deadwood. Photos by John Mitchell.
Tale of Two Paths
November 3, 2015
... cattle belonging to homesteaders. Many South Dakotans saw Sully’s antics as merely protecting their rights to their own land, but he found himself in jail on several occasions. He broke out of the Mitchell jail and evaded law enforcement until U.S. Marshals learned he had returned to his home in the Gregory County hills. They shot him as he tried to escape on horseback.
Sully’s antics are still the ...
Before the Oasis
October 6, 2015
... snake.
Another search had a sad ending. Harvey Burr disappeared from his farm near town in November of 1951. His bloodied body was found days later in a haystack. Burr’s murderer, a young man from Mitchell, was a distant relative who had kidnapped and raped a country schoolteacher, and then abducted and killed Burr and wrote checks on his bank account. Though it happened over 60 years ago, old timers in ...
Searching For Color
... station wagon gazing out the windows at the hills and plains of South Dakota. She lives outside of Rapid City.
Christian Begeman
Seldom Traveled Roads
Last fall I was in Mitchell for work and we got done early, so I began to explore the James River on backroads north of town and up to Forestburg. It was a beautiful fall day and I had several hours of daylight left. I lived in ...
Of Birds and Baseball
September 8, 2015
... other inventions at the South Dakota Agricultural Heritage Museum in Brookings.
Wheat farming requires long hours, but we noticed this summer while attending the state amateur baseball tournament in Mitchell that the Northville team’s roster included A.J. Overby, the fifth generation of Overbys to work the Spink County land. That means there’s still time for baseball, and probably pheasants in ...
Amazing Aerobatics
August 18, 2015
Ellsworth Air Force Base hosted the Dakota Thunder Air Show this past weekend. Photos by John Mitchell.
