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History 605: S2, Ep3 'Rapid City Flood 50th Anniversary at the Journey Museum'

USGS

This podcast is produced by the South Dakota State Historical Society.

To support the state historical society, contact the foundation at (605) 773-6346

In this episode we ask, "how can we represent and best commemorate the Rapid City Flood?" Troy Kilpatrick and Corey Christianson of Rapid City's Journey Museum and Learning Center talk with us about how they answered that question with their current exhibit.

Fifty years ago this June, the people of Rapid City endured a perfect storm of 15 inches of rain that rapidly produced flash flooding and by late evening Mayor Don Barnett warned people to get to high ground. Three dams failed and the creek then became a violent flood illuminated only by the storm's frequent lightning.

The impact included brought about the death of 238 people and the destruction of hundreds of homes. I hope you'll visit the Journey Museum exhibit about this important event in our history. It is now open and will continue until this fall. But before you go, enjoy this conversation about the 1972 Rapid City Flood.

Mayor Don Barnett's book mentioned during our conversation can be found here: https://tinyurl.com/2p98tj6b