By 1970, at the University of South Dakota (USD), Upward Bound and Special Services helped promising high school Native students prepare for college, and once in college, lent them cultural and academical support. In addition, student led clubs, such as the Wapaha Club, started in 1957, and later the Tiospaye Student Council, became advocates for and supporters of Native American students at USD. One aspect of Native American student support was allowing students to gather and live in a residential house. As part of the USD Photograph Collection, I came upon a negative of a house called by the photographer the “Indian Home.” The building was a two-story wood frame structure constructed in the early 20th century. Documents in Box 32 of the Institute of Indian Studies collection gave me a potential location for the building and informed me that the structure was called the Tiospaye House. The building was located on North Dakota Street where the USD Foundation building sits, west of the DakotaDome. The building was razed between 1972 and 1980. Although the Tiospaye House was a transitory attempt to support Native American students, in 1988 a building located at 409 East Clark Street, once the Old Coffee House, became the Native American Cultural Center. According to a Vermillion Plain Talk article (December 8, 1988,) the building, dedicated in December 1988, was donated by Philips Crew, a USD alum, expressly to support Native American students. At present, it houses Native Student Services and promotes socially, culturally and community relevant programming throughout the year. Thus, an early attempt for USD to offer a supportive structure for Native American students failed, but the current Native American Cultural Center adds much to the cultural and academic support and enlightenment of both Native and non-Native students. The Tiospaye House in 1970. USD Archives and Special Collections. USD Photographs, Series 10 negative, # 1530.1.

Theatre at the University of South Dakota (USD) has a long history involving student clubs, academic units, and the Black Hills Playhouse. The USD theatre program educates students in skills needed for acting and behind the scenes activities such as costume, set, and prop design and production. Students also learn about play writing, and the history of theatre. USD’s plays often challenge contemporary social norms. In the United States, the late 1960s to 1970s were times of activism with several groups protesting civil rights violations of African Americans, Native Americans, and the government’s long involvement in the Vietnam war. During the late 1960s Arthur Kopit wrote the play “Indians”, in it he highlights the experiences of Native Americans in South Dakota from 1868 until the Massacre at Wounded Knee on December 25, 1890. The play was first performed in 1968 in London and then markedly rewritten for its American debut at the Arena Stage in Washington, DC in 1969 and later that year previewed on Broadway. In 1970, the University of South Dakota Theatre Department presented the play. Although actors were not Native American students, the theatre department sought guidance from two Lakota scholars, Clyde Dollar and Dr. John Sigstad about the culture of and beliefs held by Lakota people to make the play as accurate as possible. The USD production was well received and toured several cities in South Dakota ending its tour in Saint Paul, Minnesota at the American College Theatre Festival. The University of South Dakota presentation of “Indians” was chosen as one of the top 25 out of 283 entrants that year and won the regional award. Cover of the playbill for “Indians. USD Archives and Special Collections. Theatre programs (Box 4); “Indians” file.

Beatrice Chaffee was the first and only woman chair of the Department of Music at the University of South Dakota (USD). Her background was in music education. Ms. Chaffee taught music and choir to K-12 grades in schools in Pennsylvania, Iowa and South Dakota. In 1961 she received her Master of Music Degree from USD and joined the faculty of the USD Department of Music in 1964. Her husband, Carlton Chaffee, was a faculty member in the USD Department of Music since 1958 and died prematurely in 1964. On September 1, 1971, Beatrice Chaffee became the Chair of the Department of Music and remained in that position for several years. Aside from teaching in the university, Beatrice Chaffee composed music for children’s operettas and conducted well-received workshops on music education nationally. At USD she was also known as the “Singing Lady” who presented regular programs on KUSD radio “School of the Air” which started in the 1950s. As “the Singing Lady” Ms. Chaffee also performed in Slagle Auditorium for elementary classes . During her tenure as chair, Beatrice Chaffee is mentioned frequently in Volante and Vermillion Plain Talk (VPT) articles. During the 50th anniversary celebration of KUSD radio in 1972, she was lauded for her role in promoting music programs on the radio (VPT, May 18, 1972). Thus, Beatrice Chaffee was the first woman to head a department in the College of Fine Arts. She is known for her administrative skills, engaging teaching, and academic work in music education for several decades. Beatrice Chaffee leading a “Singing Lady” class in Slagle Auditorium in 1972. USD Photographs, negative # 10929.6_1, Series 10.

The year 1972 marked the 83rd year of football at USD and the 50th anniversary of the North Central conference (NCC). The last time USD football won the NCC championship was in 1951. A combination of an impressive and talented football team and excellent coaching under head coach Joe Salem, winner the District Six Coach of the Year award in 1972, propelled the team to become co-champions with an overall score of 9 wins and one loss to the University of North Dakota. Senior co-captains were Joe Trudeau (82) and John Devine (61), (Volante August 29, 1972). In 1972 Joe went on to win the first “Harry Gamage Award” named after Harry Gamage who at that time was the winningest USD football coach. Trudeau and Devine were inducted into the Coyote Sports Hall of Fame in 1992. The entire team was inducted into the Coyote Sports Hall of Fame in 2010. The year 1972 represented a triumphal time for football at USD that would continue for the next two years. Archives and Special Collections. USD Archives, Athletics, Football, Box 4, 1972 Coyote Football guide. The picture of the 1972 football team. The caption were found in the January 1973 South Dakotan alumni publication includes the names of individual players. USD Photograph Collection, Series 10, 11054.29. Joe Trudeau. USD Photograph Collection, Series 10, 10921.6. Football coaches in 1972. Front row: Al Johnson, Jim Nixon, Joe Salem and Chuck Koch. Back row: Jim Leto, Gene Macken, Dan Runkle, Marv Mortenson and Tim McGovern. USD Photograph Collection, Series 10, 1054.24.

The Armory, now called the Belbas Center, was the first indoor athletic building constructed in 1905 at the University of South Dakota (USD) where enrollment was 450 students. Aside from being a venue for military sciences, athletics, and physical education, it served as a place for social activities. Twenty-four years later a building was built as enrollment more than doubled and physical education, intercollegiate and intramural sports needs increased. A unique feature of the “New Armory”, as it was called, was a swimming pool. By the 1970s, student enrollment reached 5,000 students and the “New Armory” was inadequate to serve the needs of students. In addition, women now participated in intercollegiate sports such as basketball, track, gymnastics, and swimming. In 1972, the South Dakota legislature passed a funding bill to plan for a multi-purpose physical education and recreation facility. Envisioned were offices, spaces for physical education, swimming, recreation, athletics, and larger events used by students and community members. The building was called the DakotaDome. The photograph below shows Governor Richard Kneip signing the legislation providing planning funding for the DakotaDome. Sitting next to Governor Kneip are President Richard Bowen and USD Director of Athletics Dr. Carl Miller. The gentlemen standing flanking the governor are USD alums Lauren Lewis, a prominent lawyer in Sioux Fall, and Joe Robbi, lawyer, and managing general partner of the Miami Dolphins football team. ” Picture of Governor Kneip signing the planning legislation for DakotaDome” from USD Photograph Collection, series 10, 11266.2 Lauren Lewis and Joe Robbi, along with lawyer and alum Stanley Siegel served as national co-chairs for the USD fund drive to raise $4.5 million towards the construction of the DakotaDome (“DakotaDome plans underway”, The South Dakotan, April 1973). Groundbreaking for the facility occurred in 1976 and the building was completed in 1979. Find more information in USD Archives and Special Collections about the strategies used to raise funds from alumni, students and community supporters. Archives also contains architectural renderings of the proposed building, and how the DakotaDome came to be an iconic structure on the USD campus. Photograph of an architect’s rendering of the DakotaDome from Series 2, USD Photographs (Color). Buildings/ Campus Views/ DakotaDome. References: Cummings, Cedric. “The University of South Dakota 1862-1966”. Dakota Press. 1975, pages 311-312 (enrollment numbers), 98, 109 (Old Armory), 193, 169, 180 (New Armory).

The Special Olympics, created in 1968, provides year-round sports training and athletic competition for special needs children and adults. The program was originally sponsored by the Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Foundation. Accreditation of programs in the United States was authorized by the founder of the Special Olympics, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, sister of Rose Kennedy who had intellectual challenges. Ms. Shriver received a degree in social work and was an accomplished athlete at Stanford University. Throughout her life, she was a philanthropist and a pioneer for the rights and acceptance of individuals with intellectual disabilities. 1973 marked the sixth year that the University of South Dakota received accreditation to sponsor this program. In charge of the USD program was Chuck Spencer, coordinator of curriculum for the Department of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Athletics. This was also his third year as state director of the program (Volante, October 9, 1973). The image shows Eunice Kennedy Shriver talking with Chuck Spencer in 1973. The Special Olympics motto behind the pair reads “Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.” (Vermillion Plain Talk, October 11, 1973). From the USD Photograph Collection, Series 10, 11266.2.

The I. D. Weeks Library hosts its digital collections in the Digital Library of South Dakota. Highlighted here is Andreas’ Historical Atlas of Dakota, published by A. T. Andreas in Chicago in 1884, and is part of the Herman P. Chilson Collection of Western Americana. The term “atlas” refers to a collection of maps. This 260-page volume includes maps of Dakota Territory (modern-day North and South Dakota from 1868 until their admission as states in 1889) along with plat maps of counties, townships, and much more. According to the preface, the atlas was created with contributions from thousands of people. Among the prominent contributors was Dr. Frank Burdick, a physician, newspaper publisher, entrepreneur, politician, and mayor of Vermillion, Clay County, Dakota Territory. Following the maps, the atlas provides descriptions of geography, topography, climate, soil characteristics, and the “healthfulness” of cities and counties in Dakota Territory. It also offers a chronology of Native peoples who lived in the area and of the settlers who moved west. Many of the earliest explorers were fur trappers. After the Dakota Territory was formally opened for settlement in 1861, farmers, ranchers, teachers, and businesspeople arrived from the east. Additional sections include census data for each county and major cities, the monetary valuation of counties, and educational highlights, such as the founding of Yankton College and the University of Dakota. Military posts are also documented. A separate section focuses on the Black Hills, reflecting the rapid settlement of the region after gold was discovered during Custer’s 1874 expedition and the subsequent formation of mining companies. The final section features short biographies of prominent men from across Dakota Territory, accompanied by engraved portraits and illustrations of notable buildings. Andreas’ Historical Atlas of Dakota provides a remarkable window into life in Dakota Territory before the creation of North and South Dakota. Today, this digital resource remains valuable for researchers interested in the demography, history, geography, geology, and settlement patterns of the region in the late 19th century. For more information about Alfred T. Andreas and late 19th-century cartography, see Doris Peterson’s 2011 blog post: Andreas’ Historical Atlas of Dakota Map of Dakota Territory, 1884 including the counties, cities, roads, railroads, rivers, and topography. From https://explore.digitalsd.org/digital/collection/chilson/id/484/rec/1. An example of a page of biographical information showing an engraving of Frank N. Burdick, MD from Vermillion. The atlas prominently featured Yankton and Clay Counties.

Digital Images of “Indians of North America, Prisoners of War Series”, Chilson Collection (https://explore.digitalsd.org/digital/collection/chilson/search/searchterm/Bailey%2C%20Dix%20%26%20Mead/field/contra/mode/exact/conn/and/page/1 William Richard (W. R.) Cross was born in Vermont in 1839. He learned photography from his brother Daniel Cross who was a Union Civil War photographer. In 1867, W. R. Cross moved to Omaha, Nebraska, and married Jennie Church. Subsequently, they lived in Niobrara, Nebraska for 12 years where W. R. Cross took pictures of Native Americans. In 1878 he resided on the Spotted Tail Agency, later known as the Rosebud Reservation. There he befriended John A. Anderson, who became his assistant and would reside on the reservation from 1885 to 1911. From 1890 until his death in 1907, W. R. Cross lived in Hot Springs, SD. His photography includes images of Indians of North America, scenes from western parts of South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, and portraits of settlers. The digital images in this series, as part of the Chilson Collection, include “Indians of North America, Prisoners of War.” In the description of the series, the following include: “From the series of twenty-four views of Sitting Bull and his camp photographed by W. R. Cross and published by Bailey, Dix & Mead, at Fort Randall, Dakota Territory, in 1882.” This stereograph depicts One Bull and Black Prairie Chicken. Chilson, E99. D1 I53. Several private and public collections contain W. R. Cross’ digital photographs and stereographs. The largest public collection is in the Black Hills State University, South Dakota Digital Library, W. R. Cross Photograph Collection, which contains 542 images in stereoscope card and single print formats (https://explore.digitalsd.org/digital/collection/WRCross). W. R. Cross’ images provide a testament to late 19th century Nebraska and South Dakota history and people. References: William R. Cross biography Lynne Marie Mitchell, William Richard Cross, Photographer on the Nebraska South Dakota Frontier, South Dakota Historical Society, Volume 20, pages 81-95, 1990. 2. USD Archives and Special Collections Blog, images of Sitting Bull with W. R. Cross. Sarah A. Hanson-Pareek. “An extremely rare and perhaps significant photograph of Tatanka Iyotake (Sitting Bull),” September 16, 2020. https://archivesandspecialcollections.wordpress.com/category/w-r-cross/ 3. Bailey, Dix, and Mead publishers of photographs George Dix and his business partners Bailey and Mead) were based at Fort Randall, Dakota Territory. They produced a series of photographs of Sitting Bull and his band of Sioux Indians imprisoned at Fort Randall in 1882. It is possible that Bailey, Dix & Mead commissioned photographer William R. Cross from Hot Springs, D.T., to create the photographic series. https://archiveswest.orbiscascade.org/ark:80444/xv367418

This section from a 1915 South Dakota map shows Cedar Pass Scenic Highway that went from the Oacoma area to Interior. In the 1920s and before, many roads in the United States received names. They were often associated with a booster group which collected dues and published trail guides and newsletters. Please contact us if you have information about the Cedar Pass Scenic Highway or its booster association. The South Dakota map was published by the Geographical Publishing Company of Chicago, Illinois in 1915. After the 1920’s, the United States and many of the states developed a numbering system for roads. This route was slightly altered to become US Highway 16, and later, altered again to become Interstate 90. This map will become part of the Chilson Collection. The following is the source of this information and more: “Transportation and Tourism” in A new South Dakota history, edited by Herbert T. Hoover and John E. Miller (Sioux Falls SD: The Center for Western Studies, Augustana College, 2005), 483-498. Weingroff, Richard F. From names to numbers: the origins of the U.S. numbered highway system. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration. http://wwwcf.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/numbers.cfm (accessed February 15, 2011).

Are any of your favorite books set in an archive or a rare book library? Do they involve characters doing archival research? Here are a few of my favorite fiction books that feature archives or rare books.