BLACK HILLS & BADLANDS REGION Center of the Nation Monument COME TO THE CENTER IN BELLE FOURCHE The beautifully situated town of Belle Fourche (pronounced ‘Bell Foosh’) touts its status as the “Geographic Center of the Nation.” A granite monument in a riverside park behind the Center of the Nation Visitor Center marks the town’s proximity to the geographic center of the nation’s 50 states. But historically, the community can be described as the Center of Cowboy Country – the rail hub where the great cattle herds of the Northern Plains were gath-ered and shipped east back in the heyday of the open range. That wild and free era drew to a close with the last big cattle roundup in the West, which occurred in Belle Fourche in 1902. The fencing of the range changed the nature of ranch-ing, but it did not diminish its importance. The town remains a supply center for the vast livestock ranges in the surrounding tri-state area. As you mingle with local shoppers along the downtown streets or join the crowds at a local rodeo, remember – the cowboys are real and the area’s rural Western culture is vibrant. That culture is on full display during the Black Hills held annually over the Fourth of July weekend at the Belle Fourche rodeo grounds. The grounds host numer-ous local, regional and national rodeos throughout the summer. You can visit two bucking brothers, rodeo greats Marvin and Mark Garrett, as you stroll downtown Belle Fourche. Statues of each, bucking high on a rank bronc, stand on opposite corners. The artist is Tony Chytka, an area rancher and former rodeo bull riding champ himself. A visit to the Tri-State Museum , located at 415 Fifth Avenue in the same facility as the visitor center, gives vacationers a great overview of that heritage and early settlement in the corners of South Dakota, Montana and Wyoming. After viewing the exhibits and browsing through the gift shop, go out back to the deck and down to the park where the 21-foot-diameter compass rose commemo-rates Belle Fourche as the Center of the Nation. • 60 Roundup , one of the nation’s premier rodeo events,
South Dakota Vacation Guide SD Vacation Guide 2017: Page 60
