The Corn Palace

We Did It Again!

Sometimes, especially without reservations, we have difficulty getting three camp sites together. Such was the case last night. We called ahead to the R&R Campground in Mitchell, South Dakota. They said to come on in and they would see what they could do for us. Yes, they could give us three sites, but they were not near each other. Since we share food, it would kind of pose a hardship. The staff was so accommodating, they said they would try to work something out. Sure enough they did! They had an 80 ft. site and the TTT's said " No Problem!" We are only 22 ft. each and we could piggy-back on electricity. Two of us were given a ride to the site prior to registering to make sure it was long enough. We would fit! We each even ended up with our own electricity as there was a 50 amp., a 30 amp. and 20 amp. Don't we look sharp?! The staff even had to come and take pictures. They said it was a "first" for them. What delightful people. They even told us about a pizza special, ordered it for us and hand-delivered it to our site. Of course we did pay for it! All you campers out there that are following our blog and ever in Mitchell, S.D, area, stop there! Nice clean place with a great staff!

Since the Corn Place, which by the way is the only one in the world, opened at 8 AM, we were almost the first visitors of the day.

The Corn Palace, Mitchell, S.D.

It is quite an amazing place. There have been three palaces. The first one was built in 1892, the second in 1905 and the current one in 1921. Photos of every Corn Palace since 1892 line the walls of the interior of the building. There are also permanent interior corn murals.

Display showing how a design comes to reality

To me the most amazing thing was how and what they used to decorate the outside of the Corn Palace yearly. Each year local artists submit their ideas and one is chosen. The outside of the Corn Palace is stripped and redecorated with new corn and grains.

The design is drawn on tar paper and the artist will note what color corn or grain goes where. In early summer the process of removing the "old" and "on with the new". After stripping away the old, the grains are first tied in bundles and attached. These grains, all 3,000 bushels, consist of milo, rye, oat heads and sour dock. The murals containing corn have to wait until late summer when the corn crop is ready. Over half million ears are sawed in half length-wise and nailed to the building following those tar paper patterns. What is the cost do to this annually? Around $130,000. This is quite a feat every year. So again, if you are near Mitchell, stop by and see the people working!

Outside Mural

And so our journey through South Dakota comes to an end. We are headed for a casino in Kansas for the night. Cheap entertainment, if we keep our money in the rigs!

Clock in a Park across from the Corn Palace.
Time to Leave.

The TTT's.....heading home.