OR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  April 18, 2008
CONTACT:  Helen B Louise, (605) 773-3798 or Chelle Somsen, (605) 773-5521

Cultural Heritage Center exhibits recent donations

PIERRE, S.D. -- Select items recently donated to the Museum and State Archives of the South Dakota State Historical Society are currently on display in the lobby of the South Dakota Cultural Heritage Center. 

Some items the museum is displaying include:

n      a corn planter used near Sioux Falls in the 1870s,

n      a 1950s blender,

n      a painted plate of Chief Shooting Hawk of the Yankton Nakota,

n      a Naja Shrine Temple fez hat from Deadwood,

n      a 1910s promotional pincushion from Centerville,

n      a 1980s Aberdeen Central High School letterman’s jacket,

n      a 1980s “Heartthrob” board game for teenage girls,

n      and a movie poster from 2007’s National Treasure: Book of Secrets, part of which was filmed in the Black Hills. 

State Archives recent donations include

n      one panoramic photo of Deadwood taken in 1909,

n      Grant County Coroner Records from 1913-1963,

n      Haakon County Naturalization Records from 1915-1943,

n      a family photo album of vacation spots in the Black Hills, including images of the Black Hills Ordinance Depot in 1942,

n      microfilm reels of Pine Ridge Agency efficiency reports and telegrams from 1892-1919, map and two booklets on the opening of the Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Indian Reservations in 1909,

n      and various written materials collected by a soldier while in Vietnam, including: currency, religious service schedule, “Vehicle Operating Guide for Driving in Vietnam,” “The M16A1 Rifle:  Preventative Maintenance,” and “Nine Rules for U.S. Military in Vietnam.”

The exhibit presents visitors with a sampling of the recent donations, and helps show the various types of items that the museum and archives actively collect. 

“The wide variety of items that the museum and archives have received is incredible and the recent donation case is just a sampling of that.” said Chelle Somsen, state archivist.

If you have any items that you would like to donate to the South Dakota State Historical Society, please contact Dan Brosz, museum curator of collections, at (605) 773-6013; or Matthew Reitzel, manuscript archivist, at (605) 773-3615.