After our walk in Bismarck, ND on Sunday we drove to Pierre, South Dakota for our second capital of the day. Pierre (Peer) is named for Pierre (Pee-Air) Chateau, a fur trader in the Missouri River in the early 1800s. South Dakotans will know youre from out of town if you use the wrong pronunciation. Duane drove 90 miles to join us on the walk to South Dakotas Capitol. It was wonderful to have his company. We were able to get a good view of the capitol from the back as we headed to Capitol Lake. We saw lots of waterfowl on the lake and some sunbathing turtles. The Governors Mansion, located on the east shore is the most modern weve seen, having been built completed in 2005. It was also the most accessible - we could have walked up to the front door and knocked. The Fighting Stallions Memorial on Capitol Lake is a memorial by the people of South Dakota to celebrate the lives of eight men, including Governor George S. Mickelson, who were killed in the crash of a state aircraft in 1993. Its a life-size cast bronze by Korczak Ziolkowski, who began Crazy Horse Memorial in the Black Hills. The South Dakota State Capitol Building was built between 1905-1910. It is a modified version of the Montana State Capitol, built using plans bought from Montana for $15 (a fact we learned in Montana). According to legend, 66 Italian artists were hired to lay terrazzo tile flooring throughout the capitol building. Each artist was given a special blue stone as a signature stone to place somewhere in the capitol at his discretion. Only 55 of the 66 blue stones have ever been found. A lot of the stained glass in the capitol has been removed for cleaning, including the glass from the top of the rotunda, but I think the blue (tarp) was actually quite striking from below. There was no one out front to take our picture, so Duane did the honor. Unfortunately, that means the only photo I have of him is from the back. We found this buffalo statue as we walked back to the start point through the downtown area. After the walk we all stopped at Zestos for ice cream. We had gone by early on the walk and knew we had to go back for some of Pierres favorite ice cream.
Posted on: Thu, 14 Aug 2014 00:04:19 +0000
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