1 20 533 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document JUNE 9TH, 1972 - THE RAPID CITY FLOOD Recollections of Edgar W. and Joan T. Matuska of the Rapid City Flood Joan and I purchased Samuel’s Studio on January 1st, 1972, from Irving Bank, my previous boss of almost 6 years. Samuel’s Studio was located on the back side of the Baken Park Shopping Center, #25. Joan was teaching Chemistry/Biology at Stevens High School and was the Cheerleading Advisor as well. Joan joined me in the active management of the Studio upon retiring from teaching at the start of June, 1972. I had retired in 1970 from my SD Army National Guardsman duties as a Tactical Training Officer in the South Dakota Military Academy and as a 1st Lieutenant and Executive Officer of the Public Information Detachment of the SDANG. We lived in a small rented house on 3rd Street, a half-a-block from the County Court House and Jail. BRAEBURN ADDITION JUNE 9th, It started to rain in the morning, turned into a heavy rain, and then became a cloud burst that continued to get heavier and heavier. Flooding was reported in some areas of Rapid City and the Black Hills. As new owners, we had just completed a remodeling effort which include new paneling, paint, remodeling of the dressing room, and re-lacquering of the paneled walls and work tables. At the end of the business day on June 9th, 1972, I cleaned up the last brush from the last lacquered panel wall. Joan went home to be with her visiting brother, John Doom and his fiancée, (MAS) Mary Ann Schaefer. I, in my usual business attire of suit and tie, drove out to the Braeburn Addition to check on and babysit my ex-boss’s house. It was one of two houses located on a small sliver of land between the cliffs and Rapid Creek. After crossing the small bridge that connected that small sliver of land to the rest of the Braeburn Addition, I arrived at the house, picked up the mail, and used the garage door opener to access the structure. I placed the mail on the hood of my boss’s Mark lll Lincoln and went into the house. The rain was intensifying to even more of a downpour, the likes I had never seen before or since. After checking the house for leaks or structural damage from the rain or wind, I proceeded out to the bridge to see what was happening to the water level below it. On the bridge were numerous people, 15, 20, or so, all doing the same, checking the level of the water under the bridge. They were wet, worried, frightened, and very concerned. Included in this grouping was the Hogan family; husband, wife, and son, from the house next door to Irv’s. The Hogan family, plus numerous others from the Braeburn Addition, continued to watch as the water rose. In a short time, I was very wet and soaked to the bone. I was bare headed and in a very wet shirt, suit jacket and pants, shoes, and socks. The water rose to the very bottom of the bridge understructure, paused, and then started to recede. I was told later that this happened because debris, caused by rushing water up stream, was damming up the creek. I thought the worst was over, that I didn’t need to protect Mr. Bank’s home any longer, gave my apologies, promised to return, and excused myself to go home and change into dry clothes. I left for our house in the Studio’s station wagon, heavily loaded with wedding photographic equipment for the next day. Upon reaching home, Joan made me a sandwich and we made plans to go back to the Braeburn Addition. I dried off, changed into the only real grubs I had, my National Guard jacket, fatigues, hat, and boots complete with SDANG patches and officer bars. The material in that uniform makes it and the boots almost indestructible and provides a reasonable amount of weather protection. Hey, it was better than a suit and tie! The four of us, Joan, John, MAS, and I piled into Joan’s blue Volkswagen Bug and set off to the Canyon Lake area of Rapid City. First, we tried to travel down Jackson Boulevard and we were stopped by police just prior to Sheridan Lake Road. We then tried to travel down Canyon Lake Drive from Baken Park, but soon became concerned with the height of the water under that bridge. We then went to West Main, across Sioux San Drive, and then up Canyon Lake Drive to Jackson Boulevard where we were again stopped by a police officer in front of the Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church. He said, “Hey mister you can’t go any further, turn around”. I said, “Don’t be ridiculous, I just came from there, it wasn’t all that bad!”. He said, “Look in the Lake (Canyon Lake)”. I did and there was the house that had been next to my Boss’s house, floating down the middle of the lake with the son of the neighbor, the Hogans, riding on top the roof . . . headed for the Dam. We turned around and backtracked to the Studio in the Baken Park Shopping Center. THE STUDIO AND BAKEN PARK The Studio was located on the back side of the Baken Park Shopping Center . . . or as I called it “The Rear End of Baken Park!”. Upon reaching the Studio, we threw our efforts in putting stuff sitting on the floor or on low shelving, up upon the countertops. We picked up camera equipment and placed it even higher in the camera room, production room, and darkroom. We picked up most of the completed orders and our archive negative files, but missed 10 or so class composites on the front counter from our out of town contract schools. Those composites had just been returned from the calligrapher that morning. We also missed several boxes of negatives from the Class of 1972 and some current weddings. We spent weeks and hundreds of hours washing negatives of those files that we missed setting up high enough. The washing process was to no avail as the bacteria from the flood waters completely destroyed the images contained within the negatives. Many of the Out-Of-Town School Composites had to be completely recreated, sometimes by acquiring billfold images back from our Out-Of-Town Senior customers. Two front windows of the Studio were broken out by the flood waters but the front door remained intact. The flood waters swept out much the furniture in the front reception area, stripped the walls of framed portraits, overturned the customer counter with our composites, and left a 3 to 8 foot water mark on the walls of the Studio. In 8 hours, due to flood damage, we doubled our studio debt. Then, someone opened the front door or our Studio and hollered: “YOU’D BETTER GET OUT . . . THERE’S A WALL OF WATER COMING! We grabbed what we could, ran outside and jumped into the blue Volkswagen and headed north towards the rear edge of the bank. As we turned the corner, a wall of water caught the back end of the car and gave us a push around the side of the bank. We were lucky, we made it out of the path of the flood waters . . . others were not so lucky including several cars traveling both east and west on West Main Street including a bus of children and their adult advisors. What happened to the cars has never been clear in our minds, but the bus continued eastward towards the front of Baken Park Shopping Center. The side of the bus was being battered by the flood waters that were now rising and rushing across the front parking lot of the Shopping Center. This forced the driver to pull into the Baken Park Gas Station on the corner of Moutainview Road and West Main Street. The driver wedged the bus up against the South side of gas pumps of the station which prevented the bus from being swept into the main flow of the flood waters. The people in the bus evacuated themselves from the bus into the gas station and perched upon its counters, pop machine, and freezer to get out of the water. The bus group remained there until much later, when they were transported, after the flood waters had started to recede, from the gas station to the Baken Park Shopping Center proper. None of us in Baken Park, knew at that time, if any of the bus occupants had survived or that one of the children from the bus group was injured with bad cuts to the legs. As we pulled the Volkswagen around the corner to the front of the Shopping Center, the water flow was already causing vehicles to stall with motors sputtering and quitting. We drove by a car stopped, full of young girls, who’s motor had quit. Not wanting to have the same happen to us, I drove up on the awning covered sidewalk of the shopping center to a point between Mills Drug & Osborn’s. We exited the car and immediately ran back to the stalled car as the water started to overflow the hood of the car and push it backwards into deeper water. John, my brother-in-law, and I along with several others assisted the girls out of the side windows of their car as the doors could not be opened because of the pressure of the flood waters rushing around the car’s body THE FRONT OF THE BAKEN PARK SHOPPING CENTER The flood waters’ flow continued to intensify and its level continued to rise. We did not know how high the water was going to get. A younger gentleman was leaning against his pickup that had high livestock railings on its sides. I asked him if we could use it as a ladder to move the 40 or so people that were standing in the parking lot, to the roof of the Shopping Center. This seemed like a good idea to most so the process was started. We stepped up into the bed of the pickup, grab a bar of the livestock railing, and pulled ourselves up onto the awning and then the roof. From the roof, we had a spectacular view of the flood waters, the devastation, and the ominous sight of the real-estate sign between us and McDonald’s, still lit, revolving, water almost covering it, going around and around. As we watched, that eerie sign kept turning. More and more calls for help came from people on car rooftops, people hanging onto debris, or on and in the homes across Rapid Creek within that low spot between McDonald’s and Canyon Lake Drive. Unfortunately, there was’t anything we could do. As we watched, the Haggerty's Parade started. There before us, in the middle of the parking lot, were wood flat display counters . . . floating by with stacks of sweaters, shirts, towels, and blankets along with needles, threads, and other sewing notions. Almost like a funeral procession! The back and front windows of Haggerty’s had been broken out and the flood waters were clearing the inventory off the sales floor. Since, by that time, most of us were wet and cold, a number of us climbed down, waded out into the water, grabbed a handful of blankets and returned to throw them up on top of the roof. We then joined the others back on top of the roof and wrapped the blankets around ourselves. Later, we went to see if anyone in or by Haggerty’s needed help. It was an eerie and spooky sight to see flat calm water, 3 feet or so deep, from side to side and from the front to the back of the store, with no visible store fixtures or furniture. Then the fireworks started! Looking to the East, from the rooftop of Baken Park into the Gap, huge bolts of electricity started to light up the sky (courtesy of the electrical sub-station). Then the explosions and fire filled further back in the gap. The end effect was that most of us just knew that downtown Rapid City was not only flooding but being destroyed by explosions and fire. This effect was of course courtesy of the gas lines being severed as building and trailers were being torn away from their foundations. We stood there in awe . . . how frightening it is to see your world destroyed by water and fire. The fires as well as the depth and ferociousness of the waters started to receded. We descended from the roof. We then decided to see if anyone was still stranded in the gas station. The pickup truck, with the livestock railings, was used to drive out to the gas station and rescue the members of the stranded bus, including the boy that was badly cut. The person who that owned that pickup truck is unknown to me, but he was godsend and help save many that night. By this time, the people who had taken refuge in the Baken Park Shopping Center, were cold, wet, stressed, and showing signs of going into shock. They needed dry clothes, dry surroundings, & warmth. I crawled through Hardware Hank’s broken out front door, found a sledge hammer and proceeded to the front doors of SS Kresge. Up until such time that I sledged hammered their front doors, SS Kresge had only sustained damage of an inch or 2 of water in their very back storeroom. I broke out the windows of the front doors and asked everyone to enter, go to the clothes departments, and change out of their wet clothing into dry clothing and find dry blankets to wrap around themselves for warmth. They were then asked to find a place to rest in the Luncheonette area of the store. The injured boy from the bus was laid down on the counter so his wound could be cleaned. One our fellow refugees worked at Mills Drug and was ask to used her keys to open the store to obtain a first aid kit, which she did. The boy’s wounds, having been cleaned, were additionally cleansed with antiseptic and then bandaged. We found clean water and soft drinks for everyone to quench their thirst and candy bars to eat. Later that morning, I retrieved some lanterns & a camp cook stove from Hardware Hank. It was about this time that we met the first East German Band boy. The Dakota Days Band Festival was being held in Rapid City at the beginning of June, 1972. Two of the East German Band members were staying with their Rapid City Hosts, the Crowder family, whose home was near Rapid Creek. Dr Crowder and his two sons, plus the two East German Band members, were swept away by the flood waters. The Doctor and his two sons perished in the flood. Mrs. Crowder and two additional children were out of town at the time of the flood and survived. Two men in a boat on a self-appointed rescue mission found one of the boys up and clinging to a tree and pulled him into their boat. They then paddled towards the Baken Park Shopping Center. The boat hit some turbulence at or around the bridge at Baken Park and Canyon Lake Dr and overturned. They then again came to the assistance of the German boy and swam (the three of them) into the South side and front of the shopping center. They had now twice rescued the German band member. The three were all invited to change clothes in Kresge’s and warm up and the boy, who was badly scratched, was consoled and attended to by some of those who were also warming themselves in Kresge’s. While standing in front of SS Kresge Store, my brother-in-law, John, heard some screams for help. We looked out into the dark parking lot of the shopping center and saw some floating debris, with what appeared to be a small boy clinging to a wooden chair. John waded out into the rushing waters with me close behind, and we rescued the small boy. He turned out to be the second East German Band member. We carefully walked back through the water, and floating debris, towards Baken Park’s sidewalk with the second East German Band Member now in tow. John was able to reassure the boy with his language skills and our rescued lad was met with great enthusiasm by the other East German Band member. We tried to keep those of us in Baken Park, warm, comforted, and safe. We tried to reassure our little group, that come morning, help would arrive either from law enforcement, fire department, or the National Guard. We used the propane grill, appropriated from Hardware Hank and now on the lunch counter of Kresge’s, to cook and feed them with eggs borrowed from Kresge’s. Shortly before we were allowed to leave Baken Park, the Kresge’s Asst. Manager burst through his broken front doors asking who was responsible for the damage to their store . . . insisting that someone was going to have to pay. I raised my hand and told him I could be found at my Studio on the backside of Baken Park. A short time later, the Kresge’s Manager came into the store and assured me that I would not be held personally responsible for breaking his door, having people change to dry clothes, and for the eggs that we feed those who were stranded in Baked Park. He asked if we could collect the tags from the clothes that had been changed into for his bookkeeping records and then said, after viewing the damages in and around Baken Park, “We got off easy!”. While we were all eager to get home, we asked everyone to stay put until the waters had safely receded and an appropriate agency had released us. One of our group, one of the men who had rescued the first East German Band member, was very insistent that he was going to leave because he was worried that his family was concerned about what happened to him and might get hurt trying to find him. I said, no, you need to stay here until we are dismissed and asked his friend to make sure he stayed put. A short time later, he was gone. At around 6:00 - 7:00 AM the morning of the 10th, a Deputy Sheriff, in a Jeep Wagoneer, drove into Baken Park. He asked how we were doing, who was in charge, if anyone was injured, what kind of damage had occurred that needed immediate attention, and did we have any deceased individuals. He had water in the front seat if we needed any. He then asked me if I would mind trying to identify a body in the back of the Jeep. It was the young man who had rescued the East German boy and then wanted to leave to check on his family. He had walked across the bridge between Baken Park and McDonalds, stepped on a downed high wire and was electrocuted. To my knowledge, he was the last fatality of the 1972 Rapid City Flood. THE AFTERMATH After being dismissed from Baken Park, by a National Guard Officer, we drove back around the North end of Baken Park to check out the damage to the Studio. The damage, as was mentioned previously, was devastating. In 8 to 10 hours, due to flood damage, we doubled our studio debt. While we did receive one of the 1% SBA loans, most did not expect Samuel’s Studio to survive, including the loan officers of our own bank as well as the SBA. That sort of catastrophic loss, both physical and emotional, is very difficult to come back or recover from. Well, we survived and even prospered for 42 some years afterwards. In front of the Studio, and between us and Rapid Creek, lay a body, stripped of his clothing by the flood waters, whose broken limbs were twisted and horribly contorted. An image that I have never been able to shake. A week or so later, one night after 10:00 PM, the phone rang at the house. It was one of the morticians that we knew from Yankton who had traveled to Rapid City to help. He said, “We know that you live a half a block from the Courthouse. We forgot to pick up our curfew passes. We need 30 or so. You are well known. Could you go down the courthouse and pick us up some.” Sure, I said, happy to. With passes in hand, I drove to the mortuary on Kansas City and 12 Street. As I exited my car and walked up the drive way, I meet three morticians in their white coats walking down the drive way. I asked where I might find my friend and they directed me up the driveway and around the corner. They must have had second thoughts about their directions because as I turned the corner, they caught up with me and then caught me as I turned the corner and came upon two rows of bodies of 25 or more lining each side of the garage of the mortuary. The sight staggered me for a moment. Seeing one body is one thing, seeing 50 or more is a whole different story. After recovering from that startling image, I gave my friend the passes. I was asked again if I could identify anybody, I could not. I would not have been able to recognize my own mother if she had been laying there. We then left for and reached home, changed clothes, ate a little, grabbed a little sleep, and then returned to Baken Park. When we pulled aground the end of Baken Part to the Studio, our back door was open. We thought, “Oh great, we have been broken into!” Or in our case, walked into. And then appeared Shirley, our bookkeeper/office manager, starting to sweep out the mud and throwing out a dead fish. We spent the next two months cleaning, inventorying, washing negatives and prints, cutting sheetrock at the 4 foot level or higher, washing and bleaching the top and underneath the exposed 2x4s. We had to do most of the reconstruction by ourselves because carpenters, electricians, painters, and plumbers were in short supply as everyone needed them. Because the Water Treatment Plant was not functioning, clean drinking water was only available through water stations manned by the National Guard. Most of us felt uneasy about even taking a bath or shower. When John couldn’t stand it anymore, he and MAS went to the Plunge in Hot springs for a swim and a shower. In addition to John and MAS, we had two additional family members come in from Minnesota to help, Joan’s brother, Mark, and a brother-in-law, Bud. I never picked up a camera for that whole time as I could not document either my own losses or others. We were there, at the Studio, when they had the false alarm, a week or so later, that Pactola Dam had burst. We were there when a group of thieves pulled a truck up to Haggerty’s and helped their staff and volunteers load what little they could salvage and then fled and disappeared with the stolen merchandise. Irv’s house in the Braeburn Addition, was completely moved off of its foundation and came to rest some 50 yards downstream on top of the property where the Hogan home once rested. A safe, buried in the home’s crawl space, contained a number of family heirlooms, did not move but was covered over by flood mud. The safe was uncovered and recovered a week or so later by the Bank family, from within the crawlspace’s foundation layout. The crystal cabinet in the home’s dining room was lying face down in the mud on the floor, but not a pane of glass, nor a crystal plate or glass within the cabinet, was broken. Water flood marks within the house ranged from one foot to eight feet with some marks on the ceiling. As far as I can remember, no doors or windows were broken, but I may have left the door from the garage into the kitchen open. The garage roof had collapsed upon the two cars enclose within, but the garage walls remained intact and had folded in upon itself. Even though the house had been floated off its crawl space foundation, structurally it remained intact. The garage however, had been ripped off its slab foundation but remained attached to the house. The mail that I had placed upon the hood of the Mark III during the evening of the June 9th’s Rapid City Flood, was still in place on the car’s hood, even though the house had moved and the roof of the house had collapsed upon the car and caved in the car’s roof. In the early years and many years later, when the humidity was high, we could still smell the Flood as it seeped out of the walls and floor of the Studio. Many times, when it started to rain, Joan and I would suddenly find ourselves standing outside of the Studio on the sidewalk, saying nothing and just quietly watching it rain. When the radio sounds a weather alert, I do not panic but I also do not mess around . . . we move to higher ground or a safe interior room. I count myself lucky to have survived the night of the flood. I count at least four or so times that I might have not survived the event and 3 or so times that Joan, her brother and his fiancée, could have lost their lives as well. This does not count lightning, fire, gas explosion, poisonous gas, electrocution, etc. . . . all of which occurred at various places throughout the Rapid City and Black Hills Area during the Flood. We will always remember the others that were not lucky as us. Two weeks later, in the RC Journal, they ran an interview with a young lady that was supposed to get married that Saturday after that Friday, June 9th, 1972. She was one of the girls we pulled from the car that was being swept away by flood waters. When asked how she and others fared in Baken Park, she said that everything was done to keep her and others safe and sound, because after all, “The National Guard Declared Martial Law that night by at least 11:00 PM and it lasted until we were rescued the following morning”. I have jokingly since, asked my friends at the State Headquarters at Camp Rapid, when are they going to send my check for one night’s Active Duty. I did not realize it at the time, that my choice of grubby clothes proved very useful on the night of the Rapid City Flood, June 9th, 1972. Almost everyone did what I asked them to do! As best remembered & recalled by: Edgar W. & Joan T. Matuska Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Flood of 1972: a recollection Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document June 9th, 1972 arrived two days shy of my twelfth birthday. That afternoon I was pitching a little league baseball game in West Rapid for the McDonald’s sponsored team, ‘The Big Macs’. Horizon to horizon, the sky was filled with massively bulbous, pendulous clouds ranging from dark gray to black, and after I beaned a couple of batters our game was ‘called for darkness’. This was around 4 in the afternoon, two weeks prior to the Summer Solstice. The atmosphere was dead calm, with that ominous sense of ozone typical of impending thunderstorms in the Black Hills; multiplied. My parents drove me to our house midway up Cleghorn Canyon and departed to attend a civic event downtown, leaving my older brother Greg and me home alone. As dusk approached KOTA posted a running banner on the television screen warning that Rapid Creek could rise 3 to 5 feet with the impending storm. Wide-eyed and feeling adventurous, Greg and I decided to take his small motorcycle to the mouth of the canyon where Rapid Creek passed to watch this spectacle unfold. Before we got out the door the Gods unleashed the first wave of torrential rain and we reconsidered our plan. Within minutes we felt our old three story house tremble as a wall of water, initially ten feet high, forty feet wide, roared down our normally dry canyon, instantly cutting power to the house. Peering out the window we witnessed our neighbor’s culverted driveway create a huge dome in the water’s flow, which was quickly leveled. We donned rain gear and went outside to bear witness and by that time the soil of the canyon floor had dissolved, exposing huge boulders to tumble in the torrent, which we felt rumbling the earth beneath our feet. My brain could barely process the pounding rain, nor the vision of a large river where hours before stood a pastoral canyon floor. The amount of water falling from the sky gave the sense that one could drown standing face upturned, as it honestly seemed there was more H2O than oxygen in the atmosphere. Our property had two terraced walls below our home’s stone foundation and the water was just cresting the first. I was terrified realizing our parents would have no way to reach us. In candlelight, at length, Greg convinced me the likelihood of water reaching the house was remote. We went to bed, hoping for the best, having no idea if our parents survived this catastrophe. Meanwhile: When the flood hit, my folks realized there would be no way to reach the canyon, so they diverted to what they knew was high ground; our church, Canyon Lake Methodist. Many others came to the same conclusion, so the church became a sanctuary for those fleeing the rising waters. As the bird flies, the church was not too distant from the east rim of Cleghorn Canyon, so with no other way to determine our wellbeing, my father and a family friend set out to attempt a reconnaissance mission after midnight. Our home would be on the distant side of the canyon from their approach. With an arduous effort they were able to reach the rim, but with no electricity to the residences the canyon was a black hole. It was only with the frequent lightning flashes they were able to discern the contours of the canyon floor and eventually conclude that our house was still standing. Praying Greg and I were safe in the structure they returned to wait for the storm to pass and day to break. After a sleepless night the rain subsided and my parents were able to access the house on foot, as the roads leading to and into the canyon were gone. They arrived to find Greg and me safe, sound asleep. I awoke to a radically changed world. Up until that point my fledgling adolescent mind had only been able to process the epic event before me in Cleghorn Canyon, but that was simply one of many sources that fed the Rapid Creek watershed. Everything upstream from Cleghorn had been horribly flooded with lives lost, but it was the failure of the Canyon Lake Dam at the edge of town that unleashed utter carnage. Like all of Rapid City, we spent the following months with the daunting task of helping townsfolk salvage and clear what little remained in the flood plain. The devastation was mind numbing, as were the 238 souls taken by that apocalyptic night. This was the Black Hills’ ‘perfect storm’. In the immediate aftermath, there were surreal aspects to the flood’s demolition. Boats and cars were dispersed throughout the city, lodged in trees, stacked, or planted at odd angles in the mud of the flood plain. Story Book Island, a menagerie of structural renditions of fairy tales had been dislodged and transported to nonsensical locations. Cinderella’s walk-in pumpkin resided in the Baken Park parking lot. Thousands of fish, dispensed from the hatchery above Canyon Lake were dead or struggling to survive in puddles throughout the city on normally dry ground. Ironically, claw foot bathtubs were freed to roam and settled in bizarre situations. Everywhere was lumber and construction material, once evidence of human ingenuity, now reduced to nature’s entropy, accumulated at any point that provided resistance to the night’s radical currents. And most disturbing, every house still standing in the flood plain had a water line clearly demarcating the height to which the floodwater, with all its detritus, had invaded the tranquility of human habitation. Many of those houses stood for years as the city and county sought to define the flood plain and restrict future redevelopment. Creek front homes that were once idyllic dwellings were now condemned and vacant. This meant that in those years following the flood, as a teenager with friends seeking places to hang out, we had a variety of homes to choose from with access to Rapid Creek. This experience was strangely conflicted. Tragedy afforded us this luxury. Teenagers are not particularly known for reflection, but if we were ever too irreverent, there was always that water line in the house to remind us of the privilege we indulged. And that omnipresent line was often above eye level. Ross Rudel Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Ross Rudel Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document In June, 1972, after graduating from South Dakota State University in Brookings, my three female college friends and I decided to go on a trip before our jobs started. We headed to the Black Hills in my car with only sleeping bags. I had relatives in the Rapid City area and also friends after working a summer during college years at the Powder House Lodge near Keystone. When we got to Rapid City on June 9, we had to spend a half day there getting the car ignition fixed. But then we headed to Keystone where we spent the afternoon visiting some friends and hanging out in the town. We had decided earlier to stay at a campground. We had only sleeping bags, no tent. It was raining hard as I was talking to my Mom on a pay phone by the Conoco gas station on the main street. Because mud was sliding down the hill across the street, I jokingly said, “We will be home sometime….if we don’t drown out here because it’s raining so hard.” We then drove east on Hwy 40 to the Harney Peak Campground east of Keystone that was on the Battle Creek side with an old schoolhouse on the property. We tried to spread out in a picnic shelter but, because it was raining so hard, the owners said we could take our sleeping bags and sleep in their camper. It was usually on a pickup but was being stored on the ground next to their trailer house by the stream. It was dark and raining hard. All we could hear in the camper was the rain beating down. We had just gotten into the sleeping bags when the campground owner knocked and said we should get out because the creek was rapidly rising. We did and jumped in the car to start driving out of the campground. (It was a good thing we had gotten the ignition problem repaired earlier that day!) When we got to the approach going out of the campground, the water was rapidly rising and we couldn’t get the car up out of the mud. We were seeing trash cans and debris floating away. The other girls got out into the water and pushed the car up onto the road as I spun the wheels. We saw other campers trying to get out of the campground in their cars. We went down to help push a Georgia man & his family out as they left their campers. As we got them up onto the road, we saw the camper topper we had been in go downstream and then the trailer home of the campground owners floated away in the quickly flooding area. Those of us in cars on the hill soon realized that we were surrounded by flood waters and could go no further. In the dark, we had no idea what was beyond us or how much the water might continue to rise. We four girls sat in the car in our wet clothes, turning it on periodically and opening the door to check the water level. By then, the radio had gone to emergency services transmission. In the middle of the night when we heard our names listed as missing, we put our driver’s licenses in our jean’s pockets in case we were swept away. It continued to be a fearful night, but so far we were alive. 2 When daylight came along with a cloudy hazy day, we saw the flood waters with debris floating by. I remember feeling so nauseated because I was afraid I would see someone I knew from Keystone float by along with the cars and debris. During that day, the father/grandfather of the Georgia camping group, walked among the dozen or so of us on the highway rise carrying a gun as he drank from a bottle of liquor. He verbally threatened that he would do whatever he needed to so his family would have food and be the first in line if we were rescued. Later in the day, a National Guard helicopter hovered over and asked if we needed anything. They could not rescue us at the time since we were all right and they needed to help others. They did bring back heart medication for the Georgia man. Also later that day, we saw people on the other side of the raging flood waters. We decided to yell across spelling one of our names (the easiest one) with her mother’s phone number and asked them to call to tell her we were alive and all right. We knew she would then call the other parents. That night, as we tried to sleep off and on in the car, we locked the doors because of the Georgia man’s threats. On the third day, the National Guard came through the waters with a very high truck. They had been searching for survivors and bodies east of Keystone. We said we needed to contact our parents. They said we could return to Keystone with them where there was a National Guard rescue center that had been established. We left the car and our belongings and rode in the back of the truck. The others in the group chose to stay with their cars in hopes of being able to leave when the water receded. As we rode in the truck going in and out of the water down the washed out highway, we saw the destruction of east Keystone, old Keystone and the main area. We were immediately given tetanus and typhoid shots, along with something to eat. Though because we were so emotionally distressed, we weren’t very hungry. We wanted to try to reach our parents but there were, of course, no phone connections in the Keystone area. Fortunately, a highway patrolman said he could take us into his home about 20 miles away on the eastern side of Rapid City where they had phone service. We were exhausted and thankful for his help. He, his wife, and the neighbors let us each go to a home and call our parents. We were so happy to be able to connect with them and they were so thankful we were alive. Later that day, we went to the Rapid City High School to help with the rescue efforts. I remember sitting with a man who was trying to find dry clothing and a pair of shoes. He was so distraught because he didn’t know if his wife and son made it through the flood or if they were swept away. We both cried when they walked in the door! 3 I don’t remember the highway patrolman’s name, but wish I could thank him again. We did keep in touch with the owners of the campground for a while. They saved our lives since we would not have heard or seen the Battle Creek rising outside the camper. Eleven people died in the Keystone area, all campers caught in sites along creeks. Seventy structures were damaged or lost. I will always remember and often revisit the memories of that experience. The scenes of devastation, the bodies in a row by makeshift morgues, the sadness in the eyes of those who lost one or more of the 238 lost friends and family, are not things you forget. I know I am lucky to be one of the survivors. We four girls went on to careers in helping professions. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Rebecca Gottschalk https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/38396/archive/files/616111140042dfa0bb1c53b2943a2115.jpg?Expires=1779926400&Signature=KEAE6uy0RsBXq9pLmq7XfoafE0h2In9DVswzyoocYa1QswBo4FHcaT6NVVUm2sttrtArN4U8QZct0foC9pC5qoecrhoU11nwT0UdFDjPid%7EqCnSspRp0G3c1EI5zmfr8H8uA5caRk2aYQHSRTCDlrLG953O7SYshEMRaYC9E64yifvblH34Aq3yAKqmoP0tNsz-2kN18Jrfltb%7EPqTRQlLas8fkzbNyg3uWDxFsyoshIYON0wT8DrBmgl6Xp3U8ryQzO%7Ea4lJ-N00pS3ytMcRGrkxFY688rrvUUwaBBp7EPSW%7Ep5WZU342Y6J8s5LtZKYNbOvcbPEUPoKX6iWx-aag__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM e460394cef56c5c41078c5ccbbd34998 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document The day after the flood I volunteered to help. Being a member of the Rapid City Scuba Diving Club, I offered to search for bodies. One memory that I will never forget was behind the Osheim Funeral Home. There was a sunken car which I checked for bodies. Luckily none were found. the funeral home was overwhelmed as they had to use their garage floor to receive the bodies. There were a dozen or more laying on the floor. I'll never forget seeing a deceased lady with her hair still in curlers. They had a large water truck on hand that they were using to wash the bodies. they also used it to wash the mud off of me and my equipment. The city was struggling to keep the water treatment plant operating as the flood had washed away their screening on the Rapid Creek side that prevented debris from getting into the water treatment plant. The result was debris plugging up their three sump pumps in the pump room. Craig Langerman and myself were asked to dive into the sump room and clean the debris from the screens around the pumps. This turned into a full time job. The would turn off one of the pumps at a time so we could safely clear the debris. This was a challenge as there was zero visibility and we had to do everything by feel. During this time we wore holes in our wet suits and plugged up our regulators. We worked 8-10 hours a day for several weeks after the flood, and after that we were still on call for several weeks. It was a gratifying feeling that we were able to help. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Duane Grosz Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document I was living in Rapid City as a child when the 1972 flood took place. My father was employed with a non profit organization through the Wesleyan Church. He was assigned to Sioux Chapel in Rapid City from 1970-1974. Sioux Chapel was located on 11th Street (right beside Rapid Creek). Our home sat right beside the chapel on the bank of Rapid Creek. It was destroyed the night of the flood. We left and went to friends who lived just outside the city at a higher elevation when the law enforcement officers came door to door warning of the possible flood waters. From the clocks we found afterwards in the pieces of our home….we left 20 minutes before the wall of water hit our home. We would not have survived that night. The wall of water picked our home up off the foundation and dropped part of it into the basement. The water lines were at the ceiling on the first floor. Our family lost most of all we owned. I was sent to live with relatives in Ohio that summer while my parents worked to put the pieces of our life there in Rapid City back together. Interestingly, the chapel structure survived and was used until the rezoning of that area when it had to be relocated. My brother and I made a trip to Rapid City and the Black Hills three years ago. We spent some time along the creek bank where our house stood (now a golf course). We had played in the creek many a time and we both recalled the night it became a monster of destruction. We both will never forget the events of that night or the days immediately following as we looked for our belongings. I was only 10 years old but it left indelible memories on my childhood. My heart has always been grateful the flood did not take lives in my immediate family but I have always felt empathy for those who did and experienced the trauma of those flood waters. My father worked with Gerald Yellow Hawk who is scheduled to do a Remembrance Blessing on June 8th as part of the 50 year commemoration. I am grateful that the city still “remembers” and honors those who worked and volunteered to help rescue, comfort and care for the many who were affected by the disaster. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Lenore (Drillien) Humble Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document RON EIKENBERRY REMEMBERS THE FLOOD OF 1972 The summer of 1972 was filled full of promise for me. I had worked at the Baken Park Piggly Wiggly since I was a junior in high school and because my college experience didn’t work out, I thought my future was to manage a grocery store for the Nash Finch Company. I started my training June 5 at the Belle Fourche Piggly Wiggly store. As my first week was ending, Friday June 9 brought rain to the Belle Fourche area mid-afternoon. Heavy and steady rain. I headed home at 5 pm in my 1965 International Scout. Along the way it was raining so hard my windshield wipers couldn’t keep up. I stopped near Sturgis before getting on I-90 and waited for a let up in the rain but that time never came. So I continued at what seemed like a snail’s pace only to stop again at about the Piedmont area. Again I had to continue on with no letup in the rain. Finally, at around Black Hawk I ran out of the rain and got home about 6:30 pm. Home was at 618 Minnelusa Dr. in west Rapid (a small 2 bedroom house built in the 1930’s). The back of the house was about 50’ from Rapid Creek and on the west side of the creek from Baken Park Shopping Center, roughly opposite the Piggly Wiggly store location (now Boyd’s). When I got home I was shaking like a leaf and told Nita about the crazy rain. I changed clothes into my cutoffs and tee shirt. After some thought I decided to load up some of our most valuable possessions just in case we would have to evacuate. We threw a change of clothes in Nita’s car and just waited. It started raining about 7 pm and came down as hard as it did when I was driving home. I called Paul Crosmer to talk about the rain and discuss the future of his homemade wooden sailboat he was storing at our house. Paul came over and our best thought was to tie the boat to a post used to hold up our carport. Thinking that the boat was secure Paul took off. The boat did make it through the flood. About 8 pm Ron Oney and his girlfriend Libby Balmes (69) showed up to sit out the night with us. The TV station was warning people in areas next to the creek for the potential of flooding and to stay tuned. By 9 pm the TV announcers were advising people in the low lying areas to leave their homes and go to higher ground. Ron was always thinking and thought he and I should walk to the west side McDonalds, which was only half a block away, to see if they were closing and possibly score a bag full of food already cooked that would be thrown away. He was right and we went home and ate the food. About 10 pm, after repeated warnings to leave home and get to higher ground, a police officer in a patrol car came down the street with his bullhorn and was telling people to leave. The creek had been steadily rising and it was when the officer came through that we decided we had better leave. We left about 10:15 to go south down the street to Canyon Lake Dr., then to Mt. View. From there Ron and Libby were going to their place in north Rapid and Nita and I were going to go to my parent’s house in the Mt. View Cemetery area. Oney took the lead, Nita second and I brought up the rear. By the time I got to Canyon Lake Dr. Sioux Park was full of water (there was a house floating out there coming toward us) and water covered Canyon Lake Dr. As I headed toward Mt. View Dr. I had to cross a bridge at Rapid Creek. Both of the bridge rails were still there so I decided the road must still be there. Oney’s car flooded out crossing Mt. View, they made it into the Safeway parking lot and from there walked to Libby’s dad’s house in Robbinsdale. Nita’s car floated at the same intersection but the tires caught traction in a center island and she was able to get onto unflooded pavement on Mt. View. She made it to my parent’s house okay. My Scout flooded going across the bridge and I made it to the side entrance of Baken Park and then I pushed it down to the entrance of Piggly Wiggly onto yet unflooded pavement. The night manager was still there after having sent everyone else home. It was probably 10:45 when I got there and the first thing I did was to make 3 trips from my vehicle into the store with the few prized possessions I had saved from our house. By the time I had finished the water was thigh high on me and rising. About 11 pm I called my Mom to let her know where I was. She said Nita had not gotten there yet, so I had no knowledge of her whereabouts. The phone went out while we were talking, followed by the store lights. The next couple of hours were the most terrifying. There were no windows in the back of the store (the creek side of the store), just big steel sliding doors which were used to get merchandise into the store. Water was coming in at a pretty good rate around the bottom and sides of the doors and the thought came to me that there was no means of escape should the store fill with water. The front of the store faced Mt. View and was full of windows. From the ground up was about 2 ½’ of brick but then window up to probably 8’. We watched the water rise, got to 4’ to 5’ deep from what I could tell. The view looking through the gap was terrifying. Heavy rain coming down but then fires burning as well. I learned the fires were coming from exploding propane tanks and ruptured natural gas lines. The rain finally stopped around 1 pm. Shortly after the rain stopped there were a couple of speed boats running around on the flooded Mt. View Rd., there mission we guessed was in trying to rescue people caught in the raging waters, most taking refuge on building roofs. In all there was probably 6” of mud throughout the store. My Scout floated down about 30’ from where I left it and had water in it up to the dashboard. The store manager walked in from his house about 5 am so knowing I could get through, I took off and walked to my parent’s house and got there about 6 am. Nita had gotten there without any further complications. Nita and my dad had spent a good portion of their night at the Clarkson Nursing Home helping to move residents across Mt. View Rd. to safe haven in a gas station. Our house floated off of its foundation (anchor bolts were not used in the 30’s) but surprisingly did not get washed away, we figured it was the big stucco house next door that protected it. All of the contents were ruined however. After a couple of months staying with my parents we did move into a HUD mobile home, high and dry in Rapid Valley. The 50th anniversary of the flood is shown in pictures in the hardbound book named Turning Point. Nita and I are shown on the back cover (and on page 50) walking north on Minnelusa Dr. toward W. Main St. (McDonalds parking lot with the Cadillac teetering on the edge in the background) a couple of days after the flood. Ron and Nita (McKinstry) Eikenberry Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Ron and Nita Eikenberry Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document June 9, 1972, the Rapid City Flood remembered by Brian H. Cole I remember that night very well. I just turned 17 in late April 1972 and was at a party up the hill near Camp Rapid. As the evening approached, we could hear someone shooting a gun and another blowing a whistle in the neighborhood west of Rapid Creek, near Baken Park shopping center. At that time, none of us knew of the disaster that had happened at lower elevations. Eventually I left the party and went down to the neighborhood below. The National Guard was there trying to get a truck out of the mud. This was about 5 blocks from Rapid Creek, across from Sioux Park. I met up with 2 other guys that were looking to help. None of us knew one another, but we formed a small group and we decided to try to get to the people that were shooting the gun and blowing the whistle. One of the guys within our small group took the lead, and he was the age of someone that may have come back from Vietnam. I say this because he took charge, like a military leader would, and that was perfectly fine with me. We took off towards where we thought the sounds were coming, towards Rapid Creek. The water became deeper and flowed stronger as we walked closer to where the gun shots and whistles were coming from. At one point we tied a rope around one guy (the lead guy) and he tried to make it closer to where we thought someone needed help, while we held the rope in case he was swept off of his feet. We may have been about two blocks from Rapid Creek at this point. But he came back and said the water was just too deep and fast. At about this time the gun shots stopped and we could no longer hear any whistle either. We started back, checking the houses as we went. All lights were out and it was dark. At one point I suddenly dropped under water because I fell into a basement (the house was already gone). After that we came across an older couple in one of the many flooded houses, so I carried the older gentleman, and another guy carried his wife. This older guy was clearly in shock, visibly shaking badly, but he was a strong South Dakotan, cussing all the way while being carried by this 17-year-old. We made it back to where the National Guard was, and their truck was free from the mud, so they took the couple up to Camp Rapid, along with others. I’m sure we all remember the weeks that followed as well. Every day we’d see emergency vehicles go by, and we knew they found another body (one of the deadliest floods in U.S. history). Brian H. Cole Stevens High “73” SDSM&T “81” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Brian Cole Description An account of the resource Written Memory Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource May 16, 2022 https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/38396/archive/files/3ffdd2a09fb1278a4128ee9e97cefdba.png?Expires=1779926400&Signature=TB9wCJtbvqtKYQ%7ElaBGbIsV4-F7bBxz4XKwEIdlR631rRbdOFiYM1P-YOWHULXwN2OWo71mZ%7EChs4OQrMSLrH-n3xPoQ-D7%7EW7JHtxR1lCCsJ25GKVpYABxD5l5TRYriSazk92WP%7E8P3M3P26-VduI7nc2dZ%7EbGNimrsAO1zAdpbfP9fMAwj58OIfRCHaaLfaDujiP0jbLts8YzLZD4cgiAkBftQjLDzR8HO%7EMvlgw8vfic8sHuFbCSNqEOndiISPACjCM-rwI0Z%7EDz2EgF3E4Hl4XHgsuicdm2Pm96bNaEhdA4rFSfhs6fnFwlcfoQ2Vz6jYBP2HtNxFNpF-FbXuw__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM 02bbac48c0cf611d5a986ddb342697d1 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Podcast Logo Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document To me, June 9th will always be synonymous with the Rapid City flood. We lived on Twin Elms Drive in west Rapid. I was nearly 12 at the time. A friend and I hoped to go to the car races that Friday evening. However as the evening progressed it became obvious that the races were rained out. I walked home at about 8 pm. My older brother arrived home telling wild stories of driving through high water. He said that they had driven out Hwy 44 and at Nameless Cave Road they had driven through water over the hood of the pickup. (Sure you did - like it would keep running with water over the hood...) Anyway we thought it would be good to go out and pursue more of that type of adventure. Being clever teenagers we decided we should take the 4-wheel drive Chevy Blazer since it had better ground clearance. Our Mother is an RN and she was due to work the night shift that evening so was asleep. We sneaked into her bedroom and got the Blazer keys. We set out with my older sister and her 2 year old daughter. We went down several flooded streets with water up to the doors of the Blazer. One of the bridges we went over was directly below Canyon Lake Dam and it had two feet of water rushing over it. By this time it was around ten pm. We went to Canyon Lake Park and walked along the dam in the rain. When lightning flashed, it illuminated Canyon Lake which was a swirling mass of debris, houses, trees, boats and other junk. At that time it was one or two feet from overtopping the earthen dam. We walked to the old spillway which was full to the top. It seemed the water was rushing 60 mph down the spillway. The top of the spillway was clogged with debris. I remember there were men there, likely city workers, trying to clear the debris perhaps with crowbars. Of course it was futile due to the force of the water. It was likely obvious to them that the dam would soon be overtopped. In fact it did break less than an hour later. The idea that the dam could break, or the overall danger did not really cross our minds. We were just dumb teenagers. By now it was well after ten pm. We went down Jackson Blvd which was also flooded and past the bank at Baken Park. I vividly recall the time on the bank clock was 10:38 pm. Canyon Lake Dam broke right about that time. We drove back home down Canyon Lake drive, having seen enough unusual sights. If we had driven down Jackson Blvd I would likely not be writing this. I am sure we were some of the last people to see Canyon Lake before it overtopped and the dam failed. Meanwhile Mom had risen from her nap and found that her kids were gone in her 4 wheel drive and by this time there were dire flood warnings on TV. Panic-stricken, she set off down the street looking for us with a flashlight. After a block or so she realized how silly that was, looking for us on foot and went home. We awoke the next morning to the horrible aftermath. I will never forget the smell. Not exactly a stench - just a smell of earth torn apart by the floodwaters. We walked to what was left of Canyon Lake Dam and witnessed a body being retrieved from what was once the bottom of the lake. We later walked down to Omaha Street looking for a friend that lived near Rice Cycle. He survived but some of his family did not. While we were there, police cars went zipping by and sirens wailed. It was rumored that Deerfield Reservoir had broken. We jumped in the back of a dump truck and headed for high ground. As I recall, there were other such rumors the following days, Pactola breaking etc... At the time of the flood my Dad was at a funeral in Iowa. Relatives asked him if he had brought the family and if he had heard the news of the big flood. He could not believe what they were saying so he turned on the car radio to hear the news at the top of the hour. He knew it was real when he heard Dick Shilvock, a local broadcaster, on the national news describing the devastation. Immediately after the flood he drove home as fast as a 1970 Plymouth could go. He was stopped several times by the law but they let him go. Of course he could not contact us as all the phone lines were out. The day after he got home he discovered that the clutch was seized up on the pickup (the pickup my brother said he had driven underwater). We popped the hood and there was horse manure on top of the intake manifold. We concluded that perhaps he really had been in water over the hood at Nameless Cave Road. My brother, sister, niece and I were very, very, lucky to survive. It was an interesting summer, dealing with washed out bridges everywhere. Our family had a cabin west of Nemo. The old road up Boxelder Creek had washed out and it took us several months to find a new way into the cabin. Shortly after the flood we drove up Nemo Road and every bridge was washed out. Crossings had been improvised since it would be months before new bridges could be put in. Our pickup got stuck in one of the first crossings. Dad walked nearly to Nemo before locating someone with a 4-wheel drive to pull us out. Victims of the flood - a classmate from West Junior High, relatives of a good friend, daughter of a co-worker of Dad, several children in a family just three blocks from our house - rest in peace. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Brian Stambaugh Subject The topic of the resource Written Memory Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document I'm sure there have been a plethora of '72 flood stories posted as we just passed that inauspicious date, but I have a bit of a different point of view on the events of the day. I was a 15-year old Boy Scout camping at Camp Old Broadaxe in the Nemo area with a bunch of other Scouts from the Black Hills Area Council for an Order of the Arrow weekend. When the rain first started we all headed for our tents located at various sites around the grounds and spent the next couple of hours doing the usual grab-ass stuff that Scouts on campouts do. By around 8 pm the deluge was worsening and it was starting to get concerning to the leaders in charge. Finally, runners were sent to all the campsites to round up the boys and head them up to the mess hall. Needless to say, it was a bit of a madhouse with 50+ wet and excited boys stuffed into this structure. About 10 pm we got the news that the bridge across the creek that ran alongside the camp was getting ready to go. I remember venturing out with flashlights and rain ponchos to watch this bridge constructed of large Ponderosa Pine trunks torn away and washed down stream as if it were made of Tinker Toys. The next day dawned clear and sunny and as a bunch of kids we didn't really think much of the storm. We were told Rapid City was hit pretty hard but didn't really realize the full extent of what had happened. On Sunday when we were scheduled to leave, we had to hike out with our gear as the bridge was out. Again a great adventure until we came to a clearing and saw a SD National Guard UH-1 Huey (what they called slicks in Vietnam) set down. The pilot told us they were surveying the damage in that area and that Rapid was in bad shape. We hiked to where a bus had been found to bring us home and as we got nearer to Rapid we saw the devastation that had been visited on our town the night before Needless to say what we observed had a sobering effect on all of us. Thankfully, my home in the Canyon Lake area had escaped any structural damage although we did have the smelly issue of the sewer in the basement backing up. The night of the flood my dad nearly drown when his vehicle was washed down thru the West Main gap when the dam burst and sent a wall of water down thru town. Thankfully, a good Samaritan pulled him out of the water and very likely saved his life. One of the people whose remains were never found was a classmate of mine. He along with his mother and father all perished on that terrible night.. It was a long summer of clearing debris, cars , destroyed houses and in a few cases, recovering the bodies of victims. It will always stay with me. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource BSA Camp Old Broadaxe Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Radio and Television Subject The topic of the resource On this page you will find radio and television broadcasts that have been donated to the Rapid City Public Library's collection of items relating to the 1972 Flood. Many of these are part of the Robb DeWall Collection. Robb DeWall, a long time resident of Rapid City, broadcast journalist and historian was the EBS (Emergency Broadcasting System) broadcaster during the first 13 hours of the Rapid City Flood of 1972. His papers were donated by his estate to be preserved electronically by the Rapid City Public Library and retained in archive with the Minnilusa Historical Society. The broadcasts are used by permission of KOTA. Description An account of the resource A collection of broadcasts regarding the 1972 flood. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robb DeWall Transcripts Subject The topic of the resource <span>Robb DeWall, a long time resident of Rapid City, broadcast journalist and historian was the EBS (Emergency Broadcasting System) broadcaster during the first 13 hours of the Rapid City Flood of 1972. His papers were donated by his estate to be preserved electronically by the Rapid City Public Library and retained in archive with the Minnilusa Historical Society.<br /><br />The papers are hosted by Rapid City Public library in our Local Historic Archives. <a href="https://rcplib.catalogaccess.com/search?search=%22robb+dewall%22&amp;page=1&amp;size=10&amp;withImages=false" title="Robb DeWall keyword search on PastPerfect">Click here to explore the collection.</a></span> Description An account of the resource Transcripts and interview questions in the Robb DeWall Collection. https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/38396/archive/files/d845a47a20a5dc1bb6e1858ebdf3e5ce.jpg?Expires=1779926400&Signature=k8pEEAEDGK9COegBM7mZbSJaUYXfbQD4qI4%7ElmUSKQhRr9oTTgt2XJaaQPfAu5j75WGYyfrnmuFVykdV-A3qpLmqpnCkbYgstMFLWFiJr6C2o4iTfTofoju683K6%7ES6iTgsQjQ98hhU6i%7EwXCVyH749LxI5c2ayL7hZW0tNjd2V9RnvIf8LvUTeKgS8-T3nJu8dsGA%7E9X9kol12ZIwYyxL%7Ea7TthVHQKU7R-iJblB3cMbJdwHvGbHgVbx86N9lCX%7E8iU9TxL350bJvnFPTbh9VI%7E5sOXQZplqW%7EkCOBgJerDOBV6xJsOyCYQlzDExvZiXNZvv7CJFmOnyODhXIxZDg__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM 2aa021c5a7bacc4d75f11698c8528c3d Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Memorial Park Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document It started raining in the early afternoon. That wasn’t unusual and for the tourist shops that lined the road to Mount Rushmore on the “strip”, it meant more business as campers left their tents to escape the rain. By 7:00 that night, the Keystone House was packed and the player piano in the back of the restaurant was cranking out honkey-tonk music. By 7:00, it was raining hard and this wasn’t our usual summertime shower. Rena, my wife, wanted me to go home and bring our three year old son and her sister to Keystone House. Ester, her 16 year old sister, just arrived from Pennsylvania that day and she didn’t think she should spend her first night in a heavy rainstorm. I didn’t want to venture out into the rain, but I agreed to go…reluctantly. When I returned, Abner Hunter George, a local radio announcer, called to ask how Keystone was faring the storm. Minor flooding started in Rapid City. Thing were still normal in Keystone, but that changed about 9:00. We noticed red flashing lights outside our door and saw a Highway Patrol car moving slowly south down the strip. Battle Creek, near the 1880 Train, was flooding and out of its banks and the main road across the bridge was closed. Keystone sits on Battle Creek and Grizzly creek and campgrounds line the creeks, just as campgrounds should. Battle Creek was the larger creek and Grizzly was shallow and only 3-4 feet wide as it flowed through the strip. Grizzly Creek was still in its banks about 10:00, but Battle Creek now flooded all the tourist shops on the strip. I went downstairs to the basement with my dad, Tom McKiernan, and a couple customers to move merchandise to higher shelves because the basement was flooding through the sidewalk entryway we used for deliveries. We weren’t down there very long when Rena called down to tell us to get upstairs, “Water is coming through the doors and the store is being flooded.” We hurried upstairs to the main floor and looked outside. The water outside was three feet high. Grizzly Creek had become a raging torrent and the little creek now stretched across the narrow valley containing the strip. Water was moving rapidly. Suddenly, the Keystone House trembled. The basement delivery doors collapsed under the weight of the water and the basement flooded instantly as the water poured in just like water being flushed down a toilet. The entire portion of the Keystone House heaved as water slammed into the center building supports and raised the floor over 12 inches. Electric power went out. We quickly herded the employees and customers upstairs to our second floor apartment. The first floor quickly flooded, but the building was holding. We didn’t know how long it would last and looked for escape routes to higher ground. We could escape over the Opry House rooftop and climb the hill behind the store. But, we didn’t want to leave before we had to. Looking out the front window, we saw the flood at its full fury. Cars, tents with tourists screaming for help, debris and water swept downstream on the main road. There was nothing we could do to save them. The memory of tourists being swept downstream haunted us for years and we used to carry 100 feet of rope in our car for years afterwards to prevent the feeling of being helpless. We survived, but the Keystone House was wrecked. So was my trailer located on Grizzly Creek. It was destroyed. If I hadn’t gone home to bring Ester and Curt to the Keystone House, they would both be dead. It appears a slag pile upstream on Grizzly Creek contained flood water, but finally failed and released a wall of water that wiped out the tourist campers along Grizzly Creek…and my home. It’s been reported people found recording tape from our reel-to-reel tape collection over 10 feet high in the trees below Keystone. By the next day, the storm was gone, but Keystone was destroyed. Old Keystone received the brunt of both Battle and Grizzly Creeks. Everything was buried in a thick cover of mud and clean-up took over a year. But, thanks to the Mennonite Disaster Relief group, the Red Cross, and many other organizations, lives were brought back to normal. A lot of people died during the second worse flood in American history. For those of us that have lived it, these words don’t adequately describe the terror, heroism and resolve of those involved. I would say to those that read this: “Cherish life and live it as best. Events happen that will change your life, but accept them to make you better and stronger.” The 1972 flood will never be forgotten, but it has made us better and stronger. We wish you the best. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource A NIGHT TO REMEMBER Description An account of the resource Written Memory Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document Age at the time was 12 years old. Remembers Black Hills Gold Jewelry and Laundromat cash boxes buried in our back yard. Mom and dad returned them to the owners. How scary it was to see houses float past. Bobbie slept through it. Granny’s dog Fi Fi sensed danger and was freaking out as water was flowing into basement. Bobbie worried about saving his bicycle. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Denise Rohde Description An account of the resource Written Memory Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document I was in Custer in 1972, age 25 years old. I grew up in Custer and had just graduated from college in 1971. I came back every summer when I was in college and when I was teaching school until 1973 then we moved to Pierre. Summer of 1971 I was the summer city police officer in Custer. I loved the job and had met Bill Morgan, highway patrolman, and he and I had worked together. In 1972 the night of the flood , what first happened was I was working as a Park Ranger at Jewel Cave national Monument and that day I happened to have the historic tours at Jewel Cave and I had two young men from California. We came out of the cave about 3:30 in the afternoon. Caves breathe opposite of the barometric pressure, atmospheric pressure, so when there’s a low pressure system coming in the cave will breathe out. When we got out to the entrance we had to move to the side because the wind was just ferocious coming out of the cave. You could see the dark clouds on the horizon and these two kids from CA said a few choice words and that storm had been following them for the last two days and told about the heavy rains the couple nights before. I went home and I had a tunable radio monitor listening to the police band. I could tell there were problems up north; they were talking about it; so I went down to the police station and Morgan was there, he said come on lets go to Hill City They’re having high water. So I got in the patrol car with him and when we left Custer it was not raining in downtown Custer, but when we got to the top of the hill right at the entrance to the cemetery it was just like driving into a carwash. So we drove, and it took an hour for us to get to Hill City and back on what would typically be a half hour drive. When we came back, we didn’t find anything, and the radio was starting to get a little active and we drove out of the rain. Virtually within fifty feet exactly the same place again, it was only sprinkling in Custer and pouring right on top of the hill at the cemetery entrance. We just got back to town (Custer) and the state radio in Rapid calls Morgan and says Joe Pine needs help in Keystone, and can you guys go and help. We came up (Hwy) 224 and we got to the area were you see George Washington’s profile and the guardrail was gone. Morgan said someone’s driven off the road up here; sure as the devil, right in the middle of all of this we’re going to have to signal one car wreck with injury, take this six-cell (flashlight) out there and see if you can see them down there. I got out of the car and the rain was so heavy you had to face away, you couldn’t breathe, and I had the six-cell looking down into this and I turn around and shine it back underneath. Nobody had driven off the road, what was happening was water was coming down off the monument and coming across the road and undercut the road and we were just sitting on top of asphalt. I got back in the car and said let’s get out of here because this is going to give way, and it ultimately did later that night. When we came down into Keystone, talking to Joe Pine on the radio, he said don’t come down here, we’re in trouble, I can’t get these people out of the campgrounds, and nobody wants to go. We didn’t pay any attention. We came down to the Discount Gas Station, which is where the gas station is still today but configured differently, and met with Pine; all of the sudden Morgan said we got to go. I turned around to see the water was coming down the road, crossing it and going into Grizzly Creek. We got in the car and immediately stalled out, there were big rocks coming down the road. We got out; the water was over my knees. I yelled at Morgan to get the hell out of the car. Fortunately the whip antenna was on the right side of the patrol car, which I later found out that we were the only district to put the whip antenna on the right side, I grabbed the antenna and flipped myself over the patrol car. We managed to go over that motel behind the old Copper Room and started beating on all the doors on the lower level, the water was breaking up around us. The motel cabins located in that area were on shale foundations, there were at least 20 kids down there. The water was coming so fast like a locomotive running by, we thought “oh my gosh those kids are dead,” we heard propane tanks exploding as they were going down the creek. We were soaking wet and there was nothing we could do. Then there was a whole period that was just a blur. It was strange the water went down as fast as it came up. I couldn’t believe it but every one of those kids that we saw earlier were still on the roof of the cabin, so we helped them off the cabin. Joe Pines car was okay so we got into the car and started loading people up to take them to Mt. Rushmore, all this time all I could think of was this only happening in Keystone? As it was getting lighter we continued to work our way back down the Main Street. By then a Pennington County Grader operator was coming into town. We contacted Custer Dispatch, to let them know we were okay. And unbeknownst to me, my wife, her mother and grandmother were on the other side of Sign Mall; they were in Rapid Friday to pick up my sister from the airport and got stuck in Keystone. They tried to call me. And at that time no one knew for sure if I was alive or dead. Then though out the morning of Saturday we were looking for survivors up and down Battle Creek. While sitting in the car on KIMM radio we heard that half of Rapid City was underwater. Later General Duke Corning from the National Guard, which at that time he was a legend in South Dakota. Anyway he saw me when he crossed the creek and asked, “Who was in charge?” I said, “No one, we have just been running the radio” and told him that this town did not have any form of government at the time. I was only 25 years old. And he said son, “You look like you know what you’re doing. What would you like from me?” I said well we are getting a lot of looky lou’s coming into town, we need the road blocked coming into town and Mt. Rushmore. So that’s what they did. Now by this time it is about 10:00am Saturday morning, and we had our shots, food was brought in, and dry clothing was coming in. We picked up the other patrol car out of the creek, and it wasn’t damaged, just full of water. A wrecker hauled the patrol car back to Custer and I went home to sleep for a few hours. Morgan and I came back into Keystone later that afternoon and parked our patrol car in the middle of the street sideways to guard the businesses from the looters that were still trying to come into town. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource John Culberson Description An account of the resource Written Memory Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document It had been a really wet spring. Battle Creek was already swollen some. The boys, age 8 and 10, were at Kemp’s Kamp, which we owned. Darleen was in Pierre at a sorority convention. It was a beautiful summer day and we had just finished mowing the camp and had several campers and cabins were rented. We were excited thinking we’re off to a good tourist season. About 5:30pm it clouded over and began to start raining. About 6:30pm it was pouring so hard you could not see very far. By 8:30pm the creek was out of its bank and over the county road and rising. By 9:00pm we had lost power. At 9:30pm the water had risen to a level where I told the boys to tell the trailers and RVs to move to higher ground. I went to the other end of the camp and got the people in tent camping and in cabins to come to the house and woodshed which was on higher ground. In one of the lower level cabins the people would not come out and were standing on the bed to be out of the water. I took the window screen off and coaxed the lady to the open window, grabbed her and pulled her out the window of the cabin. Her husband then followed. Later that evening I had my flashlight on a pickup that was floating past with an arm out of the window waving for help but nothing could be done. Later I learned Search and Rescue found the man’s body. Propane tanks also raced by like torpedoes; there were at least 15 or more of the tanks found piled at Rushmore Cave. At one point lightening flashed and I saw the shower house crumble and disappear. Along with that we lost fencing, shelters, fireplaces, and picnic tables. I found our red stained material all the way through keystone. It was a terrible long night with the continued roar of the rushing water in the canyon. The next morning I got my registration cards out and had roll call of the campers in front of the house/office. I was excited to find everyone was accounted for. It was foggy and gloomy and the area looked like a war zone. Everyone was trying to make the best of a terrible situation and planned a late afternoon picnic and we did! Everyone shared their food and lifted spirits. They slept in our house and woodshed or other campers. The road was totally destroyed and there was no water or electricity. The next day, Sunday, the water level in Battle Creek was receding. Search and Rescue did come from Keystone, maneuvering up the creek to check and see we were all right and to assure us Keystone was still there, although destroyed. Darleen in Pierre only knew her family was alive because Nancy Kneip, the governor’s wife, had the sorority woman to the mansion to keep them informed. By Monday many of the campers were very nervous and wanted to leave. I had another group meeting, and shared with them I would walk those who wanted to, and could into Keystone. We had to pick our way on a route through the creek. The road and railroad tracks were destroyed. Those that could not walk out I assured them we would get help from Search and Rescue. Upon getting to Keystone I made arrangements for a helicopter to extract the rest of the people. The helicopter also extracted other people who lived up that road and were stranded. Those that couldn’t walk out were nervous I wouldn’t come back. I assured them I would be back and left my boys behind for assurance. Everyone had to leave their campers, RVs, and equipment. It was four to six weeks before the road was repaired. I called all who still had belongings there and eventually all came back. I applied for an SBA load and spent the rest of the summer rebuilding. The Mennonites did come and volunteered their time restoring my cabins. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Glenn Woldt Description An account of the resource Written Memory Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document The night of June 9, 1972 we lived on Roy Street in Keystone in the house now owned by Gohsmans. What started as a rainy, foggy morning, turned into a nightmare. It was so dark, but from the lightning we could see propane tanks, cabins, and mobile homes going by. People were on top of the Laundromat roof across the street. Cars were floating down the street. The next morning as dawn came and people were starting to walk around as if they had been drugged. The next week is pretty much a blur. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Betty Jo Sagdalen Description An account of the resource Written Memory Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document Rain was coming down hard and I told my son Brian, we need to go help our neighbors, so myself, son Brian and Jim Huffman my neighbor went down to get Charlie Alliger out of his place. We had to tie a rope out to a tree so we would not get swept down with the fast current. We go to Erva and Charlie’s place and rescued and took them up to my place. I had a Colman camp stove and a gas lantern and a propane space heater, I got that started so they could warm up and gave them coffee. Then we took off again to get March Watson. When we got to her house there was so much mud around her door that we had to kick the hinges off the door to get in and when we got in March was sitting on top her kitchen table, water everywhere. And I said to her “March how are you doing” and her response was “Well boys I’m doing fine how are you doing” and if you would have known March, this was common for her to call us boys and to be so calm. I told her we are here to take you to my house. March, said “I lost one of my slippers” I said ok I will try to find it. But I didn’t, and then I told March to slide off the table, so she put one arm around me and one arm around Brian and slid off the table. I told her we are going to take you to my house and get you dried off and some hot coffee in you. Then there were two people on top of a trailer, it was Mary Ellen Conlan and her son, we got them down and took them to my house. Somewhere along this time we had the radio on, and they said that “Keystone was wiped off the map.” I said those damned fools. The next day, we got up and I headed to the store downtown, which is the Country Store now, but then it was the V & M Store and I was worried because I had two girls living in the basement of the store, but the store was ok, only thing was the carpet in the basement was wet and the house next door which was Alexander’s was flooded. Later then I headed up to Mt. Rushmore to assist where I was needed there. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Bill Zwetzig Description An account of the resource Written Memory Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document It’s been a decade (June 9, 1972) since Grizzly and Battle Creeks merged at Keystone to form a devastating flash flood. In the past 10 years Keystone citizens have witnessed a successful “facelift” of their community. When the waters receded on June 10th, Keystone merchants and residents looked upon their businesses and homes with heavy hearts. “I just started at our business, owner with her husband of a motel, gift shop, and gas station” says Mrs. Pam kemp, “It seemed our dreams and future had been washed away”. Roadways were noting but large hunks of tar, buildings were uprooted or smashed, and meaningful possessions had been washed away. “I, Herman Kemp, another business owner, had been working on a set of cabins for one and a half years,” and planned to open June 10th. The waters were so powerful “I never did find the cast iron tubs that were washed out of the bathroom walls”. Despite the loss of material items, the people of Keystone were thankful for their lives and the lives of their loved ones. “I could hear cries for help, but there was nothing I could do,” says one Keystone man. “Those cries haunted me many nights after”. Emotional stress plagued many following the disaster, but through determination, prayers, and volunteer services, the cleanup and re-building of Keystone was possible. “I almost told the bank to take it all,” says Jim Kemp, but I couldn’t quit and went to work that day, hoping I would someday reopen. Mennonites from all over the country supplied free labor. They helped to clean up and rebuild the town. Sluices were built to sift through the mud for jewelry and small merchandise. Shelves, counters, showcases, insides and outsides of buildings were all rebuilt by Mennonites. Keystone residents recall the patience, understanding, and willingness of the group. The National Guard helped to repair roads, recover bodies, and vaccinate those in the area. The Red Cross and surrounding communities brought in food and clothing. I recruited willing workers. The people of Hill City delivered hot meals, fresh drinking water and moral support daily. Government agencies such as the Small Business Association (SBA), Community Action Program (CAP), Housing Under Disaster (HUD), and the State Unemployment Agency provided financial aid. SBA loaned money at a one percent interest rate. This was possible because of effort of Senator James Abouresk, who was able to convince the Federal Government to give South Dakota the low interest disaster loans. Horrible floods had occurred in Pennsylvania at about this time and that state also received help. Disaster loans granted to business men and individuals were given in the amount of $5,000 for each loan. For some this was all that was needed to rebuild. Others went about borrowing higher amounts at the one percent interest rate, and from these funds keystone began again to take shape. CAP supplied workers, HUD distributed mobile homes which were free to live in for one year, and the Unemployment Agency paid one month’s unemployment wages and food stamps to all in need. Mr. and Mrs. Fred Nielson, owners of the Trading Post, were able to reopen in 34 days. The young couple had bought into the tourist business that year and had been open only two weeks before the flood hit. “We washed and rewashed moccasins and T-Shirts in order to make a little money,” says Mrs. Kay Nielson. “We were young and had no choice but to re-open the business.” Since the flood, reforms have been made. Workers, hired by the government, cleaned out, rechanneled, and deepened the creek. Keystone’s main street was widened by moving buildings on the west back toward the creek 40 to 50 feet. This allowed more parking space and room for a larger traffic flow. Some residents claim that high waters in the black hills in ’42, ’52, ’62, and ’72. “Let’s hope it doesn’t happen in ‘82” emphasizes Mrs. Darleen Woldt (campground owner). Keystone is once again a booming town. Its people have worked too hard for nature to wash it all away another time. If it does happen again, people may not be as determined and willing to pick up the pieces. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Gwen Kemp Ray Description An account of the resource Written Memory Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Written Memories Subject The topic of the resource Each item in this collection is an individual's story or memory about the night of June 9, 1972 and the following recovery efforts. These memories have been collected by the Rapid City Public library at various memorial events and through online submission by community members. If you have a memory you would like to submit, please do so on the <a href="https://1972flood.omeka.net/contribution">Contribute an Item</a> page.<br /><br /><span>Below is a map of all the interviews and written memories we have conducted and gathered to help you visualize the impact of the 1972 Flood and explore stories.<br /></span><br /><iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/embed?mid=1KzeKQJ4R89Riq5B9FguZdJzj6c0&amp;ll=44.0744389777805%2C-103.24796692260742&amp;z=13"></iframe> Description An account of the resource Stories and memories of the flood submitted by community members and shared with Rapid City Public Library. Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document Here is the story of a boy. I came to the Black Hills to live with my father for a summer, I was 10 years old. It was beautiful. My dad had 20 acres and was building a house in the Nemo area (Schroder Road). Back then there were 10 families in a 5 mile radius – Now 100 Plus (exaggeration) I hate that. Anyway this boy and his brother came up the hill to meet me. They were moving like they were in combat that was so cool. I stepped outside to meet them. The boy was bigger than life; never had I met such a person, so grown up, so polite, so friendly. Made me feel I was liked, just like that. He came from a big family of 3 or 4 sisters I think, and 2 brothers and him. The flood came right through our land and then his. He gets all his sisters and brother David up the hill on high ground in the barn. The boy and my best friend Kike and his other brother got the livestock up the hill also. Then water takes them down, a tree is near enough, he puts my best friend and his brother up in a tree and saves their life, as for him, he was gone. That boy was Bill Allbright, “Eagle Boy Scout.” Mother – Janet Allbright Father – Chuck Allbright Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Patrick Grimm Description An account of the resource Written Memory