How to Read a Western Town -- Part 2
We arrived in Rapid City, South Dakota after sundown. Having traveled through remote towns with little population for hours, it was clear, even in the dark, that Rapid City was large by comparison. With a population of 76,000, Rapid City is the second largest city in the state. From the hotel room the next morning, we could see the typical interstate stuff – chain restaurants and gas stations. Finding downtown would be more challenging than a couple turns to locate Main Street.
Like many western towns, and especially those in the high plains, Rapid City is surrounded by bluffs. If you’ve ever experienced the biting wind in those locations, you know why. That makes the first rule of finding the old part of town simple – go low. Follow the contour of the land to a low spot and you are likely to find water. Humans cling to water; a critical fact in the west where water is scarce. The earliest inhabitants of the area would have been near a water source.
Once you go low, watch for streets to get narrower and buildings to get closer together. Unlike eastern and European cities where original streets evolved in a spoke pattern emanating from a town square, castle, or church, western towns in the U.S. are most often laid out in grids. Streets run east/west, and north/south, and often, the original two roads run parallel, each being one-way and almost always east and west. It is still possible to find Main Street in larger cities, but also common is the practice of naming early streets after presidents. Opposing streets are numbered.
In Rapid City, the streets defy the presidential naming tradition, but take on a different kind of ode to the heads of state. In recent years, after the decline of downtown commerce, community leaders launched a campaign to revive downtown and identify Rapid City as the City of Presidents. With Mount Rushmore just a few miles to the south, it seemed a logical plan to rally public interest. Today, the downtown area is busy with merchants, and outdoor attractions and events, and a sculpture of a U.S. president adorns each corner.
Beyond the business district of a western downtown lie the residential sections. Here too, clues help identify the earliest homes and properties, and those of the wealthy and those of the poor. There is literally a “right” and “wrong” side of the tracks. To find the original homes, look to the corners of intersecting streets. Those houses are likely larger, older, and statelier than the fill-ins between street corners. Older homes will have larger trees and outbuildings like detached garages/carriage houses. In factory towns and mining towns, worker housing may have been “company owned,” meaning the mine or factory-built housing for its employees. These houses are small, crisp, and similar in appearance. They often line up neatly in a row along the street or near the railroad tracks.
Our trek to and through Rapid City was fun and fascinating. It bears a great deal of similarity to other western towns, and yet, had a spirit of its own. There is a balance of old and new, of purposed and restored that gave the whole place a funky vibe. Even though I am a sucker for good architecture, historic districts, and old houses, the best part of Rapid City was the people. We chatted with shop keepers, bar tenders, and a city council guy who was serving up free coffee at the community ice skating rink. Everyone we encountered was pleasant and proud of their hometown.