By Mondell Keck | The Brookings Register
BROOKINGS — It took some time, but it eventually happened: I grew to love Aberdeen after I moved there in May 1998.
I had just graduated with a journalism degree from South Dakota State University, and there was a career waiting for me at the Aberdeen American News, one of the best newspapers in South Dakota. I also happened to have a student loan at the time that needed to be repaid, so you never turn down a chance at work in a situation like that.
My new co-workers helped welcome me to the Hub City, so named because Aberdeen once had railroad lines radiating from it in almost all directions. Its also known as the Town in the Frog Pond for, well, wetter reasons that anyone looking at an aerial map of the Aberdeen area would be able to easily figure out.
Cindy Eikamp. John Papendick. Russ Keen. Patanna Zimmerman. Joe Johnson. Connie Sieh Groop. Ron Feickert. Delores Morsching. Those names and so many more will always hold a special place in my memories, because they were among the earliest I made as a new resident in Aberdeen.
While it has a lot of great attractions Northern State University being among them perhaps Aberdeens most wonderful ones for me were Wylie Park & Storybook Land and the Brown County Fair. It was the latter two that truly made me a fan of the Aberdeen area during my 24 years there, 23 of which were spent at the American News.
Lets start with Wylie Park & Storybook Land: Tucked away in the northwest side of Aberdeen, its home to a fairytale castle battlements included surrounded by a moat; a rail line encircling the park that tourists can ride through the park on while the engineer highlights the parks attractions; two active volcanoes that are part of a mini-golf attraction; attractions, including characters, from a variety of fairytales and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz movie and books (Dorothy, the Wicked Witch of the West and so on); a roller coaster, merry-go-round and other rides; the Yellow Brick Road, which leads into the Haunted Forest; and so, so much more.
To say that you could spend an entire afternoon and evening at Wylie Park & Storybook Land is an understatement. Heck, some folks even spend their entire summers there, living in a very popular camper park.
Moving on to the next jewel, I present unto you, dear reader, the Brown County Fair: An absolute must-attend event in August, its a week-long affair with multiple days of big-name grandstand music performances, a midway that especially at night is awash in the glorious lights and sounds or rides in action, and hundreds of vendors offering foods, crafts, services and more. Throw in Centennial Village as a bonus, and youve got the complete package for a week of pure pleasure.
Thats what I miss most about Aberdeen throw in Thatzza Pizza, too, which is the Hub Citys equivalent of Georges Pizza here in Brookings. Ive said more than once that if I could bring Wylie Park & Storybook Land here to Brookings and have it complement the beauty of McCrory Gardens and Dakota Nature Park, I would. That said, I’m all but certain Aberdonians would arm wrestle me over that idea (and kick my butt, too).
I love the Brookings area, too. After all, Brookings and Moody counties are basically where I was raised and spent my life through my years at SDSU. But it was nice to broaden my horizons a bit, even if it meant only going 2.5 hours away for 24 years of my life, immersing myself in Aberdeen.
I’ve been back to my true home now since May 2022, but its always nice to have a second home as well.
Letter and photo
Theres one other thing I’d like to mention as well, and thats to give thanks to Ione Johnson of Flandreau.
After my recent column on railroads, she mailed me a nice letter telling me about how she and her husband lived near the rail line in Flandreau, and how enjoyable the trains were. Best of all, though? She included several family photos of the tracks being torn up (the rail line really did pass almost right next to their backyard).
Thank you again, Ione. Seeing those photos and reading your letter took me right back to 1980 and 6-year-old me.
Contact Mondell Keck at [email protected].
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