One of South Dakota's best-known attractions, The World's Only Corn Palace has been drawing visitors to Mitchell for well over a century. The original Corn Palace opened in 1892 as a way to showcase the region's rich farmland and encourage new settlers to make southeastern South Dakota their home. The current building, completed in 1921, received its distinctive onion domes and Moorish-inspired architecture during a major remodeling in 1937, giving it the unique appearance visitors recognize today.
What makes the Corn Palace truly special are its massive exterior murals, created each year from thousands of bushels of naturally colored corn, grains, and grasses grown in South Dakota. Every year a new theme is chosen, and local artists completely redesign the murals by hand. Inside, the building serves as a community arena hosting concerts, sporting events, conventions, and other entertainment throughout the year. If you're passing through Mitchell, it's one of those attractions you simply have to see for yourself. 06-06
UPDATE: The Corn Palace remains one of South Dakota's most popular roadside attractions, welcoming more than 200,000 visitors each year. Its annual Corn Palace Festival continues to celebrate the unveiling of each new mural design, keeping alive a tradition that has been part of Mitchell for more than 130 years. 06-26
Wall Drug Store
Wall, SD Photo courtesy Dirk Burhans
I had heard about Wall Drug Store ever since I first got into this hobby, so it had always been near the top of my list of places to visit. When I finally made the trip, it didn't disappoint. What began as a small-town pharmacy in 1931 was transformed into one of America's greatest roadside attractions after Dorothy Hustead came up with the simple idea of offering free ice water to thirsty travelers in 1936. Ted Hustead promoted the idea with a series of hand-painted roadside signs, and before long motorists were making Wall Drug a destination rather than just another stop along the highway.
Today, Wall Drug covers more than 76,000 square feet and is packed with western shops, restaurants, an old-fashioned pharmacy, museums, art, and enough roadside kitsch to keep visitors exploring for hours. During my first visit I enjoyed a surprisingly good meal, and the cherry pie was especially memorable after a long day on the road. I've returned several times since, and it's one of those places that's just as much fun to revisit as it is to discover for the first time. 06-06
Wall Drug Store in January 2004
Wall, SD Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
UPDATE: When you talk about roadside landmarks, many come to mind. One of the most famous is Ted Hustead's Wall Drug Store in Wall, SD. Known for providing free ice water to thirsty travelers, Wall Drug has been the roadside stop of choice of many a travelers since Wall Drug opened in 1931. More info can be found at the Wall Drug site. 03-07
UPDATE: Nearly a century after opening, Wall Drug still welcomes close to two million visitors each year. The Hustead family continues to operate the attraction, free ice water and five-cent coffee remain traditions, and the famous Wall Drug billboards still lure travelers from hundreds of miles away. 06-26
Wall Drug Store parking area
Wall, SD Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
Wall Drug Store from the 1950's
Wall, SD Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
Totem Pole
Foyil, OK
Photo courtesy Kelly Coalier
Just a few miles off Route 66 is one of Oklahoma's most unusual roadside attractions. Ed Galloway's Totem Pole Park was created by retired manual arts teacher Ed Galloway, who spent more than a decade building the park between 1937 and 1948. The centerpiece is the world's largest concrete totem pole, soaring 90 feet into the air and covered with colorful Native American-inspired figures, birds, animals, and geometric designs. Resting on the back of a giant concrete turtle, it's one of those sights that seems almost too unbelievable to be real until you're standing beneath it.
Totem Pole
Foyil, OK Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The park also includes several smaller totem poles and the unique Fiddle House, where Galloway once displayed hundreds of handcrafted violins that hecarved himself. It's an easy side trip from Route 66 and one that's well worth the short detour if you're traveling through northeastern Oklahoma. The park was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1999, and years of restoration work have helped preserve Galloway's colorful folk art for future generations. 06-06
UPDATE: Ed Galloway's Totem Pole Park remains one of Oklahoma's best-known roadside attractions. Thanks to ongoing preservation efforts, visitors can still enjoy this remarkable folk art landmark, which continues to surprise travelers nearly 90 years after construction first began. 06-26
Garden of Eden
Lucas, KS Photo courtesy Kelly Coalier
The Garden of Eden in Lucas is one of Kansas’ more unusual roadside stops. Beginning in 1907, Civil War veteran and retired schoolteacher S.P. Dinsmoor spent 25 years filling his property with concrete sculptures mixing biblical scenes, politics and his own views on life. Quite a bit more than ordinary yard decoration. 06-06
Towering figures surround his native limestone home, while Dinsmoor’s preserved body remains in the mausoleum according to his wishes. Even the creator stayed behind. The site joined the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.
UPDATE: Preservation efforts have kept the Garden of Eden open to visitors. It remains a highlight of Lucas, the “Grassroots Art Capital of Kansas,” and a worthwhile detour for anyone drawn to the unusual. 06-26
Mitchell Corn Palace
Mitchell Corn Palace
Totem Pole
Just a few miles off Route 66 is one of Oklahoma's most unusual roadside attractions. Ed Galloway's Totem Pole Park was created by retired manual arts teacher Ed Galloway, who spent more than a decade building the park between 1937 and 1948. The centerpiece is the world's largest concrete totem pole, soaring 90 feet into the air and covered with colorful Native American-inspired figures, birds, animals, and geometric designs. Resting on the back of a giant concrete turtle, it's one of those sights that seems almost too unbelievable to be real until you're standing beneath it. 
Totem Pole
Garden of Eden
