Ice Water In Their Veins

Wall, South Dakota
Wall Drug

The sprawling cluster of buildings that make up Wall Drug

Have you ever been in traffic, maybe in Boston, Chicago or Atlanta and noticed a Wall Drug bumper sticker on one of the cars in front of you? Perhaps you’ve wondered, “What is this Wall Drug, and why does a drug store have bumper stickers?” The fact of the matter is that Wall Drug is a variety of things, least of which is a drug store. Part of its mystery and allure may come from the fact that it’s pretty far from anywhere. To find Wall Drug you’d have to either plan a trip out through the badlands of South Dakota or just happen to be passing through on Interstate 90. It’s impossible to ignore the signs along the highway for hundreds of miles in either direction, beckoning like The Thing on Interstate 10 in Arizona. Since there’s really nothing else around for miles, it almost makes sense to stop, which is exactly what Nebraskan pharmacist Ted Hustead and his wife Dorothy realized when they bought a little drug store in Wall, South Dakota back in 1931. What took a little time was to figure out how to get the lines of people heading down Interstate 90 to see the relatively new Mount Rushmore to stop in their little town. It was Dorothy who hit upon the idea to offer travelers free ice water, and as the saying goes, if you build it they will come. Billboards on the highway attracted travelers and business got so good that they grew from a storefront drug store to what amounts to a rustic, western-themed mall and entertainment complex encompassing an entire city block.

Wildlife keep watch over the restroom

If Aunt Edna needed her heart medicine before hitting Rapid City some 50 miles to the west, you could get it at Wall Drug; the problem would be figuring out where to look. As you wind your way through the 76,000 square foot labyrinth of interconnected buildings you see Western clothing, souvenirs, jewelry, furniture, art, and a restaurant that features Western art. Out through the back is Wall Drug’s Backyard, featuring concrete and fiberglass creatures including a Sinclair apatosaurus and a gigantic jackalope (dwarfs compared to the behemoths found throughout North Dakota). In the center of this madness is a water dispenser where you can still have your fill of free ice water. I visited in February, when the high temperature was in the upper 40s, but when in Rome, drink the free ice water. Winter is a great time to visit this Gene Autry version of the Magic Kingdom as you don’t have to worry about long lines of people waiting to see the animatronic roaring T-Rex (just an upper body peeking over a fence). The restaurant is decent, but not outstanding – it does, however have the drawing power of an $8 buffalo burger and a 5-cent cup of coffee.

Colossal critters roam through the Wall Drug Backyard

This mecca of cowboy kitsch isn’t going to drop your jaw in wonder, nor will you likely pack up the Buick with Indian blankets and faux Fredric Remington sculptures but it’s a fun place to stop if you happen to be cruising through that part of South Dakota to see Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse Monument, Deadwood, Sturgis or even the stark beauty and desolation of The Badlands. You certainly get your money’s worth of entertainment value – there is no fee to enter; just don’t forget Aunt Edna’s heart medicine on the way out.

Wall Drug
510 Main St
Wall, SD 57790
GPS Coordinates: 43°59’34.62″N 102°14’29.30″W

See more pictures from Val’s visit to Wall Drug in Wall, South Dakota