Rapid City Commercial Historic District (Boundary Increase)

About this property

The Rapid City Historic Commercial District, sometimes called the Rapid City Downtown Historic District, is a 21-acre (8.5 ha), multi-block historic district in downtown Rapid City, South Dakota, United States. It includes 47 commercial buildings dating from the late 19th to early 20th centuries that formed the core of Rapid City's early economy. It was first listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 and then expanded to its current size in 1998. The historic district spans across multiple blocks in the center of downtown Rapid City. 10 acres (4.0 ha) of Main, Saint Joseph, 6th, and 7th Streets formed the rough boundaries of the original 1974 listing, with 38 properties on both sides of the streets included, although some buildings on 5th Street were also included. These buildings were constructed between 1881 and 1924. The district expanded by 11 acres (4.5 ha) in 1998 to encompass 50 contributing and 22 non-contributing properties and pushed the western and eastern boundaries out to Mount Rushmore Road and 5th Street, respectively. The years of significance were also increased to between 1876 and 1948. The district was again surveyed in 2017, which updated its total contributing properties to 47 and non-contributing properties to 21. It also removed several noncontributing properties included in the 1998 boundary increase. On the corners of many intersections in the district, there are bronze statues of U.S. Presidents. These are part of a Rapid City art exhibit known as the City of Presidents. The buildings in the Rapid City Historic Commercial District represent a broad range of purposes and architectural styles. Most properties historically served—and continue to serve—a commercial purpose, but some have been used for governmental, civic, agricultural, industrial, or entertainment functions. The first buildings were typically first constructed out of timber frames before later being replaced by more permanent stone and brick structures. Between 1880 and 1900, non-wooden buildings were usually done in the Renaissance Revival, Italianate, Romanesque Revival, and Queen Anne architectural styles. After the turn of the 20th century, fashions gave way to Neoclassical, Beaux Arts, Chicago School, and American Craftsman. Buildings from the interwar period favored more utilitarian Art Deco, International, or Moderne architecture styles. Buildings from any era might display eclectic or vernacular features. As white American settlers moved west into the Black Hills in the 1870s, entrepreneurs began looking to build settlements that would serve as hubs of commerce and transport. Rapid City was founded in 1876 on the banks of Rapid Creek, today located a few blocks north of the modern historic district. The arrival of railroads over the next two decades caused a population boom and created a rapidly growing economy. Banks, grocers, lawyers, pharmacies, and many other retail and commercial ventures started up in the downtown core to meet the needs of the growing population. Other properties served as hotels, lodges, or apartments. As the county seat, Rapid City also required multiple government and civic buildings; the first city hall was located at 616 6th Street. The old fire hall also served as a police headquarters; today it is a restaurant, the theming of which calls back to its firehouse roots.

Location

Categories

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

More in Pennington County

Historic places, battles, and census history across Pennington County.

More historic places in South Dakota

Browse all historic places in South Dakota.

Conflict records

Explore 19,000+ military engagements across American history.

South Dakota history

Colonial settlement, territorial period, and statehood narrative.