The clickety-clack of horse teams pulling wagons met folks in town aiming to greet riders on the 2020 Kyle Evans Memorial Wagon Train. After a two-day ride celebrating the western way of life and the memory of Kyle Evans, riders and teams made their way from camp at Crow Lake toward their fi…

At the end of a dusty road, tucked between rolling prairie hills sits a pretty little ranch that’s become a familiar path for many a cattleman. 

Community gathers for bean bag tournament and meal to help send off local solders for deployment  

The 21st Annual Relay For Life of Jerauld/Sanborn County, this Thursday in Wessington Springs, will look a little different from the norm. But then nearly everything does this year. With the theme “Cruisin’ for Cancer,” the event will begin at 6:30 p.m. with a cruise down Main Street. Driver…

“Cruisin’ for Cancer” Aug. 20

The Springs Area Community Club Consignment Store in Wessington Springs will reopen on Wednesday, August 12.  The store  has been closed since March due to coronavirus concerns.

Thousands of would-be auction items collected over the course of more than six decades perched expectantly on various trailers positioned throughout Kraft Repair, awaiting a new owner who would take them home for the highest bid. Lloyd Kraft’s fingers graced the neatly organized collector’s …

With two packets of seeds — radishes and cosmos — a passion for gardening bloomed early on for Maggie Higgins as a seven-year-old girl in England. 

Communication and teamwork prove to be important pieces of the puzzle for Alpena Co-Op’s success 

After moving to curbside service and delivery for the past several months due to the coronavirus, Wessington Springs Carnegie Library announced that starting this week, patrons are welcomed inside with CDC and state library precautionary guidelines in place. 

Although Mike Huether may be well known to many South Dakotans for serving eight years as former mayor of Sioux Falls and current television host on KELOLAND, Jerauld Conservation District Manager Lisa Sall describes Huether as her “longtime, most enthusiastic conservation customer.” 

Wessington Springs grandparents follow their “calling” during pandemic 

The True Dakotan brought home 11 news/editorial and advertising awards from South Dakota Newspaper Association’s annual contest. The contest spotlights some of the best work done by newspapers across the state.

The Weskota Foundation of Wessington Springs recently donated $1000 to assist Wessington Springs Area Chamber & Development’s (WSACD) mission to place hand sanitizer stations in local businesses. With the assistance of the Wessington Springs Area Community Foundation, the funds will be s…

On March 27, 2020 President Trump and Congress enacted legislation that created a $349 billion Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) for small businesses thrown into a tailspin by the coronavirus. The premise of the program relied on banks to get the money flowing quickly to their customers. Ope…

As she watched more and more friends and acquaintances cancel their spring weddings due to restrictions around the coronavirus, Paige (Jacomet) Clover couldn’t imagine putting off her own nuptials that she had been planning since last fall — or waiting any longer to tie the knot with fiance …

Springs Inn Cafe owners celebrate 40 years of dishing up comfort

“One for the record books,” may be a term synonymous to 2020 as a whole, and certainly applies to last weekend’s Easter celebration in Jerauld County. 

Starting last week, a new sign alerted visitors to stop before entering Spring Valley Colony in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus into the colony community.

Several days before the City of Wessington Springs passed a resolution and ordinance to move all restaurant, bar and local business to curbside, drive-thru or delivery only, Springs Food Market made the tough decision on their own to prohibit shoppers in their store.  

Wessington Springs Schools faculty and staff have risen to the challenge when it comes to keeping students engaged and offering a myriad of resources for parents as we take on the task of remote schooling during the COVID-19 health crisis.  

Area women enjoy refreshments, entertainment and good company

Mamie Shields Pyle was walking by a polling place on Election Day in Huron — a place where women were not welcome in the early 1900s — when she overheard a conversation that changed not only her life, but the course of South Dakota history. A man was holding up a ballot and showing a group o…

Sweet Grass Eatery to reopen March 9 The storied history of one of the oldest buildings on Main Street in Wessington Springs begins a new chapter next week, as Sweet Grass Eatery reopens its doors March 9 after being closed for renovations to repair a January water line burst.  

Spartans Got Talent

Members of the Wessington Springs Volunteer Fire Department gathered for their annual Valentine’s Day supper last weekend at the American Legion Prairie Lounge. 

For former Wessington Springs resident Jeffery Caffee, a photographic journey that began as a creative outlet evolved into a deep desire to shine a light on those who are struggling on our American streets.A body of work aimed at illuminating the large gap between those living in poverty and…

For Wessington Springs native Jeffery Caffee, a photographic journey that began as a creative outlet evolved into a deep desire to shine a light on those who are struggling on our American streets — and more importantly, to encourage kindness and empathy for the subjects who Caffee photographs. 

Local youth thank last-living tow-rope builder for 64 years (and counting) of outdoor winter fun

Hailstorms, fires, tornadoes and a dedication to treating folks the way they’d like to be treated, created the framework for three decades of providing insurance coverage at Krohmer Agency.

At the beginning of this year, staff at Weskota Manor Avera  celebrated longtime volunteer Cecile Knight. As the calendar turned over to 2020, the date marked 18 years of Knight’s volunteer service at the nursing home. 

A 10-minute window marked a life-changing moment in a Huron man’s existence. 

Enjoying Christmas Day Food and Fellowship

Jerauld County employees helped area folks turn up the dial on Christmas spirit last Friday during their annual Parade of Trees event. 

A Christmas special featuring nine Wessington Springs musicians will premier next week on a TV or computer screen near you. “Faith and Music: A Wessington Springs Christmas Special,” will debut Christmas week on YouTube and Venture Cable’s “Video on Demand.” The producer is Rev. John Paulson…

Voices and Christmas Spirit Soar at Cantata

December 2019 began with over a foot of snow across the region, with local weather recorder Kathy Voorhees reporting 2.5” of snow on Saturday, November 30, followed by 13” on Sunday, December 1, bringing a two-day total of 15.5” of snow and 1.47” of moisture. Much of Sunday was spent scoopin…

Holiday pie baking action was in full swing at Wessington Springs High School (WSHS) with more than 200 pies sold through the annual Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) pie sale. The yearly pie sale is the group's biggest fundraiser and helps fund student FCCLA projects …

Cecil White’s love of thatched roofs emerged early and from simple beginnings: admiration of a picture hanging on the wall in his childhood home, a farm house with a thatched roof. His curiosity about the ancient craft blossomed and eventually led him to pursue training in Bedfordshire Engla…

Among three nominated EMS services across the state, Jerauld County Ambulance was honored last weekend with the South Dakota EMS Service of the Year award.  This award is presented annually and is selected by a committee made up of state and district vice presidents amongst nominations received. 

The local Ducks Unlimited (DU) chapter held its annual banquet Saturday night at the Jerauld County 4-H Building in Wessington Springs. Committee members' hard work paid off with a lucrative banquet.

Banquet offers something for everyone on pheasant season opening weekend

Last year, Dave Gaulke of Buffalo County invited True Dakotan readers to compare sizes and answer the question: whose rock is bigger? Throughout the year, the True Dakotan published big rock submissions from all over the region. Earlier this year, we published all seven of the big rock submi…

The Sing-Sew Extension Club was organized at June Larson’s home in September 1949. They had 24 members and a waiting list! Jerauld County had 21 Extension Clubs in the 1950s and 60s.  In the 1950-60s the club had a style show and presented a play “Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow” and served the Jaycee Ba…

Since the beginning of time, the human race has enjoyed the protein source provided by beef. Some of the earliest known cave paintings show early evolved cattle in hunting scenes. Around 8000 BC, cattle were discovered to not only provide meat for consumption but that their milk was also ano…