Opening of Dakota Diaspora & Transfer of Memory Exhibit

With the goal to recognize and celebrate South Dakota’s rich cultural history, Dakota Discovery Museum will open a summer long exhibit dedicated to the immigration of Jews to the Midwest.

“Dakota Diaspora: Jews in South Dakota” and “Transfer of Memory” exhibits will be open to the public at Dakota Discovery Museum in Mitchell beginning Tuesday, May 15. The exhibit and accompanying program are the result of a collaborative partnership between Dakota Discovery Museum, the Jewish Community Relations Council for Minnesota and the Dakotas, and Dakota Wesleyan University. Multiple program events are scheduled for the summer and early fall, with the entire exhibit closing Sept. 15.

Hours for the museum are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. Regular admission rates are $7 for adults, $6 for seniors, $3 for children 7-17, and free for children 6 years and younger.

People of Jewish descent entered Dakota Territory in the 1870s during the Black Hills Gold Rush.

“‘Dakota Diaspora: Jews in South Dakota’ is a museum exhibit that includes photographs, art, artifacts, interviews and six program events with discussion components that tell the story of Jewish people in South Dakota’s history and their cultural contribution,” said Rod Brown, manager at Dakota Discovery Museum. “A significant component is the work of Dakota Wesleyan students who conducted interviews, networked with various South Dakota Jewish families, and acquired exhibit items on loan.”

“Transfer of Memory,” a traveling exhibition from the Jewish Community Relations Council for Minnesota and the Dakotas, portrays the stories of Holocaust survivors who settled in the Midwest, particularly Minnesota, following World War II. 

The exhibits are sponsored by Dakota Discovery Museum with help of the Jewish Community Relations Council for Minnesota and the Dakotas, as well as the South Dakota Humanities Council; Mount Zion Temple, Sioux Falls; Congregation B’Nai Isaac, Aberdeen; Synagogue of the Hills, Rapid City; and contributions from Drs. Mike and Lesta Turchen, both of Hill City and former faculty members of DWU; and the McGovern Center at Dakota Wesleyan University.

Brown and the Rev. Joel Allen, associate professor of religion at Dakota Wesleyan, have worked with DWU students and South Dakota residents to collect artifacts and conduct interviews for the “Dakota Diaspora” exhibit.

The B’nai Isaac Synagogue in Aberdeen has loaned the museum a model of the synagogue; the original sign for the building; Seder dishes – The Seder is a commemoration service and dinner marking the beginning of Passover; two tallits, which are prayer shawls; and a banner, which is used to cover the ark that contains the synagogue’s Torah scrolls.

“One of the Seder dishes tells the story of the Exodus,” Brown added.

Herschel and Bea Premack, of Aberdeen, loaned the exhibit a framed house blessing in Hebrew; a mezuzah, which is a vital element to an observant Jewish home; and several dreidels, which are children’s toys.

Synagogue of the Hills in Rapid City has lent the Deadwood Torah Scroll to the exhibit, which was most likely created during the mid-19th century in central Europe. Other items also lent include a shofar, a musical instrument made from the horn of an animal, and an 18-inch tall brass menorah.