Outside the city of Sioux Falls, SD there is a small town named Buffalo Ridge and it is home to its one-and-only roadside attraction, Cowboy Town. Built in the 1960’s, it has seen a plethora of Americana enthusiasts, including me and my friends. We labeled Cowboy Town as a “must-see” on our trip to Sioux Falls, and although it was far different from my expectations, it continues to be one of the most memorable parts of our trip.
With cheap admission and the whole town to ourselves, we tramped all over the replica of the 1880 Wild West and had a blast while doing so. They had a saloon, a jailhouse, a gallows, a watchtower, and even a miniaturized opera house all with broken-down animatronics that were a 1-in-20 shot that they worked at all. It was obvious that this tourist’s spot had seen better days, but we didn’t care too much. We were too busy laughing and having a good time to care about how run-down it actually was.
According to online reviews, Cowboy Town is a hit-or-miss with the public, with polar opinions for and against. Some people had a grand ole time like we did, and others were scared off by the threat of beaten down buildings and the grimy appearance of everything in the vicinity. One online review sticks out among the rest for its insightful analysis of roadside attractions in general.
This example of roadside Americana is a living dinosaur…
You love this place or hate it, depending on your affection for roadside attractions that were constructed long ago, became obsolete, and have somehow survived to the present. Places like this are so rare that they might be called living dinosaurs. Personally, I think Cowboy Ghost Town deserves a look no matter what you might think of it. It’s that unique. Rated as an example of disappearing roadside Americana, this place deserves at least a Very Good.
Our recent visit was primarily for buying buffalo meat (they produce their own) and browsing the store (fascinating stuff!). We enjoyed chatting with the owners. Among other interesting things, we learned that Cowboy Ghost Town has sustained tornado damage more than once during its roughly 50 years of existence.”
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