County of site: Butte County
Location of site: 415 5th Ave., Belle Fourche
Phone: (605) 723-2010
Hours of operation listed is for the visitors center, the actual monument is on open land, and viewable at any time. So some common sense and respect will have to be your guide
"Belle Fourche has the distinct honor of being the Geographic Center of the Nation. Visit the 21-foot granite monument, Avenue of State Flags, historic Johnny Spaulding Cabin, disc golf course and river walk, all in one beautiful setting. Free admission. AAA approved." ~ Black Hills & Badlands Tourism Association
"The mesmerizing prairie monotony along Highway 85 south is abruptly broken by a blue sign about the size of a cafeteria tray. In roadside shorthand it offers an expeditionary challenge worthy of Jules Verne: this way, 7.8 miles, to the CENTER OF THE NATION.
"The unpaved road at the turnoff greets cars of the curious with growls of annoyance, and for several miles offers only sheared sheep, skittish antelope and grass. But just when suspicions of a prank begin to invade the mind, something 100 yards off the road catches the eye, something red, and white — and, yes, blue.
"It is a wind-tattered American flag, flapping at the top of a silvery pole that rises from the Dakota moonscape like the claim stake of some disoriented astronaut. A hand-scrawled sign propped against a barbed-wire fence provides confirmation: Though the absence of a souvenir stand or even a snow-cone booth would suggest otherwise, this remote spot is, in fact, the declared geographic center of the United States.
"For years Belle Fourche struggled with how to capitalize on its nearness to the center of the nation. There were meetings, and fund-raising golf tournaments, and more meetings, and grumblings about how even Rugby, N.D., the “Geographical Center of North America,” had a 15-foot stone obelisk to mark the spot.
"Finally, last summer, the Chamber of Commerce unveiled a “Center of the Nation” monument planted in the grass behind its office: a massive map of the United States enclosed in a compass rose, designed by a local artist and made of 54,000 pounds of South Dakota granite. American tourists could stand on their home state and pose for photographs memorializing their visit to somewhere near the nation’s center.
"Ms. Schanzenbach says 2,200 tourists stopped at the Belle Fourche visitors center in September, compared with about 200 the September before — all thanks to the monument. Although staff members and handouts explain that the actual center is a good half-hour’s drive away, she says 90 percent of the visitors choose to pose for photos at the monument and then carry on to Deadwood, Mount Rushmore and attractions beyond.
“We’re not pretending to be the actual center,” she says. “We’re providing a convenience.”
~ The New York Times
Hours of Operations:
Memorial Day - Labor Day
Monday - Saturday
9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Sunday
12:00 - 4:00 p.m.
September
Monday - Saturday
9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Closed Sunday
October - April
Monday - Friday
10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Closed Weekend