There are two historic districts in Rapid City: Downtown Rapid City and the West Boulevard neighborhood. The Rapid City Historic Preservation Commission overseen general standards for for these districts in order to help maintain the buildings. In the West Boulevard neighborhood, you will not find two buildings that look alike.

The Downtown Commercial Historic District takes in most of the original downtown, and includes many older buildings that still house stores and offices today. In fact, some of the buildings look remarkably similar to how they first appeared in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

A great fact about one of Rapid City’s historic landmark, Hotel Alex Johnson, is that it was built one day apart from the carving of Mt. Rushmore in 1927. The first steam shovel seen in western South Dakota was used in the construction of the hotel and it had to be shipped to Rapid City by train.

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Stay at Hotel Alex Johnson when you visit Rapid City, South Dakota.