Wall Drug

Wall Drug

Where Ice Water Built A Business

You see them everywhere from Alaska to the London subway, and alongside highways throughout the West. Those prolific Wall Drug signs. You may not really know what or where Wall Drug is, but if you do much traveling you’ve almost certainly seen their signs somewhere along the way. But do you know the story behind the signs?

It all began back in 1931, during the days of the Great Depression, when a young couple named Ted and Dorothy Hustead bought a run down little drugstore in the tiny community of Wall, South Dakota. Ted was a recent graduate of the University of Nebraska School of Pharmacy. The young couple moved into the back room of the store, their living quarters separated from the public area by a blanket strung upon a rope.

Operating a business was a risky proposition back in those days, especially in small communities like Wall, where hard times had crippled what little economy there was. Most of the local farmers had lost their land to bank foreclosures, and those who remained were holding on only by a tenuous thread. Day after day Ted Hustead stood in the doorway and watched what little traffic there was bump along the dusty main street of town and right past his store.

For five years the Husteads managed to eke out a hardscrabble living, but the outlook was not bright. With two children to support, along with his ever-optimistic wife, Ted was not sure how much longer the struggling business could survive. Then one hot Sunday afternoon in July, 1936, Dorothy came up with a simple idea that would eventually make the Husteads a fortune and make Wall Drug world famous. What was Dorothy’s idea? Ice water!

She noticed all of the old jalopies rattling past on old Route 16A, and she realized that every one of those drivers and every one of their passengers had to be hot, thirsty, and miserable. Who among them would not appreciate a nice cold glass of ice water? The Husteads had plenty of ice and plenty of water, Dorothy reasoned, so why not spread the word!

Ted designed some simple signs advertising free ice water at Wall Drug, modeled after the famous Burma Shave signs, and started posting them along the highway leading into town. Ted said later he felt silly doing so, but when he got back to the store his mind changed immediately. Cars were lined up on the dirt street in front of the store and the place was mobbed. Dorothy was running from customer to customer, pouring glasses of ice water. They came in for ice water, but then many of them purchased ice cream cones, candy, and other sundries, and by the end of the day an exhausted Ted and Dorothy Hustead knew they had a winner!

Since that day, Wall Drug has never had a slow day. By the next summer the Husteads had to hire eight local girls to handle all the business, and these days the store will see as many as 20,000 visitors on a single summer day! And it all started with simple hand-painted wooden signs advertising free ice water. Before long, the Husteads got the idea to give customers free Wall Drug signs, and they began to sprout up along highways near and far.

Today Wall Drug has grown into a major South Dakota attraction, and the sprawling complex includes a dining room that can seat over 500 people, with a maze of specialty shops and displays that delight visitors young and old. No matter what you are looking for, you can probably find it at Wall Drug, from Western hats and boots, to Indian pottery, Black Hills gold, Western art, rocks and minerals, and regional books. Be sure to pick up your very own free Wall Drug sign or bumpersticker!

Throughout the emporium’s many rooms and galleries are animated displays, wonderful works of art with a Western theme, oddball artifacts, and humorous signs. One can spend hours browsing and never see it all. Two life-sized animated groups, the Cowboy Orchestra and the Chuck Wagon Quartet, perform every fifteen minutes.

Yes, Wall Drug still gives away free ice water, and if you are hungry, you can choose between a sit-down restaurant, a fast food café, donuts made fresh while you watch, and sweet treats in the ice cream parlor.

A brand new addition is the Backyard Building, filled with old photographs, wildlife exhibits, and shops featuring products made in South Dakota. The photograph collection includes over 1,400 images taken in the 1800s and early 1900s in South Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana. Kids will love the giant roaring Tyrannosaurus Rex, not to mention the six foot tall jackalope and animated displays. It’s all great fun for young and old alike.

Ted and Dorothy have passed away, but Wall Drug is still a family operation, and their grandsons now run the business the same way their ancestors did – with friendly service, a touch of humor, and refreshing glasses of free ice water on hot summer days.