Preserving the Past, Investing in the Future: Dan Boehnen’s Legacy for Mitchell’s Historic Village

For Dan Boehnen, it’s about family, Mitchell and history. His grandfather, Leo, moved to the Mitchell area with his mother and siblings in the late 1800s after his father died.  When Leo turned 16, he went to northwest South Dakota to homestead.  After he was able to gain title and sell his homestead, he moved back to the Mitchell area where he bought a farm and got married. Leo eventually moved into Mitchell and started an “oil jobber” business, a middleman in the supply chain of oil products. 

That family connection to the Mitchell area is why, in 1982, Dan’s mother Betty and he and his siblings helped convince his father, Lloyd, to contribute funds to help build what would become the Boehnen Memorial Museum at the Mitchell Indigenous Prehistoric Archaeological Site. The museum is located on the grounds of a village occupied by ancestors of the Mandan more than 1,000 years ago.  The museum showcases discoveries from the ongoing archaeological excavation; and includes a life-size model of an indigenous earth lodge, a bison skeleton and other displays, a video room and a giftshop. 

That history and family connection is also why Dan readily contributed to the Village’s endowment managed by South Dakota Community Foundation, which was created in 2023.  Boehnen, who grew up in Mitchell and now lives in Chicago, contributed $100,000 to the endowment and offered to donate an additional $100,000 if that additional donation would be matched by others. A long-time Mitchell couple stepped forward and made the match.

“The Village needs a stable source of financial support to maintain and continue its work.  The endowment is the way to make that happen,” said Dan. “There are a lot of exciting things happening at the Village, but they won’t continue to happen by themselves.” 

A National Historic Landmark, the Village is the only active archaeological site in South Dakota open to the public. At its height, approximately 600 people lived there in earthen lodges. They were highly skilled farmers and hunters and helped develop modern strains of corn grown today. 

The Village has become a resource for schools. Every year, students from public, private and tribal schools tour the Village to learn more about early South Dakota history. All students are given free admission to the site. 

Those students, when they arrive at the Village, walk by a brass plaque, attached to a boulder, with an image of Boehnen’s grandfather sitting in front of his sod house. Dan said the plaque was designed to honor both his grandfather and the area’s Indigenous people.

“Everyone wants to know where they came from and how they fit into the world,” said Dan, who developed his interest in history listening to stories about those who came before him. 

The Mitchell Prehistoric Indian Village Endowment Fund at  South Dakota Community Foundation will help assure that students and others will continue to have an important resource far into the future to help spark their interest in history and the world around them.