While western South Dakota is known for Badlands National Park and several national park sites in the Black Hills, it is also home to Minuteman Missile National Historic Site. Like nearby Jewel Cave National Monument and Wind Cave National Park, Minuteman Missile also preserves something below the sweeping plains and rock formations of South Dakota; however, Minuteman Missile preserves something man-made rather than something natural. During the Cold War, the United States placed numerous missile silos and launch facilities underneath the ground in the Great Plains. Minuteman Missile National Historic Site preserves one such missile silo and launch site, offering interpretative displays and tours to help visitors understand the Cold War and the missiles’ role in it.

The best place to begin your visit to Minuteman Missile is the visitor center, where you can see displays on the Minuteman Missile and its role in the Cold War, as well as view a film on the subject. Visitors can visit Launch Facility (Missile Silo) Delta-09, where they can peer through a window into the ground and see a deactivated training missile where the Minuteman Intercontinental Ballistic Missile once stood in its silo. Visitors can also visit Launch Control Facility Delta-01, although it is important to note that a visit requires a reservation. If at all possible, we recommend going on the tour of the Launch Control Facility. The visit includes a wealth of information on the site and the role the missiles played in the Cold War, along with a tour of the entire launch facility. This includes the upper observation areas, the kitchen, the offices, the sleeping quarters, and the bunker that housed the equipment that would enable the launch of the Minuteman missiles. While in the bunker, visitors can learn all of the precautions taken to ensure that the missile could not be launched unless absolutely necessary and that the missile could be launched if other launch facilities had been struck by missiles and been incapacitated.

We found our visit to Minuteman Missile National Historic Site to interesting, informative, and engaging. We were very glad that we visited, and especially glad that we reserved tickets early for the launch facility tour. We highly recommend visiting this national park site.