Wientjes Barn and Ranch Yard Mound City, South Dakota

Text courtesy of the National Register of Historic Places, a program of the National Parks Service. Minor transcription errors or changes in formatting may have occurred; please see the Nomination Form PDF for official text. Some information may have become outdated since the property was nominated for the Register.

The Wientjes Barn and Ranch Yard with its adjoining system of chutes, corrals, branding/vaccination area, calf shed, and well are eligible under Criterion C for Architecture. The barn is a good example of a multi-level barn with gambrel roof and is a locally significant type in Campbell County. The adjoining system of chutes, corrals, vaccination/branding area, feeding troughs, and calf barn add to the significance and increase the understanding of the use of the barn and architectural designs/changes associated with the barn. Like most working ranch yards, the resource contains a mix of historic and modern materials, such as the use of metal gates. However, non-historic materials do not destroy the ability of the property to convey the period and methods of construction it represents. Rather, the use of non-historic materials in the yard portion further demonstrates the adaptation and availability of new materials into a working farm operation. According the South Dakota Homesteading and Agricultural Development Context, adaptations of ranch yards should be considered along with barns and outbuildings.