Best Western Ramkota Hotel |
Dakota Sioux Casino |
Expressions Gallery/Knit Nook |
Glacial Lakes Harley Davidson |
Prairie Rose Trading Company |
Watertown, South Dakota, was platted in September of 1878. The first signs of spring in 1879 brought many newcomers to Watertown. During the early days, a prairie fire razed almost the entire town, which consisted of three stores and scattered homes. Progress in building the new town went on as rapidly as men could be obtained. During the next two years Watertown’s progress was rapid. In 1884, two railroad lines were added. In 1892, the Sisseton Reservation was opened for homesteading and day after day long lines of men and women stood at the door of the Land Office in Watertown to register. The opening of the reservation was a great aid to the settlement of the surrounding countryside. If any town has the right to the title of “Pheasant Capital of South Dakota” it would be Watertown. The first ring-necked pheasants planted in South Dakota were distributed by an aviary on 3rd Avenue. The birds were purchased from a breeder in New York and shipped to Watertown, South Dakota.