Small Town of the Day-Crooks, SD

Gidget Buck McAreavey Crooks!! We have the Crooks Rodeo every year, first weekend of June. Critters Bar is known for Rosken's Pizza and Big Ern's Bar and Restaurant has great food.

Crooks is just coming off a big weekend of flexing their 'small town muscles,' as they recently wrapped up another great July 4th celebration that was highlighted with some awesome fireworks!

One of the neat things about the Small Town of the Day, we get to find out things we did not know.  Crooks, was originally named New Hope and had that name until 1904. The town has a population of just over 1200 and is located just northwest of Sioux Falls in Minnehaha County.

Here's a historical writeup on Crooks taken from Crooks.com

Minnie Eliason Narrative

In writing a history of the town of Crooks, a large book could be filled, with interesting happenings from a period of nearly 74 years. The town itself, was not started until the railroad, "The South Dakota Central" went thru in 1904.  Altho a Creamery was started in

1895 by a Mr. Frank Floyd and a few farmers in the vicinity.  It was located about where the Johnson Store or Crooks Food Mart now stands, and commenced doing business June 1, 1895.  On the following 22nd day of August it was destroyed by fire.  It was a two story building and a barrel of lime was near an upstairs window and it was thought, the sun, shining on the lime caused the fire.

The first Post Office was at the farm home of Bendict Nelson, located about 1 mile south and about 1/2 mile west of where the town of Crooks is now located.  His son Ole Nelson was the postmaster.  The new post-office was named "Newhope" in honor of a town in WIsconsin, where the Nelson's formerly lived.  On March 3, 1877 the first school meeting was held at the farm home of Mr. and Mrs. WA Crooks.  This was the parents of George

Crooks and located 1/2 mile north of Crooks occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Leonard Johnson and Mr. and Mrs. Leon Johnson later on.  Miss Lillie Darrow was the first teacher.  In 1879 a new school house was built 1/2 mile east of Crooks where an acre of land was donated by DO Crooks, and is still the school grounds. When the school district reorganized with Lyons and Colton the school was sold to Our Lady of the Snows Catholic Church.  The first teacher in the school house was Miss Nellie Wheeler.  Grasshoppers and prairie fires were very bad in those days.  Ole Nelson resigned as Postmaster in 1877 and Lorenze Aldridge was appointed to fill his place with DO Crooks as assistant.  November 21st 1878 they took charge of the mail.