VIBORG

Renae Hansen

Located in Southeastern South Dakota, Viborg was founded by Danish immigrants and was first established as a village in 1893. Our Danish heritage has been kept alive and well and has been celebrated throughout the years since. This is evident by the Danish flags, nisse men, and Velkommen signs that you will see as you drive through the streets of our town.

Danish Days is an annual celebration of that heritage and has a long history dating back to Viborg’s earliest days. Our modern-day celebration includes Danish food, live music, a parade, ball tournaments, kid’s carnival, and of course the beer and food tent that is the center of the weekend’s activities. Danish Days is held the third weekend of July and the townsfolk of Viborg are more than happy to welcome all to come and “Be a Dane for a Day.”

Viborg’s Daneville Heritage Museum also preserves Viborg’s proud Danish heritage. Dig into the rich history of Viborg at the Museum Library, with its many submitted family histories and photos, complete sets of the Viborg Enterprise newspaper from 1958 to today, and centennial books from Viborg and the surrounding communities. The museum also features the Daneville Township District #46 schoolhouse that gives visitors a glance into the school days of the past. You can spend hours looking through the exhibits, including the Denmark Collection, the Veteran’s exhibit displaying uniforms and medals from Viborg’s veterans, the chapel with its religious artifacts, pioneer household furniture and appliances, and so much more. On special occasions the museum even has live music on its 18th century German-built pipe organ, an experience you’re not soon to forget.

The gem of Viborg’s Main Street is our historic Lund Theatre. The theater went through several name changes and locations throughout the years but has been a part of Viborg since the early days of moving pictures. The current theater is the oldest continuous running theater in South Dakota. It was built in 1915 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1928 it was sold to a young Danish immigrant, Eskild Lund, who changed the name to the Lund Theatre in 1950 and it has kept the name ever since. In 2013, when the theater was in danger of closing its doors due to the high cost of changing over to a digital projector, the town and surrounding communities rallied and raised the funds needed to purchase the theater and make the changes that were needed to keep it running. It is now run by volunteers and managed by a board of directors, and business is better than ever. Movies are shown on weekends and Wednesday nights. It is not uncommon to see Viborg’s Main Street packed full of cars on movie nights, with moviegoers traveling from all over the area to take in a film at our very reasonably priced theater.

Just a few miles north of Viborg, you can experience the beauty of Swan Lake. Whether it’s fishing, boating, water skiing, or just relaxing by the shoreline, there is something for everyone. We highly recommend watching the sunset over the lake at the end of a busy day. ■