Yankton College At The Mead

Hail Yankton College! I’m Scott O’Neal and I graduated from Yankton College in its last class of 1984. Yankton College opened its doors in 1881 and was the first college of the plains. It closed its doors in 1984 because of financial difficulties. The archives and spirit of Yankton College now reside on the third floor of the Mead Museum in Yankton, South Dakota. The entire project of moving Yankton College to The Mead is totally completed. And that’s what this video is about. Introducing you to the new home of Yankton College.

Yankton College drew students not only from the Midwest and the surrounding area but was well known for drawing youth from many ethnicities that were interested in the study of music, art and sports. YC was very strong in all of these areas. Growing up in the little town of Hebron, NE, I had never encountered people from such different backgrounds, different areas and different views. This I feel was the strength of Yankton College. Its diversity.

Yankton College opened my mind to a world that I had no knowledge of growing up. And that’s why I made this video. Yankton College was different. Yankton College did make a difference and it is something we need more of in this world. Because I now live in Yankton, I must tell you that it is still painful for me to drive by the college. But at the same time it brings me joy, if that makes sense. If I had a magic wand to reopen Yankton College I surely would…

Yankton College has its 2024 All-Class Reunion this summer from July 18-20. I’m hoping to reunite with college friends that I haven’t seen since I was a student at YC. If you went to Yankton College, or even if you didn’t, this summer would be a great time to visit the new home of Yankton College. The completed Yankton College Story on the 3rd floor of The Mead.

I hope you enjoy this inside look into Yankton College and its history. There is so much to see at The Mead. I have only touched on a few of the exhibits. So will I see you this summer? I hope so. None of us are getting any younger and I believe now is the time! Contact Yankton College: (866) 665-3661. Yankton College Website: info@yanktoncollege.org

Please subscribe to our channel and share this video. My wife Kaye and I love making videos about our home town: Yankton, South Dakota. My goal is to reach as many graduates as possible. As you will see while watching the video, Yankton College had a great impact on the community of Yankton and its people. Residents of Yankton that still call Yankton, South Dakota home. People that you had no idea were YC icons in their own right. And then turned out to be Yankton, South Dakota icons.

I look forward to hearing your comments about my video and your stories about Yankton College while you were here. I would like to thank Megan Hansen for helping me so much with the filming and the content of this video. Thank you Megan! Go Greyhounds!