Jaycee's Haunted House
415 S. Minnesota
For seventeen years, the Sioux Falls Jaycees haunted this house on Minnesota Avenue.
Image courtesy Siouxland Heritage Museums.
In the late 1960s, it was not uncommon to see a rise in vandalism on Halloween. It was the dreaded trick component guaranteed if the treats did not meet expectations. To counter this, Jaycees organizations around the country began to operate annual haunted houses in their communities. Kids and adults would pay a minimal fee and be thrilled by a spooky and safe experience which, in the end, would help the community.
Sioux Falls’ first Jaycees haunted house opened in 1974. Sioux Falls didn’t have a lot of reported vandalism at the time, but it seemed a good idea to provide an alternative before any settled in. The old George Abbott house at 415 S. Minnesota Ave. was the perfect venue. The spooky house, built in 1887, must have been amazing in it’s heyday, but it had been unoccupied since 1970, and had fallen into disrepair. When the Jaycees proposed to the city that they use the house for the project, Mayor Rick Knobe said, “It has got to be the spookiest-looking house in town.”
Sioux Falls’ first Jaycees haunted house opened in 1974. Sioux Falls didn’t have a lot of reported vandalism at the time, but it seemed a good idea to provide an alternative before any settled in. The old George Abbott house at 415 S. Minnesota Ave. was the perfect venue. The spooky house, built in 1887, must have been amazing in it’s heyday, but it had been unoccupied since 1970, and had fallen into disrepair. When the Jaycees proposed to the city that they use the house for the project, Mayor Rick Knobe said, “It has got to be the spookiest-looking house in town.”
Warren Findley was assigned as the chairman of the Jaycees project. He’d worked with the Jaycees on their haunted house in his old home in Springfield, Missouri, and he had some ideas to contribute. He established sound, lighting, costume, and makeup committees, expecting around 100 Jaycees to work on the project. Findley’s goal was to provide a safe and supervised way to celebrate Halloween. The project cost the jaycees around $2500 and he expected to break even. If it did well, they’d turn it into an annual event.
The haunted house was open from October 28 through the 31st, with a special day on the 27th for Crippled Children’s School and the School for the Deaf. Although one-thousand nightly visitors were expected, 1,250 people lined up for 3-4 blocks. Visitors were divided into groups and led on a tour through the haunted house by a Jaycette, with a Jaycee at the rear of each group. Thirteen rooms in the old Abbott house were used, and each had two doors, one for entry, one for egress. This kept the tour groups efficiently flowing through the house.
In 1975, each night began with the arrival of Dracula’s coffin in an ancient hearse. Once the coffin was conveyed into the haunted house, the tours would begin. In 1979, Dracula arrived in town via hot air balloon, only to be forced by a freak wind to land in Tuthill Park. Jaycees quickly hustled the dreaded beast away to the old house on Minnesota to keep him from feasting on local necks. The previous year, a swamp monster was captured, all in the name of community service.
The haunted house was open from October 28 through the 31st, with a special day on the 27th for Crippled Children’s School and the School for the Deaf. Although one-thousand nightly visitors were expected, 1,250 people lined up for 3-4 blocks. Visitors were divided into groups and led on a tour through the haunted house by a Jaycette, with a Jaycee at the rear of each group. Thirteen rooms in the old Abbott house were used, and each had two doors, one for entry, one for egress. This kept the tour groups efficiently flowing through the house.
In 1975, each night began with the arrival of Dracula’s coffin in an ancient hearse. Once the coffin was conveyed into the haunted house, the tours would begin. In 1979, Dracula arrived in town via hot air balloon, only to be forced by a freak wind to land in Tuthill Park. Jaycees quickly hustled the dreaded beast away to the old house on Minnesota to keep him from feasting on local necks. The previous year, a swamp monster was captured, all in the name of community service.
In August of 1987, the old Abbott house caught fire. The fire department suspected that the blaze was started by kids who’d broken into the house. It was the last nail in the coffin for Sioux Falls’ first Jaycees haunted house. The house was slated for demolition later that year. The Jaycees found a new home for the operation — the Western Mall — and the haunted house remained there until 1998, with the exception of 1991 and 1992, which found the hauntings relocated to the Empire East. In 1998, the show was moved to the Fine Arts Building at the W.H. Lyon Fairgrounds.
It remains unclear if the existence of the Jaycees haunted house deters any vandalism, but the tradition that has carried on in Sioux Falls since 1974 years is one that is not to be missed. If you like a good scare, or if you just want to have fun and give a few bucks to an organization that gives back to the community, it’s worth a visit.
It remains unclear if the existence of the Jaycees haunted house deters any vandalism, but the tradition that has carried on in Sioux Falls since 1974 years is one that is not to be missed. If you like a good scare, or if you just want to have fun and give a few bucks to an organization that gives back to the community, it’s worth a visit.
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