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SCOUTING YESTERDAY | Pukwana’s turkey races took flight — then flew the coop
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SCOUTING YESTERDAY | Pukwana’s turkey races took flight — then flew the coop

This week in South Dakota history: Aug. 8-14

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Dan Gehlsen
Aug 14, 2025
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The Dakota Scout
The Dakota Scout
SCOUTING YESTERDAY | Pukwana’s turkey races took flight — then flew the coop
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Pukwana Turkey Day, 1975. Photo: The Daily Republic

“Capitol Tom” became the second-ever Pukwana Turkey Race champion 50 years ago this week.

But The Daily Republic’s Aug. 14, 1975, report on the victor’s success only brought more attendees to the annual running of the fowl in Brule County — which saw its meteoric rise also become its demise.

The Greater South Dakota Turkey Racing Association had formed just one year earlier.

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Dan Gehlsen
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Aug 6
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