Jennings Floden was born November 21, 1923, in Bradley, SD, to Jens and Clara (Karlson) Floden. Jens arrived from Norway at the age of seventeen and he and Clara homesteaded on separate pieces of land, eventually creating the ranch between Hoover and Mud Butte where Jennings grew up. Jennings used to tell stories of how the family survived through the 30's living on cream and egg checks.

Jennings graduated from Nisland High School in 1942 as class valedictorian. He started to attend college at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology but was called home to work on the ranch when his brother, Kermit, went into the military. He also worked as a ranch hand for neighbors during that time in order to help the family income. He used to talk about living by himself on the prairie in the sheep wagon for days at a time to safeguard the herd (and drinking cowboy coffee).

Jennings married Shirley Spencer June 10, 1949, at Trinity Lutheran Church, Rapid City. He adopted Anne Marie, and Shirley and Jennings had three children, Karl, Susan, and James. Early in their marriage, they lived a short time in the old sod house on the ranch, and eventually built their own home.

The family ranch and everything associated with it was his life's work. He loved the land and the wildlife, planting shelter belts, and building small spreader dams to hold water on hardpan spots on the prairie so they would grass over. He focused on good range management and conservation practices, and expanded the size of the ranch. Over the years, he added forty-four dams to the ranch, bought new acreage, built new structures,
and switched from raising sheep to building up a cattle herd.

Jennings always had a story. Many were hunting stories or focused on survival from the days when they used a horse and buggy up to the time when he retired and the family moved to Rapid City in December, 2008. He used to say that he battled Mother Nature for 85 years on the ranch and that Mother Nature finally won. He was an excellent hunter and always said that if he couldn't shoot something on the run with his trusty old thirty-thirty, it was too far away. He was the guide for a number of relatives who hunted deer and antelope on the ranch, and always seemed to know how and where the "critters" would run.

One of the highlights for Shirley and Jennings was participating in an archeological "dig" on the ranch that unearthed a Tyrannosaurus Rex scull and partial skeleton, at that time only the sixth available specimen of that dinosaur in the world. The "find" attracted national media attention and brought a number of people into their lives who were interested in archeology and local history.

Jennings was a long time member of the local chapter of Farmer's Union, officer in Cottonwood Township, a member of Northern Hills Archeology Society and Butte County Historical Society, and attended Darton Geological Society meetings. He was baptized and confirmed at Immanuel Lutheran and was one of the longest members. He read extensively and had a broad base of knowledge about local and national subjects.

Jennings, 92, Rapid City, died Sunday, June 19, 2016, Father's Day evening, at Rapid City Regional Hospital.

Left behind are his wife, Shirley, son, Karl, and daughter, Anne Fines (Jerry), all of Rapid City; daughter, Susan Clausen (James), Alpine, TX; and son, James (Shaye) of Hermosa; grandsons, Jeremy (Anitra), Matthew (Margaret), and Shawn; and greatgrandson, Dillon.

He was preceded in death by his parents; brother, Kermit "Kurt;" sister, Blanche; and infant daughter, Carol Jeanne.

A memorial has been established for the Immanuel Lutheran Church, Zeona.

Click on link to view service folder