SCOUTING YESTERDAY | Trucker strike brings violence to Black Hills

This week in South Dakota history: Feb. 7-13

Photo: Overdrive Magazine

After two weeks of protests, truckers across South Dakota and the nation were back on the road, according to an article in the Rapid City Journal 50 years ago today.

Independent truckers in the United States were feeling the burden of increased fuel prices coupled with recent conservation-minded regulations, sparking violent protests in some parts of the country.

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According to The Daily Republic, transportation trade and truckers organizations called for a shutdown at midnight on Jan. 30, 1974, lasting until the government addressed ongoing fuel shortages.

Fuel prices had sky rocketed following the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) reducing to supply countries that had supported Israel during the Yom Kippur War. In response, both state and federal governments enacted measures such as the 55 mph national speed limit and fuel rationing to help conserve the limited supply. Those prices and regulations would have a devastating impact on the trucker’s livelihoods.

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