On Saturday, people came from all over the Black Hills to the South Dakota Air and Space Museum to take part in Visitor Appreciation Day.

In addition to the exhibits that are on permanent display in the museum, visitors on Saturday were treated to several special displays by airmen from Ellsworth Air Force Base, including displays of firearms, smart bombs, planes, and survival gear.

The museum also offered low-cost bus tours of Ellsworth and the Minuteman missile silos that were manned during the Cold War but were inactivated in 1994.

"The purpose of this event is really to show the Air and Space Museum's appreciation for the amount of public support that not only the museum, but the whole military gets from the Black Hills population," museum director Tech. Sgt. Steven Wilson said.

One of the ways the public supports the museum is by providing pieces for the museum.

"Most of the artifacts are from servicemen, as well as family members who have a relative who was in - for sake of argument - World War II, and they pass away, and so there's a box of stuff in the attic. A lot of times, we get people who call and say, "Are you interested in these artifacts?" and 90 percent of the time, we are."

Carol Cameron came to the museum from Rapid City.

"I came with my family because my son-in-law used to be stationed here at Ellsworth, and we knew there were bus rides; and we wanted to go see the silo, and we wanted to come out and visit the museum for Appreciation Day."

However, the day was not just about the events for Cameron.

"It was kind of a trip down memory lane for all of us; and my daughter and son-in-law have just come back from Omaha, so it was kind of a re-introduction to the area.'

Wilson said that this was his first year as director of the museum, so he couldn't compare it to past events. But he said that he "did have a couple of people on base tell me that this is the biggest turnout they've seen."

Wilson was pleased with the turnout.

"The interaction we had between the public and the base personnel was something you can't put a price on," he said.