Tourism and nationalism

Abstract

The viewing of heritage sights by domestic tourists is a key aspect in the formation and maintenance of a national identity, especially when nationalism is understood as an “imagined community.” Tourist sights may function in the same way as do museums in Benedict Anderson’s classic study of nationalism: as places presenting the defining characteristics of nationhood and displaying historical evidence of its existence. Using three examples from the American state of South Dakota—Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Wall Drug Store, and Rapid City Dinosaur Park—this article argues that, despite their recent creation, each provides a foundational history and “archeology” upon which a national identity can be built.