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| Geography | |
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Main article: Geography of South Dakota
Terrain and primary geographic features of South Dakota
South Dakota is situated in the north-central United States, and is considered a part of the Midwest by the U.S. Census Bureau;[8] it is also part of the Great Plains region. The culture, economy, and geography of western South Dakota have more in common with the West than the Midwest.[7][9] South Dakota has a total land area of 77,121 square miles (199,740 km2), making the state the 17th largest in the Union.[2] Harney Peak, with an elevation of 7,242 ft (2,207 m), is the state's highest point, while the shoreline of Big Stone Lake is the lowest, with an elevation of 966 ft (294 m).[10] South Dakota is bordered to the north by North Dakota; to the south by Nebraska; to the east by Iowa and Minnesota; and to the west by Wyoming and Montana. The geographical center of the U.S. is 17 miles (27 km) west of Castle Rock in Butte County.[10] The North American continental pole of inaccessibility is located between Allen and Kyle, 1,024 mi (1,648 km) from the nearest coastline.[11]
The Missouri River is the largest and longest river in the state. Other major South Dakota rivers include the Cheyenne, James, Big Sioux, and White Rivers. Eastern South Dakota has many natural lakes, mostly created by periods of glaciation.[12] Additionally, dams on the Missouri River create four large reservoirs: Lake Oahe, Lake Sharpe, Lake Francis Case, and Lewis and Clark Lake.
[edit] Tags:Harney Peak,Big Stone Lake,Minnesota,Central,Sioux,North Dakota,Iowa,Nebraska,Wyoming,Montana,Missouri River,Midwest,Great Plains,West,17th Largest,Continental Pole Of Inaccessibility,Cheyenne,James,Big Sioux,Lake Oahe,Lake Sharpe,Lake Francis Case,Lewis And Clark Lake,Glaciation, | |
| Regions and geology | |
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Much of western South Dakota is covered by grasslands and features buttes such as Thunder Butte, shown above.
South Dakota can generally be divided into three regions: eastern South Dakota, western South Dakota, and the Black Hills.[13] The Missouri River serves as a boundary in terms of geographic, social, and political differences between eastern and western South Dakota, and the geography of the Black Hills differs from its surroundings to such an extent that it can be considered separate from the rest of western South Dakota. South Dakotans also at times combine the Black Hills with the rest of western South Dakota, and refer to the two resulting regions, divided by the Missouri, as West River and East River.[7][9]
Eastern South Dakota generally features higher precipitation and lower topography than the western part of the state. Smaller geographic regions of this area include the Coteau des Prairies, the Dissected Till Plains, and the James River Valley. The Coteau des Prairies is a plateau bordered on the east by the Minnesota River Valley and on the west by the James River Basin.[14] Further to the west, the James River Basin is mostly low, flat, highly eroded land, following the flow of the James River through South Dakota from north to south.[15] The Dissected Till Plains, an area of rolling hills and fertile soil that covers much of Iowa and Nebraska, also extends into the southeastern corner of South Dakota. Layers deposited during the Pleistocene epoch, starting around two million years ago, cover most of eastern South Dakota.[16] These are the youngest rock and sediment layers in the state, and are the product of several successive periods of glaciation which deposited a large amount of rocks and soil, known as till, over the area.[17]
The Black Hills, a low mountain range, is located in southwestern South Dakota.
The Great Plains cover most of the western two-thirds of South Dakota. West of the Missouri River the landscape becomes more arid and rugged, consisting of rolling hills, plains, ravines, and steep flat-topped hills called buttes.[18] In the south, east of the Black Hills, lie the South Dakota Badlands. Erosion from the Black Hills, marine skeletons which fell to the bottom of a large shallow sea that once covered the area and volcanic material all contribute to the geology of this area.[16][19][20]
The Black Hills are in the southwestern part of South Dakota and extend into Wyoming. This range of low mountains covers 6,000 sq mi (16,000 km2) with peaks that rise from 2,000 to 4,000 feet (600 to 1,200 m) above their bases. The Black Hills are the location of Harney Peak (7,242 ft or 2,207 m above sea level), the highest point in South Dakota and also the highest point in the United States east of the Rocky Mountains.[10] Two billion-year-old Precambrian formations, the oldest rocks in the state, form the central core of the Black Hills.[16][21] Formations from the Paleozoic Era form the outer ring of the Black Hills;[22] these were created between roughly 540 and 250 million years ago. This area features rocks such as limestone which were deposited here when the area formed the shoreline of an ancient inland sea.[22]
[edit] Tags:Mountain,Black Hills,Badlands,Grassland,Buttes,Thunder Butte,Coteau Des Prairies,Dissected Till Plains,Minnesota River,James River,Pleistocene,Till,Rocky Mountains,Precambrian,Paleozoic Era,Limestone,Grasslands,Precipitation, | |
| Ecology | |
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A pronghorn in Wind Cave National Park
Much of South Dakota, not including the Black Hills, is dominated by a temperate grasslands biome.[23] Although grasses and crops cover most of this region, deciduous trees such as cottonwoods, elms, and willows are common near rivers and in shelter belts.[24] Mammals in this area include bison, deer, pronghorn, coyotes, and prairie dogs.[25] The state bird, the ring-necked pheasant, has adapted well to the area after being introduced from China,[26] and growing populations of bald eagles are spread throughout the state, especially near the Missouri River.[27] Rivers and lakes of the grasslands support populations of walleye, carp, pike, bass, and other species.[25] The Missouri River also contains the pre-historic paddlefish.[28]
Because of higher elevation and precipitation, the Black Hills ecology differs significantly from that of the plains.[29] The mountains are thickly blanketed by various types of pines, including ponderosa and lodgepole pines, as well as spruces.[30] Black Hills mammals include deer, elk (wapiti), bighorn sheep, mountain goats, and mountain lions, while the streams and lakes contain several species of trout.[30][31][32][33]
[edit] Tags:Wind Cave,Pronghorn,Wind Cave National Park,Biome,Deciduous,Cottonwoods,Willows,Shelter Belts,Mammals,Bison,Deer,Coyotes,Prairie Dogs,Ring-necked Pheasant,Bald Eagles,Walleye,Carp,Pike,Bass,Paddlefish,Pines, | |
| Climate | |
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South Dakota has a continental climate with four distinct seasons, ranging from cold, dry winters to hot and semi-humid summers. During the summers, the average high temperature throughout the state is often close to 90 °F (32 °C), although it cools to near 60 °F (15 °C) at night. It is not unusual for South Dakota to have severe hot, dry spells in the summer with the temperature climbing above 100 °F (38 °C) several times every year.[34] Winters are cold with January high temperatures averaging below freezing and low temperatures averaging below 10 °F (- 12 °C) in most of the state. The highest recorded temperature is 120 °F (49 °C) at Usta on July 15, 2006 and the lowest recorded temperature is −58 °F (−50 °C) at McIntosh on February 17, 1936.
Average annual precipitation in South Dakota ranges from semi-arid conditions in the northwestern part of the state (around 15 inches, or 381 mm) to semi-humid around the southeast portion of the state (around 25 inches, or 635 mm),[34] although a small area centered on Lead in the Black Hills has the highest precipitation at nearly 30 inches (762 mm) a year.[35]
South Dakota summers bring frequent, sometimes severe, thunderstorms with high winds, thunder, and hail. The eastern part of the state is often considered part of Tornado Alley,[36] and South Dakota experiences an average of 30 tornadoes each year.[37] Severe weather in the form of blizzards and ice storms occur often during winter.
Monthly normal high and low temperatures for various South Dakota cities in degrees Fahrenheit (and Celsius)
City
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Aberdeen
21/1 (−6/-17)
28/9 (−2/-13)
40/21 (4/-6)
57/33 (14/1)
70/46 (21/8)
79/55 (26/13)
85/60 (29/16)
84/57 (29/14)
73/46 (23/8)
59/34 (15/1)
39/20 (4/-7)
26/6 (−3/-14)
Rapid City
34/11 (1/-12)
39/16 (4/-9)
47/23 (8/-5)
57/32 (13/0)
67/43 (19/6)
77/52 (25/11)
86/58 (30/14)
86/57 (30/14)
75/46 (24/8)
62/35 (17/2)
45/22 (7/-6)
36/13 (2/-11)
Sioux Falls
25/3 (−4/-16)
32/10 (0/-12)
44/21 (7/-6)
59/32 (15/0)
71/45 (22/7)
81/54 (27/12)
86/60 (30/16)
83/58 (28/14)
74/48 (23/9)
61/35 (16/2)
42/21 (6/-6)
29/8 (−2/-13)
[38]
[edit] Tags:-6,/,Sioux Falls,Continental Climate, | |
| National Parks and Monuments | |
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Mount Rushmore National Memorial in the Black Hills
South Dakota contains several sites that are administered by the National Park Service. Two national parks have been established in South Dakota, both located in the southwestern part of the state. Wind Cave National Park, established in 1903 in the Black Hills, contains an extensive cave network as well as a large herd of bison.[39] Badlands National Park was created in 1978.[40] The park features an eroded, brightly-colored landscape surrounded by semi-arid grasslands.[41] Mount Rushmore National Memorial in the Black Hills was established in 1925. The sculpture of four U.S. Presidents was carved into the mountainside by sculptor Gutzon Borglum.[42] Other areas managed by the National Park Service include Jewel Cave National Monument near Custer, the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site, which features a decommissioned nuclear missile silo and a separate missile control area located several miles away, and the Missouri National Recreational River.[43] The Crazy Horse Memorial is a large mountainside sculpture near Mt. Rushmore that is being constructed with private funds.[44]
[edit] Tags:Mount Rushmore,Crazy Horse Memorial, | |
| History | |
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Main article: History of South Dakota
Humans have lived in what is today South Dakota for at least several thousand years. The first inhabitants were Paleoindian hunter-gatherers, and disappeared from the area around 5000 BC.[45] Between 500 AD and 800 AD, a semi-nomadic people known as the Mound Builders lived in central and eastern South Dakota. In the 14th century, the Crow Creek Massacre occurred, in which several hundred men, women, and children were killed near the Missouri River.[46] By 1500 the Arikara (or Ree) had settled in much of the Missouri River valley.[47] European contact with the area began in 1743, when the LaVerendrye brothers explored the region. The LaVerendrye group buried a plate near the site of modern day Pierre, claiming the region for France as part of greater Louisiana.[48] By the early 19th century, the Sioux had largely replaced the Arikara as the dominant group in the area.[49]
In 1803, the United States purchased the Louisiana Territory, an area that included most of South Dakota, from Napoleon Bonaparte, and President Thomas Jefferson organized a group commonly referred to as the "Lewis and Clark Expedition" to explore the newly-acquired region.[50] In 1817, an American fur trading post was set up at present-day Fort Pierre, beginning continuous American settlement of the area.[51] In 1855, the U.S. Army bought Fort Pierre but abandoned it the following year in favor of Fort Randall to the south.[51] Settlement by Americans and Europeans was by this time increasing rapidly, and in 1858 the Yankton Sioux signed the 1858 Treaty, ceding most of present-day eastern South Dakota to the United States.[52]
Deadwood, like many other Black Hills towns, was founded after the discovery of gold.
Land speculators founded two of eastern South Dakota's largest present-day cities: Sioux Falls in 1856[53] and Yankton in 1859.[54] In 1861, the Dakota Territory was established by the United States government (this initially included North Dakota, South Dakota, and parts of Montana and Wyoming).[55] Settlement of the area, mostly by people from the eastern United States as well as western and northern Europe, increased rapidly,[56] especially after the completion of an eastern railway link to Yankton in 1873.[57] In 1874 gold was discovered in the Black Hills during a military expedition led by George A. Custer[58][59] and miners and explorers began illegally entering land promised to the Lakota.
Custer's expedition took place despite the fact that the US had granted the entire western half of present-day South Dakota (West River) to the Sioux in 1868 by the Treaty of Laramie as part of the Great Sioux Reservation. The Sioux declined to grant mining rights or land in the Black Hills, and war broke out after the U.S. failed to stop white miners and settlers from entering the region. Eventually the US defeated the Sioux and broke up the Great Sioux Reservation into five reservations, settling the Lakota in those areas.[51] (In 1980, the US Supreme Court and Congress ordered payment to the Lakota for the illegal seizure of the Black Hills. The case remains unsettled, as the Lakota refuse to accept the money and instead insist on the return of the land.)[60] A growing population caused Dakota Territory to be divided in half and President Benjamin Harrison signed proclamations formally admitting both South Dakota and North Dakota to the union on November 2, 1889.[61][62] Harrison had the papers shuffled to obscure which one was signed first and the order went unrecorded.[62]
On December 29, 1890, the Wounded Knee Massacre occurred on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Commonly cited as the last major armed conflict between the United States and the Lakota Sioux Nation, the massacre resulted in the deaths of at least 146 Sioux, many of them women and children.[63] 31 U.S. soldiers were also killed in the conflict.[63]
A South Dakota farm during the Dust Bowl, 1936
During the 1930s, several economic and climatic conditions combined with disastrous results for South Dakota. A lack of rainfall, extremely high temperatures and inappropriate cultivation techniques produced what was known as the Dust Bowl in South Dakota and several other plains states. Fertile topsoil was blown away in massive dust storms, and several harvests were completely ruined.[64] The experiences of the Dust Bowl, coupled with local bank foreclosures and the general economic effects of the Great Depression, resulted in many South Dakotans leaving the state. The population of South Dakota declined by more than 7% between 1930 and 1940.[65]
Economic stability returned with the U.S. entry into World War II in 1941, when demand for the state's agricultural and industrial products grew as the nation mobilized for war.[66] In 1944, the Pick–Sloan Plan was passed as part of the Flood Control Act of 1944 by the U.S. Congress, resulting in the construction of six large dams on the Missouri River, four of which are at least partially located in South Dakota.[67] Flood control, hydroelectricity, and recreational opportunities such as boating and fishing are provided by the dams and their reservoirs.[67]
In recent decades, South Dakota has transformed from a state dominated by agriculture to one with a more diversified economy. The tourism industry has grown considerably since the completion of the interstate system in the 1960s, with the Black Hills becoming more important as a destination. The financial service industry began to grow in the state as well, with Citibank moving its credit card operations from New York to Sioux Falls in 1981, a move that has since been followed by several other financial companies. South Dakota was the first state to eliminate caps on interest rates.[68] In 2007, the site of the recently closed Homestake gold mine near Lead was chosen as the location of a new underground research facility.[69] Despite a growing state population and recent economic development, many rural areas have been struggling over the past 50 years with locally declining populations and the emigration of educated young adults to larger South Dakota cities, such as Rapid City or Sioux Falls, or to other states.[70] Mechanization and consolidation of agriculture has contributed greatly to the declining number of smaller family farms and the resulting economic and demographic challenges facing rural towns.[71]
[edit] Tags:Dakota Territory,Lakota,Wounded Knee Massacre,Dust Bowl,Great Depression, | |
| Demographics | |
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Main article: Demographics of South Dakota
South Dakota Population Density Map
Historical populations
Census
Pop.
%±
1860
4,837
—
1870
11,776
143.5%
1880
98,268
734.5%
1890
348,600
254.7%
1900
401,570
15.2%
1910
583,888
45.4%
1920
636,547
9.0%
1930
692,849
8.8%
1940
642,961
−7.2%
1950
652,740
1.5%
1960
680,514
4.3%
1970
665,507
−2.2%
1980
690,768
3.8%
1990
696,004
0.8%
2000
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