# List of people from South Dakota

This is a list of prominent people who were born in or lived for a significant period in U.S. state of South Dakota. For a larger list by location, see People from South Dakota.

## Academia

* Vine Deloria Jr., American Indian author, theologian, historian, and activist
* Alvin Hansen, economist, Harvard professor; born in Viborg
* Arthur Larson, law professor, United States Undersecretary of Labor; born in Sioux Falls
* Ernest O. Lawrence, inventor of cyclotron, winner of 1939 Nobel Prize for Physics; born in Canton
* Lawrence Lessig, internet activist, Harvard Law School professor; born in Rapid City
* Brad L. Neiger, public health professor, associate academic vice president; born in Eureka
* Theodore Schultz, economist, winner of 1979 Nobel Prize for Economics; born in Arlington

## Actors and filmmakers

* Angela Aames (1956–1988), actress; born in Pierre
* Catherine Bach (born 1954), actress; grew up in South Dakota
* Bruce Baillie (1931–2020), experimental filmmaker; born in Aberdeen
* Rachael Bella (born 1984), actress; born in Vermillion
* Shannon Bolin (1917–2016), actress, singer; born in Spencer
* Moses Brings Plenty (born 1969), actor; born on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation
* Christopher Cain (born 1943), actor, director, screenwriter; born in Sioux Falls
* Leslie Carlson (1933–2014), actor; born in Mitchell
* Sean Covel(born 1976),film producer; grew up in Edgemont
* Harvey B. Dunn (1894–1968), actor; born in Yankton
* Judith Evelyn (1913–1967), actress; born in Seneca
* Amy Hill (born 1953), actress; born in Deadwood
* Candace Hilligoss (born 1935), actress; born in Huron
* Ron Holgate (born 1937), actor; opera singer; born in Aberdeen
* January Jones (born 1978), actress; born in Hecla
* Cheryl Ladd (born 1951), actress; born in Huron
* Eddie Little Sky (1926–1997), actor; born on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation
* Cliff Lyons (1901–1974), stuntman, actor; born in Lake County
* Beth Maitland (born 1958), actress; born in Rapid City
* Gail Matthius (born 1953), actress, voice actress; born in New York City
* Russell Means (1939–2012), actor, left-wing activist; born in Wanblee
* John Miljan (1892–1960), actor; born in Lead City
* Debra Mooney (born 1947), actress; born in Aberdeen
* Conrad A. Nervig (1889–1980), Oscar-winning film editor; born in Grant County
* Gary Owens (1934–2015), voice actor, disc jockey; born in Mitchell
* Dorothy Provine (1937–2010), actress, singer, dancer, comedian; born in Deadwood
* Gene Roth (1903–1976), actor; born in Redfield
* Chic Sale (1885–1936), actor, vaudevillian; born in Huron
* Eddie Spears (born 1982), actor; born in Lower Brulé Tribe, South Dakota
* Michael Spears (born 1977), actor; born in Lower Brulé Tribe, South Dakota
* Michael Steinberg (born 1959), director, writer; born in Rapid City
* Joan Tabor (1932–1968), actress; born in Sioux Falls
* Delores Taylor (1939–2018), actress, writer, director; born in Winner
* Casey Tibbs (1929–1990), cowboy, rodeo performer, actor; born in Fort Pierre
* Mamie Van Doren (born 1931), actress; born in Rowena
* Jerry verDorn (1949-2022), actor; born in Sioux Falls
* John War Eagle (1901–1991), actor; born on the Yankton Indian Reservation
* Alfred L. Werker (1896–1975), director; born in Deadwood
* Floyd Red Crow Westerman (1936–2007), actor, left-wing activist; born on the Lake Traverse Indian Reservation
* Timmy Williams (born 1981), actor, comedian; born in Watertown

## Artists

* Peggy Detmers, sculptor of wildlife in metal, attended South Dakota State
* Harvey Dunn, painter, born in Manchester
* James Earle Fraser, sculptor; spent much of his life in Mitchell
* Paul Goble, author and illustrator of children's books; lives in Rapid City
* Mary GrandPré, illustrator, born in South Dakota
* Bill Groethe, photographer, born in Rapid City
* Oscar Howe (1915–1983), Native American artist; born in South Dakota
* Terry Redlin (1937–2016), wildlife artist; born in Watertown
* Dick Termes, painter of Termespheres; lives in Spearfish

## Authors and poets

* Jacob M. Appel, author, wrote Coulrophobia & Fata Morgana while living in Sioux Falls
* L. Frank Baum (1856–1919) author; lived in Aberdeen
* Joseph Bottum (born 1959), essayist and poet; born in Vermillion
* Charles Badger Clark (1883–1957), poet laureate of South Dakota
* Allison Hedge Coke (born 1958), American Book Award-winning poet, writer; South Dakota resident
* Elizabeth Cook-Lynn (born 1930), author; born in Fort Thompson
* Pete Dexter (born 1943), author, screenwriter and journalist, attended University of South Dakota
* David Allan Evans (born 1940), poet laureate of South Dakota
* Joseph Hansen (1923–2004), author, best known for mystery novels; born in Aberdeen
* Cameron Hawley (1905–1969), author, Executive Suite, Cash McCall; born in Howard
* Patrick Hicks (born 1970), novelist and poet, Writer-in-Residence at Augustana University
* Johan Andreas Holvik (1880–1960), author and professor at Concordia College (Minnesota)
* Adam Johnson (born 1967), writer, author of The Orphan Master's Son (2012); born in South Dakota, Lakota heritage
* Bill Johnson (born late 1950s), science-fiction writer; born in South Dakota
* Herbert Arthur Krause (1905–1976), historian, professor at Augustana
* Rose Wilder Lane (1886–1968), journalist, travel writer, novelist; born in De Smet
* Gaylord Larsen (born 1932), mystery writer; born in Canova
* Joseph Marshall III, Pen Award-winning author; co-founder of Sinte Gleska College; born on the Rosebud Indian Reservation
* Laura Ingalls Wilder (1867–1957), author, best known for Little House on the Prairie; lived in De Smet

## Business

* Gene Amdahl (1922–2015), chief architect of IBM mainframe computer; born in Flandreau
* Al Neuharth (1924–2013), founder of USA Today, born in Eureka
* Lee Raymond (born 1938), CEO and chairman of ExxonMobil Corporation; born in Watertown
* Joseph Robbie, owned NFL's Miami Dolphins; born in Sisseton
* Tom Patterson, founder of Tommy John, born in Milbank

## Military

* Oscar Randolph Fladmark (1922–1955), WWII and Korean War pilot; Distinguished Flying Cross recipient; lived in Sioux Falls, born in Moe
* David C. Jones (1921–2013), retired U.S. Air Force general, former Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff; born in Aberdeen
* Touch the Clouds (c. 1837–1905), Native American chief; later Indian Scout and Sergeant in the US army

## Music

* Joey Clement, band member of Selena Gomez & the Scene; born in Rapid City
* Shawn Colvin (born 1956), Grammy Award-winning musician; born in Vermillion
* Jacob Christensen (born 1994), musical artist by the name NakeyJakey.
* Mark Craney (1952–2005), drummer for Jethro Tull, Jean Luc-Ponty, Eric Burdon
* Myron Floren (1919–2005), accordionist, The Lawrence Welk Show; born in Roslyn
* Gary Mule Deer (born 1940), comedian and country musician; born in Deadwood, lives in Spearfish
* Keith Olsen (1945–2020), record producer and sound engineer; born in Sioux Falls
* Jess Thomas (1927–1993), opera singer; born in Hot Springs
* Frank Waln, Sicangu Lakota rapper
* Abby Whiteside (1881–1956), piano teacher, attended University of South Dakota

## Native Americans

* Gertrude Bonnin (Zitkala-Sa) (1876–1938), Lakota writer and activist; born on Yankton Sioux Reservation
* Crazy Horse (c. 1840–1877), Oglala Lakota war leader
* Russell Means (1939–2012), Native American activist; born in Pine Ridge
* Maria Pearson (1932–2003), Yankton Sioux activist who helped establish the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act
* Rain-in-the-Face (c. 1835–1905), Hunkpapa Lakota chief
* Red Cloud (1822–1909), Oglala Lakota chief
* Sitting Bull (c. 1831–1890), Hunkpapa Lakota chief
* Touch the Clouds (c. 1837–1905), Miniconjou Teton Lakota chief known for his great size
* Floyd "Red Crow" Westerman (1936–2007), musician, activist and actor; born on Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota Sioux reservation

## Politics and government

* Jim Abdnor (1923–2012), second Lebanese U.S. Representative and Senator; born in Kennebec
* James Abourezk (born 1931), first Lebanese U.S. Representative and Senator; born in Wood
* Clinton Presba Anderson, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture; born in Centerville
* Tom Daschle (born 1947), U.S. Majority Leader of United States Senate; born in Aberdeen
* J. James Exon (1921–2005), U.S. senator for Nebraska, Governor of Nebraska; born in Geddes
* Joe Foss (1915–2003), Medal of Honor recipient, 20th Governor of South Dakota, first Commissioner of the American Football League; born in Sioux Falls
* Ralph A. Gamble (1885–1959), U.S. Representative for New York; born in Yankton
* John Hamre (born 1950), U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense; born in Watertown
* Hubert Humphrey (1911–1978), U.S. Senator, 38th Vice President of the U.S., 1968 Democratic presidential candidate; born in Wallace
* Muriel Humphrey Brown, U.S. Senator from Minnesota, Second Lady of the United States born in Huron
* Bill Janklow (1939–2012), Governor 1979–1987 and 1995–2003; moved as teen to Flandreau
* Brendan Johnson (born 1975), 40th U.S. Attorney for the District of South Dakota; born in Vermillion
* Tim Johnson (born 1946), U.S. Senator from South Dakota 1997–2015; born in Canton
* Arthur Larson (1910–1993), United States Under Secretary of Labor, lawyer, law professor; born in Sioux Falls
* George McGovern (1922–2012), U.S. Senator from South Dakota, 1972 Democratic presidential candidate; born in Avon
* Karl E. Mundt (1900–1974), U.S. Senator and U.S. Representative; born in Humboldt
* Kristi Noem (born 1971), first female Governor of South Dakota and U.S. Representative from South Dakota; born in Watertown
* Larry Pressler (born 1942), three-term U.S. Senator from South Dakota; born in Humboldt
* Gladys Pyle (1890–1989), first female U.S. Senator from South Dakota; born in Huron
* Mike Rounds (born 1954), current U.S. Senator from South Dakota, former Governor; born in Huron
* Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (born 1970), U.S. Representative from South Dakota; born in Houghton
* Edward John Thye (1896–1969), U.S. Senator from Minnesota and 26th Governor of Minnesota; born in Frederick

## Science

* Bob Burris (1914–2010), biochemist; elected to the NAS; contributed to our understanding of biological nitrogen fixation; born in Brookings
* Niels Ebbesen Hansen (1866–1950), horticulturist and botanist
* Ernest O. Lawrence (1901–1958), physicist, Nobel Prize winner, built first cyclotron; born in Canton
* John Mortvedt (1932–2012), agronomist and soil scientist who was the world's leading expert on micronutrients; born and raised on a farm near Dell Rapids

## Sports

* Sparky Anderson (1934–2010), Baseball Hall of Fame manager of Cincinnati Reds and Detroit Tigers; born in Bridgewater
* Michael Andrew (born 1999), Olympic swimmer; raised in Aberdeen
* Shayna Baszler (born 1980), mixed martial artist; born in Sioux Falls
* James Bausch (1906–1974), athlete, decathlon gold medalist at 1932 Summer Olympics; born in Marion
* Curt Byrum (born 1958), professional golfer, PGA Tour; Onida
* Tom Byrum (born 1960), professional golfer, PGA Tour, PGA Tour Champions; Onida
* Dallas Clark (born 1979), tight end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; born in Sioux Falls
* Dave Collins, baseball player; born in Rapid City
* Jessi Combs (1980–2019), professional racer, female land-speed world record holder, and TV personality; born in Rockerville
* Sean Doolittle (born 1986), baseball player; born in Rapid City
* Justin Duchscherer (born 1977), baseball player; born in Aberdeen
* Mark Ellis (born 1977), baseball player; Rapid City
* Keith Foulke (born 1972), baseball player, relief pitcher for 2004 World Series champion Boston Red Sox; born on Air Force base in South Dakota
* Terry Francona (born 1959), baseball player, manager of the Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Indians; born in Aberdeen
* Chad Greenway (born 1983), linebacker for the Minnesota Vikings; born in Mount Vernon
* Marlene Hagge (1934–2023), golfer, member of World Golf Hall of Fame; born in Eureka
* Becky Hammon (born 1977), basketball player and coach; born in Rapid City
* Clare Jacobs (1886–1971), athlete, pole vault bronze medalist in 1908 Olympics; born in Madison
* Dennis Koslowski (born 1959), Greco-Roman wrestler, two-time Olympic medalist; born in Watertown
* Duane Koslowski (born 1959), Greco-Roman wrestler, former Olympian; born in Watertown
* Jason Kubel (born 1982), outfielder for the Arizona Diamondbacks; born in Belle Fourche
* Ward Lambert (1888–1958), college basketball coach; born in Deadwood
* Ben Leber, football player; attended high school in Vermillion
* Brock Lesnar (born 1977), UFC fighter and WWE professional wrestler; born in Webster
* Randy Lewis (born 1959), freestyle wrestler, 1984 Los Angeles Olympics gold medalist; born in Rapid City
* Clarence "Pug" Manders (1913–1985), pro football running back; born in Milbank
* Jack Manders (1909–1977), pro football running back; born in Milbank
* Mike Martz (born 1951), former NFL head coach and offensive coordinator; born in Sioux Falls
* Lincoln McIlravy (born 1974), freestyle wrestler, 2000 Sydney Olympics bronze medalist; born in Rapid City
* David Michaud (born 1988), UFC fighter; born in Pine Ridge
* Derek Miles (born 1972), Olympic pole vaulter; from Tea
* Tim Miles (born 1966), Big Ten basketball coach; born in Huron
* Mike Miller (born 1980), pro basketball player; born in Mitchell
* Billy Mills (born 1938), athlete, gold medalist in 1964 Olympics; born in Pine Ridge
* Dale Moss (born 1988), football player and model; born in Brandon
* Gene Okerlund (1942-2019), Professional wrestling commentator; born in Brookings
* Eric Piatkowski (born 1970), pro basketball player; attended high school in Rapid City
* Riley Reiff, football player for Minnesota Vikings; from Parkston
* Jared Reiner, basketball player; from Tripp
* Bill Scherr (born 1961), freestyle wrestler, World Champion, four-time World medalist and Olympic bronze medalist; born in Eureka
* Wilbur Thompson (1921–2013), athlete, 1948 Summer Olympics gold medalist in shot put; born in Frankfort
* Derrek Tuszka (born 1997), pro football linebacker for the Denver Broncos; born in Warner, SD
* Shane Van Boening (born 1983), Professional pool player; born in Rapid City
* Norm Van Brocklin (1926–1983), football player; born in Eagle Butte
* Adam Vinatieri (born 1972), NFL placekicker; born in Yankton
* Brandon Wegher (born 1990), football player; born in Dakota Dunes

## Television

* Bob Barker (1923-2023), television game show host; raised on the Rosebud Indian Reservation
* Tom Brokaw (born 1940), television journalist, former NBC Nightly News anchor; born in Webster
* Don Fedderson (1913–1994), television producer and creator, My Three Sons, Family Affair, The Millionaire; born in Beresford
* Mary Hart (born 1950), television personality (Entertainment Tonight); from Madison, and Sioux Falls
* Chelsea Houska (born 1991), television personality (Teen Mom 2)
* Tomi Lahren (born 1992), conservative political commentator, host of TheBlaze's Tomi; raised in Rapid City
* Pat O'Brien (born 1948), sports commentator, television personality (Access Hollywood); born in Sioux Falls
* Gary Owens (1934–2015), announcer for Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, radio disc jockey, voice actor; born in Mitchell

## Uncategorized

* Helen Morton Barker, social reformer
* Gutzon Borglum, sculptor of Mount Rushmore
* Seth Bullock, first sheriff of Deadwood
* K. G. William Dahl (1883–1917), Lutheran pastor, author and social advocate
* Billy Etbauer, rodeo cowboy; born in Huron
* Alvin Hansen, economist; born in Viborg
* Wild Bill Hickok, Wild West lawman; lived in Deadwood
* Calamity Jane, Wild West figure; lived in Deadwood
* Frank Leahy, Notre Dame football coach; attended school in Winner
* Lawrence Lessig, political activist; from Rapid City
* Boyd McDonald, pornographer
* Vernon C. Miller, outlaw and Huron lawman
* Peter Norbeck, South Dakota governor and senator
* Mary E. Norton (1833-1916), Congregational minister and home missionary worker
* William H. Parker, longtime Los Angeles police chief; born in Lead
* James "Scotty" Philip, rancher
* James Edward Zimmerman, inventor; born in Lantry
* Korczak Ziółkowski, sculptor of Crazy Horse Memorial