South Dakota

**South Dakota** is a state in the United States. South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. Its capital is Pierre and most populous is Sioux Falls. Other important cities are Rapid City, Sturgis and Aberdeen. Famous attractions include Mount Rushmore, the Black Hills, Crazy Horse mountain sculpture, The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally and the Corn Palace. About 890,000 people lived there in 2020.

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.

There are nine Native American tribes that live in South Dakota.

Most of South Dakota's land was bought in the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. South Dakota and North Dakota both became states in 1889.

Many Democrats have represented South Dakota in Congress. However, most politicians in South Dakota are Republicans. More than 90% of the state legislature are Republicans.

## Cities and towns

Sioux Falls is the largest city in South Dakota. In 2020, 192,517 people lived there. 281,958 people live in its metro area.
The city was founded in 1856. It is in the southeast corner of the state. When the city was first founded, the economy was mostly agribusiness and quarrying. Today, retail, finance, and healthcare are most important to the city's economy.

### Towns

Rapid City is the second-largest city in South Dakota. 74,703 lived there in 2020.144,558 people live in its metro area. It is located in the Black Hills, and was founded in 1876. The biggest part of the city's economy is government services. The biggest employers include Ellsworth Air Force Base, the National Park Service, US Forest Service, and the Indian Health Service. Tourism is also a big part of Rapid City's economy. It is close to Mount Rushmore, Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, and Deadwood, and other attractions

|2022 rank|City|County|Population in 2020||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|align=center||Sioux Falls|Minnehaha Lincoln|192,517|
|align=center||Rapid City|Pennington|74,703|
|align=center||Aberdeen|Brown|28,495|
|align=center||Brookings|Brookings|23,377|
|align=center||Watertown|Codington|22,655|
|align=center||Mitchell|Davison|15,660|
|align=center||Yankton|Yankton|15,411|
|align=center||Huron|Beadle|14,263|
|align=center||Pierre (the capital)|Hughes|14,091|
|align=center||Spearfish|Lawrence|12,193|

## Related pages

- Colleges and universities in South Dakota
- List of counties in South Dakota

## Other websites

- The Official Home Page of South Dakota

## Infobox (u.s. state)

- **name**: South Dakota
- **official name**: State of South Dakota
- **image flag**: Flag of South Dakota.svg
- **flag link**: Flag of South Dakota
- **image seal**: SouthDakota-StateSeal.svg
- **image map**: South Dakota in United States.svg
- **nickname**: The Mount Rushmore State (official)
- **motto**: Under God the People Rule
- **anthem**: Hail, South Dakota!
- **former**: Dakota Territory
- **seat**: Pierre, South Dakota, Pierre
- **officiallang**:  English language, English • Sioux language, Sioux
- **population demonym**: South Dakotan
- **largestcity**: Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Sioux Falls
- **largestmetro**: Sioux Falls metropolitan area
- **upperhouse**: South Dakota Senate, Senate
- **lowerhouse**: South Dakota House of Representatives, House of Representatives
- **senators**:

- **postal code**: SD
- **tradabbreviation**: S.D., S.Dak.
- **area rank**: 17th
- **area total sq mi**: 77,116
- **area total km2**: 199,729
- **area land sq mi**: 75,811
- **area land km2**: 196,350
- **area water sq mi**: 1,305
- **area water km2**: 3,379
- **area water percent**: 1.7
- **population rank**: 46th
- **population as of**: 2019
- **2010pop**: 884,659
- **population density rank**: 46th
- **2000densityus**: 11.44
- **2000density**: 4.42
- **medianhouseholdincome**: $56,521
- **incomerank**: 30th
- **admittanceorder**: 39th or 40th
- **admittancedate**: November 2, 1889
- **timezone1**: Central Time Zone (North America), Central
- **utc offset1**: −06:00
- **timezone1 dst**: Central Daylight Time, CDT
- **utc offset1 dst**: −05:00
- **timezone1 location**: eastern half
- **timezone2**: Mountain Time Zone, Mountain
- **utc offset2**: −07:00
- **timezone2 dst**: Mountain Daylight Time, MDT
- **utc offset2 dst**: −06:00
- **timezone2 location**: western half
- **latitude**: 42°29′ N to 45°56′ N
- **longitude**: 96°26′ W to 104°03′ W
- **width mi**: 210
- **width km**: 340
- **length mi**: 380
- **length km**: 610
- **elevation max point**: Black Elk Peak
- **elevation max ft**: 7,244
- **elevation max m**: 2208
- **elevation ft**: 2,200
- **elevation m**: 670
- **elevation min point**: Big Stone Lake on
- **elevation min ft**: 968
- **elevation min m**: 295
- **iso code**: US-SD
- **website**: sd.gov


## Infobox (u.s. state symbols)

- **name**: South Dakota
- **flag**: Flag of South Dakota.svg
- **seal**: Seal of South Dakota.svg
- **mammal**: Coyote
- **bird**: Common pheasant, Ring-necked pheasant
- **fish**: Walleye
- **flower**: Pasque flower, American Pasque flower
- **insect**: Western honeybee
- **tree**: Spruce, Black Hills Spruce
- **grass**: Wheat grass, Western wheat grass
- **beverage**: Milk
- **dance**: Square dance
- **fossil**: Triceratops
- **gemstone**: Agate, Fairburn agate
- **rock**: Quartz, Rose quartz
- **soil**: Houdek (soil), Houdek
- **other**: Kuchen (state dessert)
- **route marker**: SD 20.svg
- **quarterreleasedate**: 2006