South Dakota, the state that contains Mount Rushmore (see? it's right there on the flag) finds a huge portion of its revenue from tourism, generating over a billion dollars' worth of economic activity each year. But it is also the second-largest producer of sunflower seed and oil in the nation. Its Black Hills are the highest mountains east of the Rockies.
Other tourist attractions include the Badlands; the World's Only Corn Palace, in Mitchell; and the city of Deadwood, which was an awesome television series on HBO.
The current Governor of South Dakota is Dennis Daugaard (R). The senior Senator for South Dakota is Democrat Tim Johnson and the junior Senator is John Thune, a Republican. Like North Dakota, South Dakota has only one At-Large Congressional member, Republican Kristi Noem.
Facts
- State Capital - Pierre
- Largest city - Sioux Falls
- Date of Admission - November 2, 1889
- Area - 77,116 sq mi (17th)
- Population (2011 est.) - 824,082 (46th)
- State Motto - "Under God the people rule"
- State Nickname - the Mount Rushmore State; the Coyote State
- State animal - coyote
- State bird - ring-necked pheasant
- State dessert - kuchen
- State fish - walleye
- State flower - American pasqueflower
- State grass - Western wheat grass
- State insect - honeybee
- State tree - Black Hills spruce
- State University - South Dakota State University is the largest university in the state while the University of South Dakota is the oldest.
- North Dakota State Archives are part of the The South Dakota State Historical Society (like their relatives to the North)
- sd.gov - the Official Website of the State of South Dakota
- The South Dakota Tourism site - travelsd.com
- Wikipedia
- 50states.com entry for South Dakota
- InfoPlease entry for South Dakota
- USDA Fact Sheet for South Dakota
- Baseball Manager Sparky Anderson
- Tom Brokaw
- Lawrence Welk accordionist Myron Floren (you may remember Mr. Welk was from North Dakota)
- Medal of Honor winner, flying ace, Governor, and first Commissioner of the AFL Joe Foss
- TV hostess Mary Hart
- Artist Oscar Howe
- Vice President of the United States Hubert Humphrey
- Political cartoonist Roy Braxton Justus
- Mad Men actress January Jones
- One of Charlie's Angels, Cheryl Ladd
- Laura Ingalls Wilder's daughter (and only child to reach adulthood), Rose Wilder Lane
- Physicist Ernest Orlando Lawrence
- George McGovern
- South Dakota's first Governor Arthur C. Mellette
- Native American Leaders
- Ben Reifel Brulé
- Crazy Horse
- Rain-in-the-Face
- Red Bird (Gertrude Simmons Bonnin)
- Red Cloud
- Russell Means
- Sitting Bull
- Touch the Clouds
- Actress Dorothy Provine
- Norm Van Brocklin, football player
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