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South Dakota

South Dakota is a state in the high plains of the northern Middle West. It is named after the Lakota (Sioux) American Indian tribe. South Dakota was admitted to the Union on November 2, 1889. North Dakota was admitted on the same day (see Trivia, below).

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.

USS South Dakota was named in honor of this state.

The state is divided into 66 counties; see: List of South Dakota counties.

Official state objects
Bird: Ring-necked Pheasant
Flower: Pasque flower
Tree: Black Hills Spruce
Nicknames: Mount Rushmore State
Slogan: "Great Faces. Great Places."
Mineral: Rose quartz
Insect: Honey bee - Apis Mellifera L.
Animal: Coyote
Soil: Houdek
Fish: Walleye
Gemstone: Fairburn agate
Dessert: Kuchen
Drink: Milk
Grass: Western wheat

Important cities
Aberdeen
Deadwood
Lead
Madison
Pierre - State Capital
Rapid City
Sioux Falls
Sturgis
Watertown
Yankton
See List of South Dakota counties, Governors of South Dakota

Other features
Black Hills
Coteau des Prairies
Mount Rushmore
Missouri River
James River
Corn Palace
Wall Drug Store
See: List of South Dakota rivers

Colleges and universities
Augustana College
Black Hills State University
Dakota State University
Dakota Wesleyan University
Huron University
Mount Marty College
National American University
Northern State University
Oglala Lakota College
Presentation College
Sinte Gleska University
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
South Dakota State University
University of Sioux Falls
University of South Dakota

Trivia
A bill for statehood for North and South Dakota (and Montana, and Washington) was passed on February 22, 1889 during the Administration of Grover Cleveland. It was left to his successor Benjamin Harrison to sign proclamations formally admitting North and South Dakota to the Union on November 2, 1889. However, the rivalry between the northern and southern territories presented a dilemma: only one, upon the President's signature on the proclamation, could gain the distinction of being admitted before the other. So Harrison directed his Secretary of State James Blaine to shuffle the papers and obscure from him which he was signing first, and the priority went unrecorded.

South Dakota license plates are numbered by county, with the first digit referring to the county of origin. Such a numbering system allows one to easily determine where the vehicle was registered. Counties 1-10 are ranked, roughly, by population. 11-67 are numbered alphabetically.

South Dakota is the only state in the United States that does not offer a state-sponsored college tuition program.

Harney Peak, in the Black Hills, is the highest point between the Rocky Mountains and the French Alps. More than 70,000 people hike to its 7,242 foot summit each year.

The deepest mine in the United States, the Homestake gold mine (now defunct), is in the Black Hills of South Dakota, near the town of Lead. Its shaft plunges more than 8,000 feet beneath the surface. From 1969 until 1993, it was home to the Homestake Chlorine Solar Neutrino Experiment, famous for detecting the solar neutrino problem. Currently there is pending legislation that would give the mine to the National Science Foundation for use as an underground research laboratory.

South Dakota is home to the largest indoor, naturally heated, swimming pool in the world. Evans Plunge, heated from natural mineral springs, is in Hot Springs.

The largest and most complete fossil of Tyrannosaurus rex ever found was uncovered near the city of Faith, in 1990. Named "Sue," the remains are over 90 percent complete.

Demographics

South Dakota has one of the largest Native American populations of any state.According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2003, South Dakota's population was estimated at 764,309 people. The population density is 9.9 people per square mile. The racial makeup of the state is:

88.7% White
0.6% Black
1.4% Hispanic or Latino
8.3% Native American
0.6% Asian
0.5% from other races
1.3% belong to two or more races
The top 5 ancestry groups in South Dakota are German (40.7%), Norwegian (15.3%), Irish (10.4%), American Indian (8.3%), English (7.1%).

The 5 largest religions in South Dakota are Lutheran (27%), Roman Catholic (25%), Methodist (13%), Presbyterian (4%), Baptist (4%). 8% of the population is nonreligious.

6.8% of South Dakota's population were reported as under 5, 26.8% under 18, and 14.3% were 65 or older. Females made up approximately 50.4% of the population.

The median income for a household in the state is $35,282. The per capita income for the state is $17,562. 13.2% of the population is below the poverty line.