State facts:

Capital: Pierre
Governor: Mike Rounds, R (to Jan. 2007)
Organized as territory: March 2, 1861
Entered Union (rank): Nov. 2, 1889 (40)
Present constitution adopted: 1889
Motto: Under God the people rule
Land area: 75,885 sq mi. (196,542 sq km)
Geographic center: In Hughes Co., 8 mi. NE of Pierre
Number of counties: 66 (64 county governments)
2002 resident population est.: 761,063
Average annual precipitation: 18.29 Inches
Average winter temp: 19F
Average summer temp: 70F
Nicknames: Mount Rushmore State; Coyote State
Origin of name: From the Sioux tribe, meaning “allies”

State Symbols:

flower		American pasqueflower (1903)
grass		Western wheat grass (1970)
soil		houdek (1990)
tree		black hills spruce (1947)
bird		ring-necked pheasant (1943)
insect		honeybee (1978)
animal		coyote (1949)
mineral stone		rose quartz (1966)
gemstone		fairburn agate (1966)
colors		blue and gold (in state flag)
song		“Hail! South Dakota” (1943)
fish		walleye (1982)
musical instrument		fiddle (1989)
dessert		kuchen (2000)

South Dakota Links:

South Dakota Home Page: http://www.state.sd.us/

South Dakota Travel: http://www.travelsd.com/

South Dakota Newspapers: http://www.hometownnews.com/sd.htm

Farmers Almanac: http://www.farmersalmanac.com/