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State facts:
Capital: Pierre
Governor: Mike Rounds, R (to Jan. 2011)
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 |
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American pasqueflower (1903) |
grass |
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Western wheat grass (1970) |
soil |
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houdek (1990) |
tree |
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black hills spruce (1947) |
bird |
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ring-necked pheasant (1943) |
insect |
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honeybee (1978) |
animal |
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coyote (1949) |
mineral stone |
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rose quartz (1966) |
gemstone |
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fairburn agate (1966) |
colors |
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blue and gold (in state flag) |
song |
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“Hail! South Dakota” (1943) |
fish |
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walleye (1982) |
musical instrument |
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fiddle (1989) |
dessert |
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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/
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