Dakota’s southeastern boundary with
Nebraska. South Dakota has
warm summers and cold winters.
People
The great majority of the state’s residents
are of European heritage. Many
are of German, Scandinavian, or Irish
descent. Native Americans are the largest
minority group, making up more than 8
percent of the population. Most of the
approximately 62,000 Native Americans
in South Dakota are Sioux.
Economy
Service industries such as tourism, trade,
and financial services are the largest part
of the state’s economy. The main manufacturing
industries include food processing
and the production of computer
and electronic goods. South Dakota’s
major crops are corn and soybeans.
Cattle and hogs are also valuable.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA South Dakota 149
History
Native Americans lived in the area for
centuries before the arrival of
Europeans. French explorers claimed
the region for their country in the
1740s. France sold the land to the
United States in 1803 as part of the
Louisiana Purchase. The Lewis and
Clark Expedition traveled through the
region in 1804.
The first permanent European settlement
in the area was a trading post
established on the Missouri River in
1817. The Dakota Territory was created
in 1861. White settlement in the area
expanded after gold was discovered in
the Black Hills in 1874. South Dakota
was admitted to the Union as the 40th
state in 1889.
Native Americans and white settlers
fought wars from the 1850s to 1890. In
that year U.S. troops massacred more
than 200 Sioux in the battle of
Wounded Knee. Afterward most Native
Americans lived on reservations.
In 1973 members of the American
Indian Movement occupied the town of
Wounded Knee. They wanted to call
attention to the needs of Native Americans.
In 1979 the U.S. government gave
the Sioux millions of dollars as repayment
for forcing them from the Black
Hills region. In the 1990s many tribes
built casinos on reservation lands as a
way of making money.
..More to explore
Pierre • Sioux
The Mount Rushmore National Memorial in the Black Hills of southwestern South Dakota
features the faces of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and
Abraham Lincoln.
Facts About
SOUTH DAKOTA
Flag
Population
(2000 census)
754,844—rank,
46th state; (2008
estimate)
804,194—rank,
46th state
Capital
Pierre
Area
77,117 sq mi
(199,731 sq
km)—rank, 17th
state
Statehood
November 2,
1889
Motto
Under God the
People Rule
State bird
Chinese ringnecked
pheasant
State flower
Pasque
150 South Dakota BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
South Korea
#see Korea, South.
Soviet Union
#see Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics.
Space
Exploration
Through space exploration humans have
learned a great deal about the planets,
stars, and other objects in space. More
than 5,000 spacecraft have been
launched into space to gather information
since 1957. They include spacecraft
with humans on board, space probes,
and satellites.
Astronauts
Astronauts (called cosmonauts in Russia
and taikonauts in China) go through a
thorough training program. They study
math and science in classrooms. They
learn to operate their spacecraft by using
computer-controlled simulators. These
devices present astronauts with conditions
that they will later experience during
actual flight. Astronauts also make
special trips in airplanes to get used to
the feeling of weightlessness.
Humans cannot survive in outer space
on their own. The environment is not
the same as it is on Earth. Astronauts
therefore travel in space in tightly sealed
compartments. They bring their own
supply of oxygen with them. Once in
space, astronauts may conduct scientific
experiments. They also may make
repairs to their spacecraft or other equipment
in space.
The Race into Space
In the 1900s scientists developed rockets
that could travel fast enough to overcome
the pull of the force called gravity.
This knowledge allowed the Soviet
Union to launch the first artificial satellite
on October 4, 1957. It was called
Sputnik 1, and it orbited around Earth.
On April 12, 1961, Yury Gagarin
became the first human to circle Earth
in space. In 1963 Valentina Tereshkova
became the first woman in space.
The National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA) took charge of
the U.S. effort. The first U.S. satellite
was launched on January 31, 1958. On
May 5, 1961, astronaut Alan B. Shepard,
Jr., became the first American to
enter space. Shepard flew for only 15
minutes. On February 20, 1962, John
H. Glenn, Jr., completed three orbits
The space shuttle Discovery prepares to
dock with the International Space Station in
July 2006.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Space Exploration 151
around Earth. On July 20, 1969, astronaut
Neil Armstrong became the first
human to walk on the Moon.
Space Stations
Scientists began building space stations
in the early 1970s. Space stations are
spacecraft that stay in orbit for a long
period of time. Scientists can spend days
or even months at a station doing
experiments. The Soviet station Mir
stayed in orbit from 1986 to 2001.
In the 1990s, 16 countries agreed to
build and operate a large space station
together. The new project was called the
