History

Archive for the ‘History of South Dakota’ Category

During the first half of the nineteenth century, various Sioux (also called Dakota) tribes lived in the area that became South  Dakota. These included the Santee, Teton, Yankton, and Yanktonnais tribes. The Dakota Sioux Indians comprise about five percent of the state’s present population.

Most of the present inhabitants are descendants of pioneers who came to South Dakota before 1920. Pre-statehood settlers of South Dakota generally came from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Illinois. Many of the pre-1860 settlers were of Norwegian descent. Some came to southeastern South Dakota by covered wagon across northern Iowa or southern Minnesota. Others came by railway to St. Joseph, Missouri, then by steamboat up the Missouri River. The first major influx of settlers began in 1863, after passage of the first Homestead Act. Homesteaders in the late 1860s and early 1870s came from the eastern and mid- western states. Many others came from Europe, including groups of Swedes, Danes, Czechs, and Germans from Russia. The Black Hills gold rush of 1875-1877 also attracted thousands of people. The great Dakota land boom in northeastern and central South Dakota began in 1877 and reached its peak by 1887, two years before statehood. This boom, coinciding with the construction of railways into the region, brought many additional settlers. Immigrants of many ethnic backgrounds, especially English, Scandinavian, and Dutch, continued to come from nearby states of the upper Mississippi valley. Small groups also came directly from overseas, including Welsh immigrants and additional Germans from Russia.

New lands became available in the western part of the state in the early 1900s, but a severe drought in 1910 and 1911 brought a temporary halt to homesteading and caused significant emigration from the state.

The following important events in the history of South Dakota affected political boundaries, record keeping, and family movements.

1803

The United States acquired the region from France as part of the Louisiana Purchase. Between 1803 and 1858, the area was the domain of the Dakota Sioux Indians and fur traders from St. Louis.

1820-1840   U.S. military expeditions were sent to the area in the 1820s,and Army posts were established in the 1850s. At various times, the area was part of the territories of Missouri, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, and Nebraska.

1858   Yankton Sioux Indians ceded their claim to southeastern Dakota to the United States. Permanent white settlements were established at Yankton and Vermillion. For several years, settlement was confined to the area between the Big Sioux and the Missouri rivers.

1861   Congress created Dakota Territory, which included all of present-day North and South Dakota, Montana, and northern Wyoming. The first counties were established in southeastern Dakota in 1862. The creation of Montana Territory in 1864 and Wyoming Territory in 1868 reduced Dakota Territory to the area included in the two Dakotas of today.

1875   Discovery of gold in the Black Hills led to the opening of that area to white settlement in 1876. About 20,000 people came to South Dakota, but many left after a few months or years. The peak year of the gold rush was 1877.

1878-1887   The building of railroads in the region stimulated the great Dakota land boom, bringing settlers to most of the area east of the Missouri River.

1889   South Dakota was separated from North Dakota and became a state.

1900-1910   As railroads reached the western part of the state, the last land boom brought thousands of homesteaders.