Pierre, South Dakota

Pierre, South Dakota
—  City  —
The South Dakota State Capitol building near the Missouri River in downtown Pierre.
Location in Hughes County and the state of South Dakota
Coordinates:
Country United States
State South Dakota
County Hughes
Founded 1880
Incorporated 1883[1]
Government
 • Mayor Laurie Gill
Area
 • Total 13.0 sq mi (33.7 km2)
 • Land 13.0 sq mi (33.7 km2)
 • Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)  0.08%
Elevation 1,453 ft (442 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 13,646
 • Density 1,049.7/sq mi (404.9/km2)
Time zone Central (UTC-6)
 • Summer (DST) Central (UTC-5)
ZIP code 57501
Area code(s) 605
FIPS code 46-49600[2]
GNIS feature ID 1266887[3]
Website www.pierre.sd.gov

Pierre ( /ˈpɪər/ peer)[4] is the capital of the U.S. state of South Dakota and the county seat of Hughes County.[5] The population was 13,646 at the 2010 census, making it the second least populous state capital after Montpelier, Vermont. Founded in 1880 on the Missouri River opposite Fort Pierre, Pierre has been South Dakota's capital since it gained statehood on November 11, 1889, having been chosen for its location in the geographic center of the state. Fort Pierre itself was named after Pierre Chouteau, Jr., an American fur trader of French Canadian origin.

Pierre is the principal city of the Pierre Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Hughes and Stanley counties.

Contents

Geography

Pierre is located at (44.367966, −100.336378).[6]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 13.0 square miles (33.7 km²), of which 13.0 square miles (33.7 km²) is land and 0.08% is water.

Pierre lies on rough river bluffs overlooking the Missouri River. It is a few miles away from Lake Oahe, one of the largest man made lakes in the world and a very popular fishing destination.

Pierre has a relatively dry, four-season, humid continental climate (Koppen Dfa),[7] with long, dry, cold winters, hot summers, and brief spring and autumnal transitions. Monthly averages range from 17.8 °F (−7.9 °C) in January to 75.5 °F (24.2 °C), though differences between daytime and nighttime temperatures are significantly greater during summer than in winter. Snow primarily falls in light amounts, as single-day totals of more than 3 inches (7.6 cm) do not occur consistently,[8] even in March, historically the month with the greatest snow. In addition, there are 24 nights per year with subzero (< −18 °C) lows,[8] and cold conditions are often intensified by the high winds of the Great Plains. Summers often see spikes in temperature, with nearly 9 days above 100 °F (38 °C) and 43 days above 90 °F (32 °C).[8]

The beginning of both May and October represent the last and first, respectively, freezing nights of the cooler season.[8] Precipitation is much lighter in the winter months than it is in late spring and summer. Extremes have ranged from −35 °F (−37 °C) in January 1994 to 117 °F (47 °C) in July 2006.

Demographics

Historical populations
Census Pop. %±
1890 3,235
—
1900 2,306 −28.7%
1910 3,656 58.5%
1920 3,209 −12.2%
1930 3,659 14.0%
1940 4,322 18.1%
1950 5,715 32.2%
1960 10,088 76.5%
1970 9,699 −3.9%
1980 11,973 23.4%
1990 12,906 7.8%
2000 13,876 7.5%
2010 13,646 −1.7%

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 13,876 people, 5,567 households, and 3,574 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,065.8 people per square mile (411.5/km²). There were 5,949 housing units at an average density of 457.0 per square mile (176.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 88.91% White, 0.20% African American, 8.56% Native American, 0.46% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.29% from other races, and 1.56% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 1.25% of the population.

There were 5,567 households, out of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.6% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.8% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35, and the average family size was 2.96.

In the city the population was spread out, with 27.2% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $42,962, and the median income for a family was $52,144. Males had a median income of $32,969 versus $22,865 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,462. About 5.5% of families and 7.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.9% of those under age 18 and 9.2% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Two airlines serving Pierre Regional Airport provide non-stop flights to Denver and Minneapolis-St. Paul.

The nearest interstate highway is Interstate 90, which is about 34 miles south of Pierre via U.S. Highway 83. Pierre is one of only five state capitals not served by an interstate highway. Dover, Delaware; Jefferson City, Missouri; Carson City, Nevada; and Juneau, Alaska, are the other four state capitals with this distinction.

Media

AM Radio

AM radio stations
Frequency Call sign Name Format Owner City
1060 AM KGFX Country/News/Talk Dakota Radio Group Pierre
1240 AM KCCR Adult contemporary Riverfront Broadcasting LLC Pierre

FM Radio

FM radio stations
Frequency Call sign Name Format Owner Target city/market City of license
89.1 FM KVFL VCY America Christian VCY America Pierre Pierre
89.5 FM K208FM Moody Radio Christian
WJSO translator		 Moody Bible Institute Pierre Pierre
90.3 FM KSLP Power 107.3 Contemporary Christian
KSLT translator		 Bethesda Christian Broadcasting Pierre Fort Pierre
91.7 FM KTSD South Dakota Public Broadcasting NPR SD Board of Directors for Educational Telecommunications Pierre Reliance
92.7 FM KGFX-FM River 92.7 Adult Contemporary Dakota Radio Group Pierre Pierre
94.5 FM KPLO-FM 94 Country Country Dakota Radio Group Pierre Pierre
95.3 FM KLXS Jack FM Adult Hits Riverfront Broadcasting LLC Pierre Reliance
96.1 FM K241AF South Dakota Public Broadcasting NPR SD Board of Directors for Educational Telecommunications Pierre Pierre
97.9 FM K250AP Pierre's Good News Station Christian
KPGN-LP translator		 Pierre Educational Radio, Inc Pierre Pierre
100.1 FM KJBI 100.1 The Eagle Classic Hits Dakota Radio Group Pierre Fort Pierre
104.7 FM KPGN-LP Pierre's Good News Station Christian Pierre Educational Radio, Inc Pierre Pierre

Television

The Capital Journal is the local newspaper.

Notable natives

References

  1. ^ William D. Halsey, ed (1976). "Pierre". Collier's Encyclopedia. 19. New York: Macmillan Educational Corporation. pp. 42–43. 
  2. ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  3. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  4. ^ "Broadcast Pronunciation Guide and South Dakota Pronunciations". Associated Press. http://www.ap.org/southdakota/prono.html. Retrieved 2009-11-10. 
  5. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
  6. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
  7. ^ Peel, M. C., Finlayson, B. L., and McMahon, T. A.: Updated American map of the Köppen-Geiger climate classification. Earth Syst. Sci., 11, 1633–1644, 2007.
  8. ^ a b c d e "Climatography of the United States No. 20: PIERRE RGNL AP, SD 1971–2000" (PDF). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. http://cdo.ncdc.noaa.gov/climatenormals/clim20/sd/396597.pdf. Retrieved 2010-09-24. 
  9. ^ "Average Weather for Pierre, SD – Temperature and Precipitation". The Weather Channel. http://www.weather.com/outlook/health/fitness/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/USSD0269. Retrieved 2010-09-24. 

External links

Wikisource has the text of The New Student's Reference Work article about Pierre, South Dakota.
Municipalities and communities of Hughes County, South Dakota, USA
County seat: Pierre
Cities
Town
Indian reservation
Footnotes

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
Pierre (capital)
Topics
Society
Regions
Larger cities
pop. over 5,000
Smaller cities
pop. over 1,000
Largest CDPs
pop. over 1,000
Counties