Everything about Pierre South Dakota totally explained
The city of
Pierre (
"peer") is the
capital of the
U.S. state of
South Dakota and the
county seat of
Hughes County. The population was 13,876 at the
2000 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. It is also a major statewide transportation hub and is famous for its memorial hall. The
Capital Journal is the local newspaper.
Pierre is the principal city of the
Pierre Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Hughes and
Stanley counties.
Geography
Pierre is located at (44.367966, −100.336378) .
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. Many of these bluffs are strewn with large boulders. 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.
The climate in Pierre consists of cold, sometimes harsh, winters and very warm to hot summers. The average highs and lows are 28°F/3°F for January and 89°F/62°F in July. The warmest temperature ever recorded in Pierre was 117°F (47.2°C), set on
July 15,
2006. The coldest recorded temperature was −35°F (−37.2°C) on
February 9,
1994.
| Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures |
| Month |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
| Rec High °F (°C) | 68 (20) |
75 (23.4) |
87 (30.5) |
98 (36.6) |
105 (40.5) |
112 (44.4) |
113 (45) |
114 (45.5) |
108 (42.2) |
98 (36.6) |
80 (26.6) |
70 (21.1)
|
| Norm High °F (°C) | 28 (-2.2) |
35 (1.6) |
45 (7.2) |
60 (15.5) |
71 (21.6) |
81 (27.2) |
89 (31.6) |
88 (31.1) |
77 (25) |
62 (16.6) |
43 (6.1) |
32 (0)
|
| Norm Low °F (°C) | 8 (-13.3) |
14 (-10) |
24 (-4.4) |
35 (1.6) |
46 (7.7) |
56 (13.3) |
62 (16.6) |
60 (15.5) |
49 (9.4) |
37 (2.7) |
23 (-5) |
12 (-11.1)
|
| Rec Low °F (°C) | -33 (-36.1) |
-35 (-37.2) |
-19 (-28.3) |
4 (-15.5) |
22 (-5.5) |
35 (1.6) |
42 (5.5) |
39 (3.8) |
21 (-6.1) |
4 (-15.5) |
-18 (-27.7) |
-31 (-35)
|
| Precip in. (mm) | 0.52 (13.2) |
0.54 (13.7) |
1.19 (30.2) |
2.02 (51.3) |
3.14 (79.7) |
3.49 (88.6) |
2.75 (69.8) |
1.86 (47.2) |
1.55 (39.4) |
1.64 (41.6) |
0.70 (17.8) |
0.48 (12.2)
|
Source: Weather.com (External Link ) |
Demographics
As of the
census 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/sq mi (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
Airlines serving
Pierre Regional Airport provide non-stop flights to
Denver, Colorado,
Watertown, South Dakota, and
Brookings, South Dakota, with continuing service to
Minneapolis-St. Paul from Watertown.
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.
Notable natives
Trivia
Pierre is the only state capital city that doesn't share at least one letter with its state.
Pierre is the only state capital to lie on a timezone demarcation line.
Legend states that 66 blue tiles are laid on the floor of the state capitol building for the 66 Italian artists involved in laying the Terrazzo floor. Only 55 of these tiles have been found.
Pierre is the subject of a joke in the song "Capital," performed by the popular a cappella group Rockapella and composed by Sean Altman. The song lists every U.S. state capital except for Pierre; during the song's final fade-out, a voice can be heard exclaiming, "Pierre! Pierre! We forgot Pierre!" A subsequent track on the album features the then-mayor of Pierre, Gary Drewes, chastising Rockapella for the omission (and their mispronunciation of the town's name).
In the 1990s, Pierre was known as Suicide City/Town for having a large cluster of suicides during that time.Further Information
Get more info on 'Pierre South Dakota'.
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