South Dakota's state nicknames
All U.S. states have nicknames, many with an eye toward a public relations reminder of a prominent landmark, or tourist destination, i.e. Arizona: the Grand Canyon State, or Minnesota: Land of 10,000 Lakes (actually, there are 12,000 lakes, and the state is also known as the North Star State).
South Dakota is officially known as the Mount Rushmore State in honor of the mountain carving of U.S. presidents in the Black Hills.
But the state has also been known by other, more obscure, nicknames and slogans over its 128-year history.
From the South Dakota State Historical Society are the many nicknames and slogans of South Dakota.
Coyote State
“Coyote State” might have been its first nickname, and while most people probably assume the nickname was inspired by the state animal, it may actually have been inspired by a horse.
According to Volume IX of South Dakota Historical Collections Compiled by the State Department of History, a race took place in October 1863 at Fort Randall between horses owned by two soldiers from Company A Dakota Cavalry and a major from the 6th Iowa Cavalry.
The major’s horse was badly beaten.
A soldier from the Iowa infantry remarked “that the Dakota horse ran like a coyote.” The owners immediately gave their horse that name, which became applied to the entire Dakota Company and to all residents of the state.
Swinged Cat
This unusual nickname originated from remarks made by South Dakota’s first governor, Arthur C. Mellette, according to an article from the South Dakota State Historical Society – State Archives.
In 1890, South Dakota was in the midst of a drought. Mellette was doing everything in his power to keep settlers from leaving the state. On a trip to Chicago for aid, Mellette was met by Moses P. Handy, a friend and newspaperman. Handy asked Mellette, “Well, governor, how is South Dakota?”
Mellette replied, “Oh, South Dakota is a swinged cat, better than she looks.”
By “swinged,” Mellette meant “burnt” or “singed,” according to the article.
The next day, the Chicago Inter Ocean newspaper had a story about Mellette, governor of the “swinged cat State.”
The Artesian State
With a nod to the state’s number of artesian wells, those from which water flows under pressure, another South Dakota nickname is “The Artesian State.” There is also a town on the eastern side of the state named Artesian (population approximately 137).
The Blizzard State
South Dakota shares a nickname with Texas because of both states being subject to frequent storms. While Texas' "blizzards" are actually wind storms and rarely carry snow, South Dakota's are the real deal: Cold temps, snowfall and, of course, strong winds.
The Sunshine State
In a startling contrast from "The Blizzard State" moniker, we travel from one end of the weather spectrum to the other. “The Sunshine State” is Florida’s official nickname, but it was also South Dakota’s slogan for decades until lawmakers approved a change to the Mount Rushmore State in 1992.
State Rep. Chuck Mateer, a Republican from Belle Fourche, introduced legislation that year to change the nickname.
“Everybody’s got a lot of sunshine, but we’re the only ones who’ve got Mount Rushmore,” he was quoted in the Sioux Falls Argus Leader.
Land of Infinite Variety
With plains, hills, mountains, cities, towns, farmland, pasture, lakes, rivers, hot weather and freezing cold, South Dakota has also been called “The Land of Infinite Variety” (translation: If you don’t like the weather, wait 5 minutes) and “The Land of Plenty.”
