Civil War Monument

Corner of Capitol & Wells Avenues

The Civil War Monument was the first war monument on the South Dakota State Capitol grounds. Situated on “the triangle” across from the Capitol Lake, the Civil War Monument was officially dedicated on June 1, 1920.

Supported by members of the Grand Army of the Republic, veteran’s organizations and citizens of the state, the 1913 Legislature granted permission to erect a monument dedicated to soldiers of the Civil War on the State Capitol grounds. Initially providing only $1000, the legislature, at the behest of then Governor Frank Bryne, appropriated the entire $10,000 cost of the monument in 1917.

A group of South Dakota veterans stands at attention during the 49th National Encampment of the G.A.R. at Washington, D.C., in 1915.)

The Grand Army of the Republic was a Union Army soldier organization whose membership honorably served between April 12, 1861 and April 9, 1865. Civil War veterans who settled in South Dakota establish communities and had various roles in helping to create the state.

The monument features a Union soldier wearing a forage cap and greatcoat and holding a Springfield rifle, with a bayonet, scabbard, percussion cap box, and cartridge box. It also feature symbols of the Army and Navy.

At the dedication of the memorial John L. Jolley, past department commander stated, “The greatest general, and the humblest private, in the ranks of our Army, all share equally, the honor bestowed on the Volunteer Army of the Civil War… The monument will be evidence of the duty we performed….”

The inscription on the monument reads, “ERECTED 1918 BY THE STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA IN HONOR OF THE DEFENDERS OF OUR NATION.”

While the Civil War was fought far from here, we inherited the benefits of a united country and a dedication from those soldiers who relocated here and helped to create the State of South Dakota.

Civil War Monument

Soldiers & Sailors World War Memorial

The Soldiers & Sailors World War Memorial is a rare and elegant example of the Neoclassical style of architecture and an illustration of what Americans have done to honor those who served the nation in the military. The building is the only memorial of its kind in South Dakota.

The memorial is constructed of steel and has sandstone facing. The front of the building has an impressive entry pediment with dentil molding and six Ionic columns as well as individual pediments over each of the doors. The interior contains a central hallway that opens to the second floor and flanking galleries, which are on both the first and second floors.

Soldiers & Sailors World War Memorial

The idea for the memorial came after World War I, and the first fund drive to build it was in May 1919. A. N. Walters directed the drive. When this drive failed, the plan lay dormant for 10 years until the Chicago and North Western Railroad Company made a gift of land to the State. The State accepted the land in 1931 with the sole purpose of erecting a Soldiers Memorial Building to house the South Dakota State Historical Society.

In 1930, the State hired the firm of Wilford F. Blatherwick and George C. Hugill to design the memorial building. Established in Sioux Falls in 1921, the firm was soon among the most active and skillful in South Dakota. The firm also designed the Hughes County Courthouse, another testament to its reputation.

The Soldiers and Sailors World War Memorial building currently houses the South Dakota Department of Military and Veterans Affairs. It was also the home of the State Historical Society and Robinson Museum.

South Dakota State Capitol

Completed in 1910, the South Dakota State Capitol is the best example of Neoclassical architecture in South Dakota and the symbol of State government for nearly 100 years. As various State officials have come and gone, the capitol remains a vivid reminder of South Dakota’s history, an architectural and historic landmark, not only for the State, but also for the City of Pierre. This grand building serves as a reminder of the importance of the numerous and tedious campaign fights Pierre endured to secure the status of capital.

The motivation for erecting the building came after the third election to determine the location of the State capital. Pierre won the election to be the temporary State capital in 1889 and another election in 1890 to become the permanent capital. On three different occasions, bills were introduced into the legislature to move the capital from Pierre. In 1904, a bill finally passed in the legislature to let the people vote once again on the location of the State capital. Pierre won this election as well. After three elections, many citizens believed that a large, permanent building would end any further relocation efforts.

To save money on the project, South Dakota hired Bell & Detweiler Architects of Minneapolis, Minnesota and selected their design for the Montana State Capitol to use again for the South Dakota State Capitol with some variations, rather than asking the architects for an original design. Construction on the building began in 1905 and was complete by 1910. The total cost of the building was under one million dollars.

The picture shows two sets of rail road tracks in the foreground and both the old three story wooden Capitol and the new Capitol Building.

The South Dakota State Capitol features a copper dome, Corinthian columns, rusticated walls of granite and Bedford limestone, and a decorative interior. The building has a central rotunda flanked by the legislative wings, making it somewhat similar to the nation’s capitol. The four-story Neoclassical building has some English and Italian Renaissance features. Its granite foundation rests on boulders collected from the surrounding prairie. Native granite is also the material used for the steps and some of the window trimming. The first level of the capitol uses Marquette Raindrop sandstone for its facing while the other stories are of Bedford limestone.

The interior is just as exquisite as the exterior. Italian workers laid the terrazzo tile floors. The capitol is known for its attractive murals and paintings. Under the dome in the rotunda, four large round paintings feature Greek goddesses that symbolize the four major South Dakota themes: agriculture, livestock, mining, and family. Under each of these paintings is a flag display. Four contemporary sculptures, two by Harry Daniel Webster and two by Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor of Mount Rushmore, adorn the rotunda and complement the original artwork of the interior. They symbolize Wisdom, Vision, Courage, and Integrity. The capitol also contains paintings by Oscar Howe, the Artist Laureate of the State.

The interior of the building underwent numerous modernizing changes. Restoration work began in 1977 and was complete in 1989 in time for the State’s centennial celebration. The ceilings, wall designs, color schemes, window treatments, and carpeted areas throughout the building were part of the project. The work restored everything in the capitol back to the building’s original colors and luster.

The attractively landscaped capitol grounds are the site of numerous memorials dedicated to veterans of war, law enforcement, and firefighters. Capitol Lake is a man made artesian lake constructed in 1913. The Flaming Fountain Memorial stands along the shore of the lake. It is a perpetually burning flame fed by natural gas.

South Dakota’s Governors Mansion

In Pierre’s early days, there was no swank Governor’s mansion befitting the position. Instead, Governors rented apartments or stayed at popular Pierre hotels such as the Locke, St. Charles and Wells House. While this sufficed, it was only a matter of time until South Dakota paralleled other states in providing a permanent residence for its Governor.

The Legislature authorized the State Capitol Commission to search for a site in 1917. Three years later the commission purchased a tract of land east of Capitol Lake containing the Hodoval home. This became the Governor’s residence in 1920. The first Governor to live the new residence was Governor Carl Gunderson in 1925. This house was moved to 602 N Euclid Avenue in 1936 and is still standing today (2016).

It is likely that this first mansion was never intended to be the permanent residence – it had simply come with the land. However, a downswing in South Dakota’s agricultural economy in the 1920s and the onset of the Great Depression in the 1930s left the state with little money to build much of anything. So, it looked to the federal government.

South Dakota’s Governors Mansion

In 1935, Governor Tom Berry’s administration applied for and received a grant from the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The WPA was part of President Franklin Roosevelt’s “Second New Deal” and became, perhaps, the most well known of all New Deal era programs.

Construction began in the spring of 1936, employing 20-35 men during the duration of the project. Berry wanted the mansion to be constructed of native stone, but the WPA deemed that too expensive. Instead, Black Hills lumber prepared by the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) was used. The two-story fourteen-room mansion cost $27,661, of which the WPA covered $25,861 with the state picking up the remaining $1,800.

Governor Leslie Jensen was the first to move into the mansion in 1937. Governors continued to live there for the next 66 years. In 2003, plans called for the construction of a new mansion. The old mansion was sold and moved to the Rapid City vicinity. The new mansion was completed in 2005 on the exact location of the old one.

SOURCES

• Schuler, Harold. Pierre Since 1910. Pine Hill Press Inc., Freeman: SD, 1998.
• Dennis, Michelle. Federal Relief Construction in South Dakota, 1929-1941. South Dakota State Historic Preservation Office, Pierre: SD, 1998.
• “Work on mansion to start Monday” Daily Capital Journal (Pierre: SD) 18 April 1936.
• “Governors house sought as WPA project here” Daily Capital Journal (Pierre: SD) 7 September 1935.