1743: The two LaVerendrye brothers were the first Whites to explore the area and left proof by burying a metal plate near the Missouri River.

1803: In the year 1803, the Dakota Territory was bought as part of the Louisiana Purchase.

1804-1806: Explorers Lewis and Clark mapped and explored the region around the Missouri River.

1817: White settlers began a fur trading post at what is now Fort Pierre.

1858: Yankton Sioux Indians sign the 1858 Treaty ceding much of eastern South Dakota to the U.S. Government.

1861: The U.S. Government establishes the Dakota Territory.

1874: General George Custer leads an expedition in which gold is discovered in the Black Hills.

1889: South Dakota became a state.

1890: Pierre became the permanent capital of South Dakota.

1890: 300 Sioux Indians are killed in what came to be known as the Wounded Knee Massacre. It was last major conflict between the Sioux and the U.S. Military.

1900: Author L. Frank Baum published The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, which led to the movie, “The Wizard of Oz." He wrote the book while living in South Dakota.

1927: Gutzon Borglum began work on Mt. Rushmore.

1930s: South Dakota's agricultural economy was decimated by drought, dust, and the Depression in what was known as the Dust Bowl.

1939: Badlands National Monument was established. It was made a national park in 1978.

1948: Construction on the monument to the Oglala chief, Crazy Horse, began.

1972: Failure of the Canyon Lake Dam near Rapid City results in a devastating flood, killing 238 people.

1991: George H.W. Bush officially dedicates Mt. Rushmore.