South Dakota Immigrants - South Dakota State Historical .

South Dakota ImmigrantsSouth Dakota State Historical Society Education KitDanes who arrived were largely literate, due to compulsory education laws in Denmark.13 Viborgcelebrates its heritage each year on the third weekend in July at Danish Fesitval Days.Finnish immigrants were not numerous in South Dakota, never comprising more than one-half ofone percent of the state’s population. In 1878, Pastor Torsten Estensen and his Apostolic Lutheranfollowers established Poinsett, in northern Brookings County. About 200 Finns came to that areabetween 1878 and 1890.14 A Finnish emigrant agent, Kustaa Frederick Bergstadius, started Finnsettlement in Savo Township in Brown County in 1882. The area soon had two churches, a lendinglibrary, temperance society, and brass band. 15Finns settled in concentrated groups, possiblybecause their language was so different from that of other Scandinavian immigrants. The gold rushalso brought Finnish miners to the Black Hills. Lead had 1,300 Finnish, mostly young and unmarriedmen, by 1900.16 Many Finnish miners would later marry and settle in rural communities throughoutHarding, Lawrence, and Perkins counties.17British, Scottish, Cornish and Irish ImmigrantsEnglish-speaking immigrants who came to South Dakota include the Irish, Welsh, Cornish,Scottish, and British. The British settled mostly in urban areas where they worked as shopkeepers,craftsmen, and various laborers. They were farmers and ranchers, too. Some British immigrants gottheir start in South Dakota with help from the Close Colony in La Mars, Iowa. In the 1870s, WilliamClose and his brothers had established the Colony to help the younger sons of the British upper classestablish themselves as gentlemen farmers in America. The brothers placed immigrants with localswho could tutor them in farming techniques. Later, the Close brothers helped the immigrantspurchase land.18The Irish, Cornish, and Scottish in South Dakota did not generally settle in large groups like theGermans and Norwegians. They usually came as single families or individuals, striking out on theirown. There were exceptions to this practice, however. About 300 Welsh immigrants settled a towncalled Powell in Edmunds County in 1883. Some of their descendents still live in the Ipswich area.19Other Welch immigrants settled in Aurora, Miner, Lake, Marshall, Brown, and Moody counties.13Ibid.Carolyn Torma, “The Landscape of Finnish Settlement in South Dakota” (Vermillion, SD: State Historical Preservation Center,1985), 1. Copy on file in SD State Historic Preservation Office, Pierre.15Oscar S. Kolita, “Savo Township” in Early History of Brown County, 166. Found online bc/ehbc-162-189.txt.16Torma, “Finnish Settlement,” 2.17Ibid., 3.18Judy Lambert, “British have Ag History in SD”, Sioux Falls Argus Leader, October 18, 2005,http://www.argusleader.com/undiscovered south dakota/txt/southeast/page4.shtml19William D. Davies, “Touring the Welsh Settlements of South Dakota, 1891”, South Dakota History 10, no. 3 (1980) : 226.147

South Dakota ImmigrantsSouth Dakota State Historical Society Education KitIrish and Cornish miners also flocked to the Black Hills during the gold rush. As English speakersand experienced miners, they often held top jobs underground in the mines. Irish immigrant JohnWallace Crawford, known as Captain Jack, became a legendary poet scout of the Black Hills duringthe 1870s.20Several hundred soldiers stationed at Fort Randall when it was established in 1855 were Irishborn. After their military service, some stayed as settlers.21 One small Irish settlement called Emmetformed in 1868 in Union County. By 1873, Emmet had 27 families.22German ImmigrantsThe Germans in South Dakota became the most widespread of all the ethnic groups. People ofGerman heritage are found in almost every county and town in the state. A majority of the Germanimmigrants in South Dakota are Germans from Russia, a group that had migrated to Russia in the1760s when Empress Catherine the Great needed good farmers to settle the Ukraine and Red Seaareas.23 These farmers received free land, religious freedom, and deferment from military service.By the 1860s, these privileges were being revoked, and many Germans from Russia came toAmerica. They brought a variety of winter wheat seeds with them, helping South Dakota become amajor wheat producer.24The German Russian immigrants to South Dakota included two prominent groups, the Mennonitesand the Hutterites. Mennonites and Hutterites share similar religious beliefs, including pacifism andadult baptism. Mennonites own individual property while Hutterites live in communal colonies. Twohundred Mennonite families established Odessa, twenty miles northwest of Yankton, in 1873.25Around the same time, 900 Hutterites settled in Hutchinson, Bon Homme, Turner, and Yanktoncounties.26 They attracted considerable attention because of their adherence to the principle ofcommunity goods and property. Hutterites live simply, wear plain clothes, and practice a form ofreligious communism based on strict interpretations of early Christian teachings. In Hutterite colonies,family functions such as eating and cooking are done as a large group. The men work on the colonyfarm, using modern equipment and farming techniques. Hutterite schooling starts with kindergarten,20David Kemp, The Irish in Dakota (Sioux Falls, SD: Rushmore House, 1992), 70.Ibid., 64.22Ibid., 17.23Frederick C. Luebke, Ethnicity on the Great Plains (Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1980), 55.24Cynthia Anne Frank Stupnik, Steppes to Neu Odessa: Germans from Russia who settled in Odessa Township, Dakota Territory,1872-1876 (Bowie, Maryland: Heritage Books, 1996), 87.2125Herbert S. Schell, “The German Heritage in South Dakota,” American German Review, (June/July 1961) : 5.26Carol Ober, “Complex Trait Mapping in the South Dakota Hutterites” (University of me.html8

South Dakota ImmigrantsSouth Dakota State Historical Society Education Kitwhich the colonies introduced to the area upon their arrival in the 1870s.27 School classes are taughton the colony, with a non-Hutterite teacher teaching “English” school. A separate session is held inthe “German” school, conducted in the colony’s traditional “Hutterisch” dialect and taught by aHutterite. Today, there are about 6,000 Hutterites in 53 colonies in South Dakota.28 Hutterites inSouth Dakota produce half of all hogs in the state, and raise about 80% of the turkeys producedyearly.29African-American ImmigrantsIn 1870, there were 94 African Americans in Dakota Territory out of a total population of under13,000.30 African Americans also came to the Territory during the gold rush, and served in the militaryat Dakota forts. Stationed at Forts Meade, Randall, and Hale, black soldiers protected railroad andsurveying crews, cut wood, and assisted settlers in times of disaster.31 Since there were so few ofthem, and they did not pose any sort of political threat, the blacks who came to the Black Hills duringthe gold rush were generally accepted into the community with little trouble.32A group of African-American farmers and ranchers established the colony of Blair in Sully Countyin 1900. Located near Onida, the colony was promoted by Mary E. Blair, a land agent for King RealEstate, and member of the colony. The farm families of Blair flourished until the grasshopperinfestations and drought of the 1930s forced most of them off the land.33Notable black SouthDakotans include Oscar Micheaux, a homesteader in Gregory County who went on to become aprominent black filmmaker. Micheaux began making movies during the silent film era, and went on toproduce more than 40 films through 1948. He was honored with a star on Hollywood Boulevard, andwas an active novelist until his death in 1951.34Many African Americans left South Dakota during the 1930s, driven away by the financial anddrought hardships that affected everyone. Many also enlisted in the armed services during the warsand did not return to the state. In 2000, blacks comprised .6% of South Dakota’s population, about4,500 in all.3527James Satterlee, The Hutterites: A Study in Cultural Diversity (Brookings, SD: SDSU Dept. of Rural Sociology, 1993) , 16.Steve Young, “Hutterite Farms in South Dakota” Sioux Falls Argus Leader, November 17, 03/hutteritefarms/Mondayfeature.shtml29Steve Young, “Hutterite Farms in South Dakota” Sioux Falls Argus Leader, November 16, 03/hutteritefarms/Sundayfeature.shtml30Sara L. Bernson and Robert J. Eggers, “Black People in South Dakota History,” South Dakota History 7, no. 3 (1977): 243.31Ibid., 247.32Ibid., 245.33Ibid., 254.34Carl Bennett, “Oscar Micheaux” -Oscar.html35U.S. Census Bureau, 289

South Dakota ImmigrantsSouth Dakota State Historical Society Education KitPolish ImmigrantsPolish immigrants came in relatively small numbers to South Dakota. Some settled in Custer andFall River counties. A number also settled in Day County. In 1881, Anton Wasilk visited Day Countyand then returned to Chicago with turnips, potatoes, and cabbages grown in the area. He encouragedother Poles to move, and by 1885 twenty-seven Polish familes had settled in the Grenville area.36Chinese ImmigrantsThe Chinese came to the Black Hills during the gold rush in the 1870s. As miners, they were verythorough, and sometimes found profitable strikes after other miners had abandoned claims. Manyoperated laundries, hotels and restaurants. Few of the Chinese who came to Dakota during the goldrush intended to stay, but rather viewed the rush as an economic opportunity. They sent much of themoney they earned back to loved ones in China, and even requested that their ashes be returnedshould they die during their stay here. Most of the Chinese left the Black Hills in the 1890s, and theremaining few departed for other parts of America or returned to China by 1935.37Czech ImmigrantsThe first Czech or Bohemian settlement in South Dakota was near Yankton in 1869.38 Manyothers settled in Bon Homme, Charles Mix, Gregory, Tripp, Brule, and Jackson counties. The firsttown settled entirely by Czechs was Tabor. The Bohemian influence is still strong in Tabor, which issometimes called “Little Bohemia” or the mother city of South Dakota Czechs. Tabor’s Czech Daysbring as many as 10,000 people to the town of 460 every June to dance, wear traditional clothing,and celebrate Czech culture.39Cultural Interactions in South DakotaCooperation and interaction with people of similar culture and language was both safe andcomforting to new immigrants in South Dakota. Churches were an important social and culturalsupport, and the ministers tried hard to kindle the old country pride and language in theircongregations.40 Immigrant groups varied in how they interacted with other groups. For example,John Olson writes about Day County:In some sections of the County different peoples seemed to mingle without regardto nationality while in other parts those of the same nationality regarded themselvesas a group and excluded the others from social intimacy. This may not have been due36Day County Research Committee, Day County History (Aberdeen, SD: North Plains Press, 1981), 715.Grant K. Anderson, “Deadwood’s Chinatown” South Dakota History 5, no. 3, (1975): 285.38Joseph A. Dvorak, History of the Czechs in the State of South Dakota, (Tabor, SD: Czech Heritage Preservation Society, Inc.,1920), 25.39Tabor Czech Days, http://www.byelectric.com/%7Etabor/40Johansen, Immigrant Settlements, 63.3710

South Dakota ImmigrantsSouth Dakota State Historical Society Education Kitto any conscious feeling of social superiority but rather to an unavoidable preferencefor their own people.41The immigrants and miners who came to South Dakota had heard stories of Indian attacks, andwere surprised by the friendly relationships that developed. Norwegian Jo Aasen, who settled inMinnehaha County in 1867, went to warn neighbors about visiting Indians. When he returned home,Jo was surprised to find his wife Kristi calmly doing good business with the Indians.42Resentment toward the Chinese in the Black Hills led to some conflict. Whites mistrusted theChinese for their ways, especially smoking opium. In 1878, someone set fire to four Chinese homesat South Bend, and burned down an opium den in Lead.43 These hostilities were fairly short-lived, asopium dens were legally taxed, and a majority of Chinese pursued service occupations, includinglaundries, motels, and restaurants that miners valued.TraditionsEach group that came to South Dakota brought their customs and ethnic heritage with them.Food, architecture, clothing, and decoration all reflected the various traditions.The traditional foods of the state’s immigrants would make an interesting smorgasbord, Swedishfor a table full of diverse foods. Scandinavians would surely bring lutefisk, fish marinated in lime, andlefse, a flat potato bread. Colorful holiday cookies and Swedish meatballs would also grace the table.The Germans would bring sausages, sauerkraut, and beer. The Czechs would bring much the sameas the Germans, but might add kolache, a cream and fruit pastry, and haluski, potato and cabbagecasserole. The Polish would bring their own sausages and pierogi, dumplings filled with potatoes andcheese. The Russians would share borscht, beet soup, served with thick slices of Ukrainiansourdough black bread. The Finns share their onion Baltic herring, and thick stewed rhubarb soup.The English offer fish and chips drizzled with malt vinegar. The Irish provide shepherd’s pie, a heartymeat-and-vegetable pie topped with browned whipped potatoes. The Cornish contribute pasties,meat and vegetables baked in a folded crust. The Indians may bring fry bread made from groundprairie turnips and flour, buffalo meat, and wozapi, a thick fruit pudding. The African-Americans wouldshare barbequed ribs and cornbread. The Chinese bring hot and spicy soup.Various building styles developed on the Dakota prairies as immigrants adapted to the plainsenvironment. Before the settlers came, the Indians built portable tipis of buffalo hide over a wooden41John Olson, “The Settlement of Day County, South Dakota” (M.A. thesis, University of South Dakota, 1918), 42.Oien, Norwegian Pioneers, 595.43Anderson, “Deadwood’s Chinatown”, 283.4211

South Dakota ImmigrantsSouth Dakota State Historical Society Education Kitframe. A central fire kept the tipi warm with smoke venting out a top opening in the hide covering.The German Russians built house-barns, one building for both people and livestock, from rammedearth. Large indoor earthen ovens that burned hay provided both heat and a cooking space in thehouse-barn.44 Scandinavians and Germans had learned how to build sod houses in the countries theylived in before coming to South Dakota.45 Some of the Scandinavians built log cabins as well. TheFinns often constructed a sauna, or small steam house, close to the family house.Different ethnic groups decorated their homes and belongings in different ways. Rosemaling, thedecorative folk painting of Norway, came with Norwegian immigrants who used painted trunks tocarry their belongings. In the 20th century, as Norwegian-Americans discovered their ancestors’trunks, and sought a connection to their heritage, rosemaling underwent a revival. Rosemaling means“rose” or “flower” painting.Wycinanki (Vee-chee-NON-key), decorative papercutting, came from Poland. Originally cut fromleather or wood bark using sheep shears, the intricate layered cutouts were later cut from colorfulpaper. Bold colors and natural motifs such as birds, trees, and flowers form the patterns forwycinanki. The cuttings were used as decorations for homes, storage chests, and furniture.Immigrants from Ukraine brought pysanky, intricately patterned Easter eggs, to the plains. Hot waxis drawn onto the egg, the egg is dipped in dye, and the process repeated using more wax and dyesuntil the final pattern is complete. The egg is sealed with a coat of varnish. Symbols used in pysankyinclude crosses, animals, wheat sheaves, stars, and dots. The eggs are given to friends and familyduring Easter as a symbol of life and rebirth.Indian decorating styles using dyed quills, beads, and paints already existed on the Dakota prairiebefore the arrival of foreign immigrants. Household objects, saddles, clothing, and storage containersoften had painted patterns, colorful quillwork, and beadwork.The 20th CenturyThe Dakota Boom, with its intense influx of immigration to South Dakota, ended in the 1890s. The20th century brought challenges that tested the staying power of South Dakota’s immigrant settlers.During World War I, the Hutterites were harassed so badly that all but one of South Dakota’s coloniesmoved north to Canada. The poor economic conditions and extended drought of the 1930s left many4445Reuben Goertz, Princes, Potentates, and Plain People (Sioux Falls, SD: Augustana College Center for Western Studies, 1994), 3.Ibid., 20.12

South Dakota ImmigrantsSouth Dakota State Historical Society Education KitSouth Dakotans unable to support their families or pay their bills. The state’s population decreased7% or 50,000 people between 1930 and 1940.46A new wave of immigration came to South Dakota in the 1990s. 2,258 legal immigrants movedinto Minnehaha County between 1991 and 1998. The top three countries they came from wereEthiopia, the Soviet Union, and Sudan.47 The Multi-Cultural Center of Sioux Falls has identified 65different languages being spoken in Sioux Falls.48Refugees have moved to South Dakota to escape political or ethnic turmoil in their nativecountries. Many fled their homelands due to civil wars, famine, and other crises. These groups havebrought both increased cultural diversity and growing pains to the state. They often had to leave theirhomes with little food, money, or knowledge of the language or customs of their new country.49Learning the ways of their new home can be a difficult challenge for both the refugee and their newcommunity. The schools struggle to provide help for students who are learning English andassimilating into the state’s culture.50Just like the immigrants who moved to South Dakota during the Dakota Boom, 20th-centuryimmigrants bring their ethnic heritage and culture with them. Working through places like the MultiCultural Center of Sioux Falls, and the Lutheran Social Centers throughout the state, our newestimmigrants share their heritage as they become South Dakotans.ConclusionSouth Dakota’s immigrants, old and new, have infused the state with a rich ethnic heritage. Theimmigrants from 1860 to the end of the Dakota Boom brought new agricultural products, ideas, andethnic traditions. Modern immigrants also bring new blood and cultural diversity to our state.46U.S. Census Bureau, thdakota.pdfSteven A. Camarota and John Keeley, “The New Ellis Islands: Examining Non-Traditional Areas of Immigrant Settlement in the1990s” (Center for Immigration Studies, 2001): Table 2. http://www.cis.org/articles48Qudir Aware, “Languages and Dialects Spoken in Sioux Falls” (Sioux Falls, SD: Multi-Cultural Center, 2004)49Joanne Negstad, “Sioux Falls Shows its Heart by Offering Help to Immigrants”, Sioux Falls Argus Leader, Aug ust 7, 2005, sec.10B.50“Sioux Falls Expanding Immersion Program”, Sioux Falls Argus Leader, July 20, 2005, sec. 3A.4713

South Dakota ImmigrantsSouth Dakota State Historical Society Education KitBibliographyAnderson, Grant K. “Deadwood’s Chinatown.” South Dakota History 5, no. 3 (1975).Aware, Qudir. “Languages and Dialects Spoken in Sioux Falls.” Sioux Falls, SD: Multi-Cultural Center, 2004.Bennett, Carl. “Oscar Michaeux.” http://www.silentera

Irish immigrant John Keating, is buried in Deadwood, SD. Photo by Museum of the South Dakota State Historical Society staff, 2005. 14. Headstone of Anna Waldner, at Huron Hutterite Colony. Photo by Museum of the South Dakota State Historical Society staff, 2005. 15. Isaac Williams, an