City of Rapid City
Location in Pennington County and the state of South Dakota
Coordinates: 44°4'34?N 100°13'42?W? / ?44.07611, -100.22833
Country	United States
State	South Dakota
County	Pennington
Incorporated	1882
Government
- Mayor	Alan Hanks
Area
- Total	44.7 sq mi (115.7 km²)
- Land	44.6 sq mi (115.5 km²)
- Water	0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²)
Elevation	3,202 ft (976 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	59,607
- Density	1,336.7/sq mi (516.1/km²)
Time zone	Mountain (UTC-7)
- Summer (DST)	Mountain (UTC-6)
Area code(s)	605
FIPS code	46-52980[1]
GNIS feature ID	1265333[2]
Website: www.rcgov.org

Rapid City is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota, and the county seat of Pennington County.^[3] Rapid City is named after the Rapid Creek on which the city is established. Set against the eastern slope of the Black Hills, the 2005 estimated population of Rapid City was 67,167, and the population of the metropolitan area, defined as Pennington and Meade counties, was 138,763. Rapid City is known as the "Gateway to the Black Hills of South Dakota" and the "Star of the West." The city is divided by a small mountain range that splits the western and eastern parts of the city into two.

[edit] Geography

Rapid City is located at 44°4'34?N, 103°13'42?W (44.076188, -103.228299)^[4]. The downtown elevation of Rapid City is 3,202 feet (976 m) and Rapid City sits in the shadow of Harney Peak; which at 7,242 feet (2,207 m), is the highest point east of the Rockies in the continental USA.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 44.7 sq mi (115.7 km²). 44.6 sq mi (115.5 km²) of it is land and 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²) of it (0.13%) is water.^[5]

Rapid City has been assigned the ZIP code range 57701-57709 and the FIPS place code 52980.

Rapid City is located on the eastern edge of the Black Hills, and is split in half by the Dakota Hogback, which runs north-south at this point. "Westside" or "West Rapid" is located in the Red Valley or Racetrack between the foothills of the Black Hills proper and the Hogback, so named for the red Spearfish formation soils and the way the valley completely circles the Black Hills. The city has grown up into the foothills, with both ridges and valleys developed, especially in the last 20 years, and wildfire is a distinct threat to these residential areas, as shown by the Westberry Trails fire in 1988. Skyline Drive follows the crest of the Dakota Hogback south from near Rapid Gap (where Rapid Creek cuts through the Hogback) to a large high plateau which forms the current south edge of Rapid City. The Central and Eastern portions of Rapid Creek lie in the wide valley of Rapid Creek outside the Hogback, which includes a number of mesas rising a hundred feet or more above the creek.

Rapid Creek flows through Rapid City, emerging from Dark Canyon above Canyon Lake and flowing in a large arc through the Gap and north of Downtown, and then descending to the southeast as the valley widens. The floodplain of Rapid Creek is mostly undeveloped, one legacy of the Black Hills Flood of 1972. To the north, a series of ridges separates Rapid Creek from Box Elder Creek, with large older and new residential areas and commercial areas along I-90. To the south, the terrain rises more steeply to the southern widening of the Dakota Hogback into a plateau dividing the Rapid Creek drainage from Spring Creek.

[edit] Climate

Rapid City's location makes the city's climate unlike both the higher elevations of the Black Hills (especially the northern portion) and the Great Plains to the east. It is characterized by long arid summers and long dry winters, with short but distinct spring and autumn seasons.

January and February are the coldest months of winter. Daytime temperatures average in the 30s, but Chinook winds can warm temperatures into the 50s and 60s. Occasional intrusions of Arctic air are short-lived and temperature inversions sometimes produce warmer conditions in the Black Hills. Low temperatures average from 10 to 20 degrees above zero. Below zero readings are not uncommon in the higher valleys of the Black Hills. Rapid City frequently has inversions during this period, which can trap air pollutants, but also provides periods of "unseasonably" warm temperatures. Average monthly snowfall ranges from five inches in Rapid City to 15 inches (380 mm) in the Black Hills. The snow on the plains and Rapid City usually melts within a few days.

March and April is western South Dakota’s snow season and temperatures are still cool enough in the higher elevations to retain the snow cover, but Rapid City rarely has snow on the ground for more than a week at a time. March is typically the snowiest month of the year, with average snowfall 15 to 25 inches (640 mm) in the northern Black Hills and eight to 12 inches (300 mm) over the southern Hills. Normal highs are in the 40s and lows are in the 20s. Snow often occurs in April, although temperatures are warmer. Normal snowfall for the Black Hills is 10 to 20 inches (510 mm) in the north and five to 10 inches (250 mm) in the south. Average daytime temperatures are in the 50s with lows in the 20s and 30s.

May and June weather is mild and precipitation changes from rain showers to thunderstorms. Storms typically develop over the Black Hills during the afternoon and move onto the plains in the evening. However, Rapid City still sees an average of 20 clear to partly cloudy days and 65 percent of its possible sunshine in June. This is the traditional "flood" season for Rapid and other creeks in the Eastern Hills. Temperatures warm rapidly as summer approaches. Daytime highs average in the 60s during May and 70s during June. Overnight temperatures are still chilly, especially in Black Hills, where May minimums are in the 30s and 40s. Lows are typically in the 40s and 50s during June.

Summer is warm, dry, and sunny. July and August are the warmest months of the year, when daytime temperatures climb into the 70s and 80s--and sometimes 90s and occasionally to over 100. Breezy winds and low humidity levels help make the hot days comfortable. Early mornings are cool, so a jacket or sweater may be needed for outdoor activities. Low temperatures average in the 50s, although 40s--and even 30s--can occur at the higher elevations like Deerfield. Snow can occur in the higher Hills even in July and August. Thunderstorms produce less rainfall, and drier conditions increase the wildfire potential in the Black Hills. Rapid City records an average of 9 thunderstorm days in August, but only 1.67 inches (42 mm) of rain. Rapid City receives 75 percent of its possible sunshine. Because the elevation of the Black Hills are between 4000 and 8,000 feet (2,400 m), the sun is very intense.

Sunny, mild days and cool nights are characteristic of September and October weather. Temperatures begin to cool around Labor Day, with September highs averaging in the 60s and 70s, falling into the 50s and 60s in October. Lows drop from the 30s and 40s into the 20s and 30s. The average first freeze in Rapid City is October 4 and late August through September in the Black Hills. The Rapid City area’s first snowfall is usually in October, although higher elevations sometimes receive significant snow in September. Occasional cold fronts moving through the area bring blustery northwest winds.

November and December mark the beginning of winter in the Black Hills. Despite cooler temperatures and more snow; the area still has many mild, sunny days. By December, daytime temperatures are in the 30s with nighttime readings in the teens and sometimes below zero in the Black Hills. Occasionally cold air fronts from Canada will bring subzero temperatures to the entire area; however, warmer weather returns quickly. Snowfall averages about five inches each month with only two days typically receiving more than one inch of snow. Storms early in the season produce heavy, wet snow. As the winter progresses, storm tracks from the northwest bring drier snow. Rapid City’s chances for a "White Christmas" (defined as having inch or more of snow on the ground) averages about 50 percent.

Rapid City holds two weather records — fastest temperature rise of 49 °F (27 °C) in 2 minutes on January 22, 1943 and fastest temperature drop of 47 °F (26 °C) in 5 minutes on January 10, 1911.^[6]

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 59,607 people, 23,969 households, and 15,220 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,336.7 people per square mile (516.1/km²). There were 25,096 housing units at an average density of 562.8/sq mi (217.3/km²).^[5] The racial makeup of the city was 84.33% White, 0.97% African American, 10.14% Native American, 1.00% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.73% from other races, and 2.77% from two or more races.^[7] Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.77% of the population.^[8]

There were 23,969 households out of which 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.7% were married couples living together, 12.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.5% were non-families. 29.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.96.^[7]

In the city the population was spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 11.8% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 96.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.6 males.^[9]

The median income for a household in the city was $35,978, and the median income for a family was $44,818. Males had a median income of $30,985 versus $21,913 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,445. About 9.4% of families and 12.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.6% of those under age 18 and 6.9% of those age 65 or over.^[10]

[edit] History

The public discovery of gold in 1874 by the Custer Expedition brought an influx of settlers into the Black Hills region of South Dakota. Rapid City was founded (and originally known as "Hay Camp") in 1876 by a group of disappointed miners, who promoted their new city as the "Gateway to the Black Hills." John Brennan and Samuel Scott, with a small group of men, laid out the site of the present Rapid City, which was named for the spring-fed Rapid Creek that flows through it. A square mile was measured off and the six blocks in the center were designated as a business section. Committees were appointed to bring in prospective merchants and their families to locate in the new settlement. Although it began as a hay camp, the city soon began selling supplies to miners and pioneers, and its location on the edge of the Plains and Hills, with a large river valley made it the natural hub of railroads arriving in the late 1880s from both the south and east. By 1900, Rapid City had survived a boom and bust and was establishing itself as an important regional trade center.

Although the Black Hills became a tourist destination in the late 1890s, it was a combination of local boosterism, the popularity of the automobile, and construction of improved highways that brought tourists to the Black Hills in large numbers after World War I. Gutzon Borglum, already a famous sculptor, began work on Mount Rushmore in 1927, and his son, Lincoln Borglum continued the carving of the presidents' faces in rock following his father's death in 1941, but work was halted and the massive sculpture was declared completed in 1941, due to pressures leading to the US entry into World War II. Although tourism sustained the city throughout the Great Depression of the 1930s, the gas rationing of World War II had a devastating effect on the tourist industry in the town, but this was more than made up for by the war-related growth.

The city benefited greatly from the opening of Rapid City Army Air Base, later Ellsworth Air Force Base, an Army Air Corps training base. As a result, the population of the area nearly doubled between 1940 and 1948, from almost 14,000 to nearly 27,000 people. Military families and civilian personnel soon took every available living space in town, and mobile parks proliferated. Rapid City businesses profited from the military payroll. During the Cold War, missile installations proliferated in the area: a series of Nike Air Defense sites were constructed around Ellsworth in the 1950s. In the early 60s the construction of three Titan missile launch sites containing a total of nine Titan I missiles in the general vicinity of Rapid City took place. Beginning in November 1963, the land for a hundred miles east, northeast and northwest of the city was dotted with 150 Minuteman missile silos and 15 launch command centers, all of which were deactivated in the early 1990s.^[11]

In 1949, city officials envisioned the city as a retail and wholesale trade center for the region and designed a plan for growth that focused on a civic center, more downtown parking places, new schools, and paved streets. A construction boom continued into the 1950s. Growth slowed in the 1960s, but the worst natural disaster in South Dakota history, the Black Hills Flood led to another building boom a decade later. On June 9, 1972, heavy rains caused massive flooding of the Rapid Creek. More than 250 people lost their lives and more than $100 million in property was destroyed.

Debris along Rapid Creek after 1972 flood.

The devastation of the flood and the outpouring of private donations and millions of dollars in federal aid led to the completion of one big part of the 1949 plan: clearing the area along the Rapid Creek and making it a public park. New homes and businesses were constructed to replace those that had been destroyed. Rushmore Plaza Civic Center and a new Central High School were built in part of the area that had been cleared. The rebuilding in part insulated Rapid City from the drop in automotive tourism caused by the Oil Embargo in 1974, but tourism was depressed for most of a decade. In 1978, Rushmore Mall was built on the north edge of the city, adding to the city's position as a retail shopping center.

In the 1980s, growth was fueled by an increase in tourism, increasingly tied to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, followed by another decline in the late 1990s. Fears for the closure of Ellsworth AFB as part of the massive base closure process in the 1990s and 2000s led to attempts to expand other sectors of the economy, but growth continued and the city expanded significantly during this period.

Today, Rapid City is South Dakota's primary city for tourism and recreation. Urban flight from neighboring towns has greatly benefited the growth of Rapid City and the city continues to expand both commercially and residentially. With the approval of a