CHAPTER 1-19C
HISTORICAL NAMES
1-19C-1 Legislative findings regarding offensive geographic place names.
1-19C-1.1 1-19C-1.1, 1-19C-2. Repealed by SL 2014, ch 9, §§ 2, 3.
1-19C-2.1 South Dakota Board on Geographic Names created--Members--Meetings--Investigations--Promulgation of rules.
1-19C-2.2 Board may only act on name change if identified by law as offensive or insulting--Exception.
1-19C-2.3 Unnamed geographic place--Public meetings.
1-19C-3 1-19C-3. Repealed by SL 2014, ch 9, § 5.
1-19C-4 1-19C-4. Repealed by SL 2009, ch 2, § 6.
1-19C-5 Offensive place names revised by United States Board on Geographic Names.
1-19C-1. Legislative findings regarding offensive geographic place names.
The Legislature finds that all geographic place names containing the term, squaw, are offensive and insulting to all South Dakota's people, history, and heritage. These place names have been replaced by names that reflect South Dakota's people, history, and heritage without resorting to harmful or offensive stereotypes, names, words, or phrases. All state and local government agencies shall make changes to maps and any other reference materials to reflect the changes provided in this chapter. The use of the term, squaw, in whole or in part, is prohibited as a name for any geographic feature within this state.
Source: SL 2001, ch 9, § 1; SL 2009, ch 2, § 2; SL 2014, ch 9, § 1.
1-19C-2.1. South Dakota Board on Geographic Names created--Members--Meetings--Investigations--Promulgation of rules.
The South Dakota Board on Geographic Names is hereby created. The board consists of one representative each from the Department of Tribal Relations, the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, the Department of Transportation, the South Dakota State Historical Society, and the Department of Tourism. The board shall elect a chair and vice chair from among its membership and shall meet at least once each year to consider issues related to geographical place names and to make recommendations to the appropriate local, state, and federal agencies. The board shall investigate any proposed names, solicit public input, and make a recommendation to the United States Board on Geographic Names as to whether the board supports a new or replacement name. The board may establish procedures and standards to recommend, evaluate, and select geographic place names by rules promulgated pursuant to chapter 1-26. The rules shall be compatible with the standards of the United States Board on Geographic Names as contained in its manual, Principles, Policies and Procedures: Domestic Names, Reston, Virginia, 2016.
Source: SL 2009, ch 2, § 4; SL 2011, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 11-1), §§ 28, 29, 91, eff. Apr. 12, 2011; SL 2014, ch 9, § 4; SL 2020, ch 5, § 1; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 52, eff. April 19, 2021; SL 2021, ch 7, § 4; SL 2021, ch 8, § 1.
1-19C-2.2. Board may only act on name change if identified by law as offensive or insulting--Exception.
The South Dakota Board on Geographic Names may only act on a name change for a geographic place name that has been identified by state law as being offensive or insulting, except that the board may hold hearings to consider recommending names to the Legislature as offensive or insulting. The board may not act on any other proposed name change. If state law identifies such a name, the board shall follow the procedures under § 1-19C-2.1 to recommend a new or replacement name.
Source: SL 2016, ch 6, § 1.
1-19C-2.3 . Unnamed geographic place--Public meetings.
Notwithstanding the provisions of § 1-19C-2.2 , if a geographic place has not previously been named and the naming of that unnamed geographic place is requested, the South Dakota Board of Geographic Names may conduct public meetings to consider and determine whether to recommend an original name for that geographic place to the United States Board on Geographic Names.
Source: SL 2020, ch 5, § 2.
1-19C-5. Offensive place names revised by United States Board on Geographic Names.
The following offensive place names in South Dakota by county were revised by the United States Board on Geographic Names as of January 1, 2014:
County |
Current place name |
Place name changed to |
Codington |
Squaw Lake |
Serenity Lake |
Custer |
Little Squaw Creek |
Badger Clark Creek |
Fall River |
Squaw Flat |
Hat Creek Flat |
Gregory |
Squaw Creek |
Oscar Micheaux Creek |
|
Squaw Creek Reservoir |
Oscar Micheaux Reservoir |
Haakon |
Squaw Creek |
Sarah Laribee Creek |
Harding |
Squaw Creek |
Slim Buttes Creek |
|
East Squaw Creek |
Meat Hook Creek |
|
Squaw Tree Spring |
Prairie Woman Spring |
|
West Squaw Creek |
Double X Creek |
Jones |
Squaw Creek |
Pitan Creek |
Lawrence |
Squaw Creek |
Cleopatra Creek |
|
East Branch of Squaw Creek |
East Branch Cleopatra Creek |
Marshall |
Squaw Hill |
Six Mile Hill |
Meade |
Squaw Butte |
Vig Buttes |
|
Squaw Creek |
Deer Creek |
Moody |
Squaw Creek |
Isanti Creek |
Pennington |
Squaw Creek |
Cedar Breaks Creek |
Oglala Lakota |
Little Squaw Humper Creek |
Tahc'a Okute Wakpa C'ikala |
|
Little Squaw Humper Table |
Tahc'a Okute Aglehan C'ikala |
|
Squaw Humper Creek |
Tahc'a Okute Wakpa |
|
Squaw Humper Dam |
Tahc'a Okute Mni Onaktake |
|
Squaw Humper Table |
Tahc'a Okute Aglehan |
Ziebach |
Squaw Teat Butte |
Peaked Butte |
|
Squaw Teat Creek |
East Rattlesnake Creek |
Source: SL 2009, ch 2, § 7; SL 2014, ch 9, § 6; SL 2015, ch 56 (HJR 1005), eff. May 1, 2015.
