Today (June 22, 2022) is the 100 year anniversary of the official dedication of South Dakota’s memorial stone at the Washington Monument in Washington DC.
In 1921, the South Dakota State Legislature appropriated $300 for the stone. Senator Theorus R. Stoner of Lead introduced the bill.
The official dedication of South Dakota’s memorial stone in the Washington Monument was held June 22, 1922, with South Dakota Senator Thomas Sterling presiding. South Dakota Governor William McMaster was unable to attend the event, though a telegram was read with his remarks. Those who made statements included Senator Peter Norbeck, Congressmen Royal C. Johnson, Charles A. Christopherson and William Williamson. Peter Norbeck’s daughter Nellie unveiled the commemorative stone.
Pierre stone cutter and monument maker Thomas Jacobs carved the two feet wide, four feet long by six-inch thick, mottled green granite slab quarried from Pierre stone. The finished product features the South Dakota state seal.
A program from the June 22, 1922, dedication event is found online at the South Dakota Digital Archives, by searching “Washington Monument.”
The South Dakota State Archives is in the Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre. The State Archives is open Monday through Friday, 9:00 to 4:30. You can contact the archives by phone at (605) 773-3804 or email archref@state.sd.us.
Photo courtesy of the South Dakota Historical Society.
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