• Gertrude Bonnin (Zitkala-Sa) (1876 - 1938) Sioux writer and pan-Indian activist.
• Norm Van Brocklin (1926 - 1983) Football player; born in Eagle Butte.
• Tom Brokaw (1940 - ) News anchor that hosts NBC Nightly News; born in Webster.
• Tom Daschle (1947 - ) Senator; born in Aberdeen.
• Mary Hart (1951 - ) Co-host of Entertainment Tonight; born in Madison.
• Crazy Horse (1849 - 1877) Oglala Indian chief that fought for Sioux land from the U.S. government; born east of the Black Hills.
• Hubert Humphrey (1911 - 1978) Served as vice-president of the United States from 1965-1969; born in Wallace.
• Cheryl Ladd (1951 - ) Actress. She was famous for her role in the TV series Charlie's Angels; born in Huron.
• Ernest O. Lawrence (1901 - 1958) Nobel prize winning scientist that built the first cyclotron, a machine that smashes atoms; born in Canton.
• Sitting Bull (1831  - 1890) Chief of Hunkpappa Sioux. He defended Black HIlls, led the Teton Sioux to Canada, and was killed during arrest; born on the Grand River.

More Famous People of South Dakota

• Sparky Anderson baseball manager, Bridgewater
• John James Exon senator, Geddes
• Myron Floren accordionist, Roslyn
• Joe Foss governor, 1st Commissioner of the American Football League, Sioux Falls
• Joseph Hansen author, Aberdeen
• Oscar Howe Sioux artist, Joe Creek
• David C. Jones U.S. Air Force general, Aberdeen
• Roy Braxton Justus cartoonist, Avon
• Ward L. Lambert basketball, Deadwood
• Russell Means American Indian activist, Pine Ridge
• George McGovern politician, Avon
• Dorothy Provine actress, Deadwood
• Rain-in-the-Face Hunkpapa Sioux chief
• Red Cloud Oglala Sioux chief
• Jess Thomas opera singer, Hot Springs
• Norm Van Brocklin football player, Parade
• Mamie Van Doren actress, Rowena