Modern Residential Architecture in South Dakota, 1950-1975: A Thematic Context Study

Higgins, S. Alan

From introduction: "In the years following World War II, South Dakota experienced a series of economic and cultural shifts that intersected with a period of population growth and dynamic change in the state’s urban and rural sectors. In between, an improved network of interstates and municipal roads connected the state, influencing trends of community growth and investment in the modern era. Such trends in turn impacted modern settlement and residential development patterns throughout South Dakota. As the state’s homebuilding industry grew rapidly in the post-war period, established regional centers of Sioux Falls and Rapid City and their suburbs benefited precipitously—as did secondary markets such as Pierre, Aberdeen, Huron, and Mitchell—while South Dakota’s substantial agricultural sector also witnessed considerable, if uneven, change. The result was a landscape that chronicled a dynamic period of residential growth. These same resources now exist as a substantial part of a rich and varied state history. Much like their traditional counterparts, dwellings of this period now contribute to the distinctive architectural and historical legacy of our communities. Yet, most residential architecture from the period has largely gone unrecognized or without study by the preservation community, leaving a void in our understanding of how such resources fit into larger patterns that mark the state’s history. This document, Modern Residential Architecture in South Dakota, 1950-1975, is the first effort to comprehensively address the state’s residential development during the modern era, complementing studies previously commissioned by the South Dakota State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), such as Post-World War II Architecture in South Dakota, completed in 2007. Begun in June 2016, this study was prepared by Cultural Resource Analysts, Inc. (CRA) on behalf of the SHPO to promote a fuller discussion regarding the state’s recent residential heritage. Although primarily designed to provide guidance to the SHPO—particularly as it relates to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) and South Dakota Codified Law (SDCL) 1-19A-11.1—the information presented herein also may be applied to decision-making, planning, and preservation efforts at the local level. More broadly, the study—by placing what may still be a fresh memory to many people within context—helps us as living, functioning communities understand how our recent history stems from earlier patterns." Project funding was provided in part by a Historic Preservation Fund grant administered by the South Dakota State Historic Preservation Office (project number SD-16-030, grant number P16AF00127) and the State, Tribal, Local, Plans & Grants Division, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Modern Residential Architecture in South Dakota, 1950-1975: A Thematic Context Study

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