Ralph E. Herseth (July 2, 1909 – January 24, 1969) was the 21st governor of

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

from January 6, 1959, to January 3, 1961. He was a Democrat and was the patriarch of the prominent Herseth family of

Early life and education

Herseth was born in 1909 on a ranch near Houghton, South Dakota, the son of Oline (née Afseth) and Lars Herseth. His father was a Norwegian immigrant, as were his maternal grandparents. He graduated from Columbia High School, in

Brown County, South Dakota Brown County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 38,301, making it the fourth most populous county in South Dakota, and was estimated to be 37,495 in 2024. Its county seat is Aberdeen. The ...

. He attended Northern State Teachers College and North Dakota State College. He married Lorna H. Buntrock on December 23, 1937, and they lived on a ranch near Houghton. Lorna Herseth later became South Dakota's Secretary of State. Their son Lars Herseth was Majority Leader of the State Senate, and granddaughter Stephanie Herseth Sandlin served in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from 2004 until 2011.

Political career

Herseth was a Superintendent for the

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government unemployment, work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was ...

(1935–39). He served in the South Dakota State Senate for Brown County from (1951–52) and (1957–58). Herseth was only the third Democrat to hold the office of

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of the state of South Dakota. As governor, he focused on state tax problems, appointing a Citizens Tax Study Commission to recommend tax reform. He was also active in developing South Dakota's natural resources. Big Bend Dam on the

Missouri River The Missouri River is a river in the Central United States, Central and Mountain states, Mountain West regions of the United States. The nation's longest, it rises in the eastern Centennial Mountains of the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Moun ...

was begun during his single term in office. The state government experienced problems resulting from hard-hitting natural disasters in

in 1959; he was defeated for reelection in 1960, and for a return to office in 1962.

Death

Herseth, died from a heart attack on January 24, 1969, aged 59, while visiting a friend at home in

Aberdeen, South Dakota Aberdeen () is a city in and the county seat of Brown County, South Dakota, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 28,495. making it the third-most populous city in the state. Aberdeen is home of Northern State University. ...

. He had a history of heart problems, having previously suffered a heart attack in 1960. He is interred at Houghton Cemetery, Houghton, Brown County, South Dakota US.NState
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References

External links

at the

National Governors Association The National Governors Association (NGA) is an American Politics of the United States, political organization founded in 1908. The association's members are the governors of the 55 U.S. state, states, Territories of the United States, territories ...

Ralph E. Herseth entry
at

The Political Graveyard The Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 277,000 Politics of the United States, American political figures and List of United States political families, political families, along with other informa ...

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Governor Ralph Herseth portrait
{{DEFAULTSORT:Herseth, Ralph 1909 births 1969 deaths Democratic Party governors of South Dakota Democratic Party South Dakota state senators Northern State University alumni North Dakota State University alumni American people of Norwegian descent People from Brown County, South Dakota Herseth family 20th-century members of the South Dakota Legislature