Sioux Falls, city in southeastern South Dakota, the seat of Minnehaha County, and also in Lincoln County. The city is located at falls on the Big Sioux River, from which it draws its name. Sioux Falls is a commercial, manufacturing, data-processing, and financial services center situated in an agricultural region that produces corn and soybeans. It also provides health care for the surrounding region. Large stockyards, slaughterhouses, and meat-packing plants are located in the city. Regional manufacturers include firms making computer equipment, electronics, and artificial flowers. Several national credit card operations have processing facilities in the city. Air transportation is through Sioux Falls Regional Airport.
Augustana College (1860), University of Sioux Falls (1883), National College (1941), and two junior colleges are based in Sioux Falls. A data center of the Earth Resource Observation Systems, a United States agency that uses satellites to survey the earth, is located nearby. Local sites of interest include Falls Park, where history can be explored through an early hydroelectric plant and mill set amid great natural beauty; five separate historic districts helping to preserve early residential and commercial buildings; the R.F. Pettigrew Home and Museum, restored to the period when it was owned by the state's first United States senator; and the Romanesque Minnehaha County Courthouse. Among other attractions are the Great Plains Zoo and Museum and a memorial to the battleship South Dakota from World War II (1939-1945).
