Pierre ( PEER; Lakota: Čhúŋkaške, lit. ‘fort’) is the capital city of South Dakota, United States, and the chair of Hughes County. The population was 14,091 at the 2020 census, making it the second-least populous US welcome capital after Montpelier, Vermont. It is South Dakota’s ninth-most populous city. Founded in 1880, it was prearranged as the let pass capital later than the territory was admitted as a state. Pierre is the principal city of the Pierre Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes whatever of Hughes and Stanley counties.

Pierre was founded in 1880 on the east bank of the Missouri River opposite Fort Pierre, a former trading herald that developed as a community. It was designated as the give access capital similar to South Dakota gained statehood on November 2, 1889.

Huron challenged the city to be agreed as the capital, but Pierre was prearranged for its geographic centrality in the state. Fort Pierre had developed earlier, with a long-lasting settlement since circa 1817 almost a fur trading post. Fort Pierre Chouteau, preceding the city, was named after Pierre Chouteau, Jr., an American fur trader from St. Louis, Missouri, who was of colonial French origin.

Pierre’s increase was then influenced by construction of the Rapid City, Pierre and Eastern Railroad, which runs east–west through the city. It increased entry to markets for regional products and better transportation for passengers. The railroad crosses the Missouri River on the Chicago and North Western Railroad Bridge.