Rapid City (pop. 74,703; met. area pop. 147,392) is the second largest city in South Dakota. Only Sioux Falls has more people. Rapid City is a center of education, health care, tourism, and trade for western South Dakota. It lies just east of the scenic Black Hills, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) from Mount Rushmore National Memorial.
The chief industries in Rapid City make cement, computer parts, jewelry, meat products, and particleboard. The city also has a number of customer-service call centers. The South Dakota School of Mines and Technology is in Rapid City. Ellsworth Air Force Base lies nearby.
Sioux Indians lived in the Black Hills before white settlers arrived there. Prospectors founded Rapid City in 1876, during the Black Hills gold rush. They named it after Rapid Creek, which flows through the city.
In 1972, Rapid Creek overflowed. The flood killed 238 people and caused about $165 million in damage in Rapid City and the surrounding area. The city then created a floodway—a path for drainage of excess water—by clearing land on both sides of the creek. The floodway, 8 miles (13 kilometers) long, involved removal of about 240 businesses and 800 homes. Other projects included a civic center, opened in 1977 and expanded in 1985, and the Rushmore Mall (now Uptown Rapid). The Journey Museum and Learning Center opened in 1997. Its exhibits focus on the history of the Black Hills. Rapid City has a mayor-council form of government.
