1. In 1930, the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission approved the establishment of the state's first radio station, KUSD. The station began broadcasting on May 29 of that year from the campus of the University of South Dakota in Vermillion.

2. On May 29, 1942, South Dakota native Joe Foss became the first Marine Corps aviator to earn the Congressional Medal of Honor during World War II. Foss shot down 26 enemy planes and played a key role in the defense of Guadalcanal in the Pacific Theatre.

3. On May 29, 1973, South Dakota became the first state to lower the legal drinking age to 18. The decision was controversial and was ultimately overturned by the federal government in 1984.

4. The town of Custer in the Black Hills region of South Dakota hosts an annual outdoor musical pageant called "The Black Hills Passion Play." The first performance of the play took place on May 29, 1939, and it has since become a popular tourist attraction in the area.

5. In 1953, the city of Sioux Falls experienced one of its worst floods in history on May 29 when the Big Sioux River overflowed its banks. Over 1,500 homes were flooded and the city suffered an estimated $50 million in damages (equivalent to over $500 million today).