Sanford School of Medicine of the University of South Dakota – Sioux Falls

In 1862, the first Legislature of the Dakota Territory established the first postsecondary institution in the Dakotas, although classes were not held until 20 years later.

With Ephraim Epstein serving as the first president and primary faculty member, the university that would become USD began holding classes in a loaned space in downtown Vermillion. Sixty-nine students were enrolled at USD in 1883; by the time South Dakota became the 40th state in 1889, that number had grown to 500.