PIERRE – Gov. Bill Janklow has appointed Patrick H. Wyss of Rapid City to a three-year term on the South Dakota State Historical Society board of trustees.

Wyss, appointed through 2003, is a landscape architect who has worked on numerous historic preservation projects in the Black Hills. He replaces Ruth Ann Alexander of Brookings on the board.

The 12-member board of trustees governs the State Historical Society. Six members are elected by the membership and the governor appoints six. State law specifies that the board must include a professional archaeologist, architect, architectural historian, archivist and historian.

Patricia Adam of Pierre is the current board president and Dr. Harry F. Thompson of Sioux Falls is vice-president. Other current members are R.Z. Hazard and Mark Meierhenry of Sioux Falls, Ann Stewart Balakier of Vermillion, Jeffrey V. Buechler of Rapid City, Robert F. Karolevitz of Mission Hill, Paul V. Miller of Custer, Harold H. Schuler of Pierre, Tom D. Tobin of Winner and David A. Wolff of Spearfish. Ex-officio members include T.L. Lillibridge of Burke, president of the board of directors of the South Dakota Heritage Fund (the society’s non-profit fund-raising arm); Mary B. Edelen, director of the State Historical Society; and Jay D. Vogt, deputy director of the society.

The State Historical Society is headquartered at the Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre. The focal point of the building is the museum, but the center also houses the society’s archives, historic preservation, research and publishing, and administrative offices. The society’s Archaeological Research Center is located in Rapid City. Celebrating 100 years of service to the state this year, the State Historical Society promotes, nurtures and sustains the historical and cultural heritage of South Dakota. The society is a division of the state Department of Education and Cultural Affairs.

For more information call (605) 773-3458 or visit the society’s website at www.sdhistory.org.

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