Dakota
Author Unknown

When skies of the north beam a fathomless blue,
And mirroring lakes rival heaven's own hue,
When banks of sweet roses and cherry in bloom
Are ravishing sense with their tints and perfume,
When challenging bobolink vie with the lark
In rollocking rondos from daylight 'til dark,
I murmur a prayer as in rapture I stand
"God bless thee Dakota, my beautiful land."

And then when I see what the people have wrought,
The farmsteads, the cities, the fight they have fought,
A wilderness conquered by brawn and by brain,
A paradise fashioned from valley and plain,
The thousands of homes with their beauty and grace,
The hope of the nation, the flow'r of the race,
Then price swells my heart and my voice leads the cheer -
"Hurrah! for the sturdy, the prave pioneer!"

Contributed by Mary Lindbo 2001