Ironman Farrar sets another record

Frank Farrar, who was Governor of South Dakota from 1969-71, has in the years since become known for completing triathlons and “Ironman” competitions even into old age. Farrar’s penchant for fitness has helped him to set another record, as he is now the longest-living governor in South Dakota history.

Farrar was born on April 2, 1929 in Britton, South Dakota. He reached his 91st birthday on April 2, 2020. The record for longest life by a South Dakota governor was held by William H. McMaster, who died at the age of 91 years, 127 days in 1968, the same year Farrar was elected governor. On August 8, 2020, Farrar reached the age of 91 years, 128 days, exceeding McMaster by one day.

Farrar had not even had the second-longest lifespan until earlier this year; he surpassed W. J. Bulow’s 91 years and 44 days on May 17, 2020.

This blog has written in the past about two other records relating to Farrar. Although not the youngest governor, Farrar was one of four who took office while in his thirties. And, because he took office so young, and has lived to be so old, Farrar has been a “former governor” longer than anyone in South Dakota history; January 5, 2020 was the forty-ninth anniversary of his departure from office.

Below is a list of South Dakota governors, ranked by length of life. This is an update to the list that was included in an earlier post.

SOUTH DAKOTA GOVERNORS, BY LENGTH OF LIFE

#	Governor	Date of birth	Date of death	Length of Life
24	Frank Farrar*	April 2, 1929		91 yrs, 128 days
10	William H. McMaster	May 10, 1877	September 14, 1968	91 yrs, 127 days
12	W. J. Bulow	January 13, 1869	February 26, 1960	91 yrs, 44 days
29	Walter Dale Miller	October 5, 1925	September 28, 2015	89 yrs, 358 days
20	Joe Foss	April 17, 1915	January 1, 2003	87 yrs, 259 days
3	Andrew E. Lee	March 18, 1847	March 19, 1934	87 yrs, 1 day
19	Sigurd Anderson	January 22, 1904	December 21, 1990	86 yrs, 333 days
6	Coe Crawford	January 14, 1858	April 25, 1944	86 yrs, 101 days
26	Harvey Wollman*	May 14, 1935		85 yrs, 86 days
5	Samuel H. Elrod	May 01, 1856	July 13, 1935	79 yrs, 73 days
23	Nils Boe	September 10, 1913	July 30, 1992	78 yrs, 323 days
22	Archie Gubbrud	December 31, 1910	April 26, 1987	76 yrs, 116 days
13	Warren E. Green	March 10, 1869	April 27, 1945	76 yrs, 48 days
17	M. Q. Sharpe	January 11, 1888	January 22, 1962	74 yrs, 11 days
14	Tom Berry	April 23, 1879	October 30, 1951	72 yrs, 190 days
27	William J. Janklow	September 13, 1939	January 12, 2012	72 yrs, 121 days
15	Leslie Jensen	September 15, 1892	December 14, 1964	72 yrs, 90 days
7	Robert S. Vessey	May 16, 1858	October 18, 1929	71 yrs, 155 days
4	Charles N. Herreid	October 20, 1857	July 6, 1928	70 yrs, 259 days
8	Frank M. Byrne	October 23, 1858	December 24, 1927	69 yrs, 62 days
11	Carl Gunderson	June 20, 1864	February 26, 1933	68 yrs, 251 days
32	Dennis Daugaard*	June 11, 1953		67 yrs, 58 days
9	Peter Norbeck	August 27, 1870	December 20, 1936	66 yrs, 115 days
16	Harlan J. Bushfield	August 06, 1882	September 27, 1948	66 yrs, 52 days
31	Mike Rounds*	October 24, 1954		65 yrs, 288 days
18	George T. Mickelson	July 23, 1903	February 28, 1965	61 yrs, 220 days
21	Ralph Herseth	July 2, 1909	January 24, 1969	59 yrs, 206 days
2	Charles H. Sheldon	September 12, 1840	October 20, 1898	58 yrs, 38 days
25	Richard F. Kneip	January 7, 1933	March 9, 1987	54 yrs, 61 days
1	Arthur C. Mellette	June 23, 1842	May 25, 1896	53 yrs, 336 days
28	George S. Mickelson	January 31, 1941	April 19, 1993	52 yrs, 78 days
33	Kristi Noem*	November 30, 1971		48 yrs, 251 days

*Govs. Frank Farrar, Harvey Wollman, Mike Rounds, Dennis Daugaard, and Kristi Noem are still living, and their longevity is calculated as of August 8, 2020.