White Lake, South Dakota, founded in 1882, grew out of earlier communities known as Siding 36, Windsor, and Yorktown before becoming White Lake. Its July 1982 centennial honored the men and women who endured hardships to tame the prairie soil so later generations could benefit from their labor, and later tributes continued that recognition of pioneer homesteaders. White Lake is also linked to aviation history through the November 11, 1935, landing there of Capt. Orvil A. Anderson and Capt. Albert W. Stevens after their balloon ascent established a world altitude record of 72,000 feet, an effort sponsored by the National Geographic Society and the U.S. Army Air Corps. Other memorials at the plaza recognize local churches and express enduring gratitude to the men and women of the community who served in the Civil War, Spanish American War, World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War, and post-Vietnam service.