Spink County, South Dakota

Spink County
County
Spink County Courthouse (2013)
Location within the U.S. state of South Dakota
South Dakota's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 44°56′N98°21′W / 44.94°N 98.35°W / 44.94; -98.35
Country	United States
State	South Dakota
Founded	1873 (created) 1879 (organized)
Named for	S.L. Spink
Seat	Redfield
Largest city	Redfield
Area
• Total	1,510 sq mi (3,900 km2)
• Land	1,504 sq mi (3,900 km2)
• Water	5.8 sq mi (15 km2)  0.4%
Population  (2020)
• Total	6,361
• Estimate  (2023)	6,166
• Density	4.2/sq mi (1.6/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	At-large
Website	www.spinkcounty-sd.org

Spink County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,361. ^[1] Its county seat is Redfield. ^[2] The county was created in 1873, and was organized in 1879 within Dakota Territory. ^[3]

Geography

The terrain of Spink County consists of rolling hills, dedicated to agriculture. The James River flows southerly through the central portion of the county. ^[4] The terrain slopes to the south; its highest point is in its northeast corner, at 1,424 ft (434 m) ASL. ^[5] The county has a total area of 1,510 square miles (3,900 km²), of which 1,504 square miles (3,900 km²) is land and 5.8 square miles (15 km²) (0.4%) is water. ^[6]

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 212
• U.S. Highway 281
• South Dakota Highway 20
• South Dakota Highway 26
• South Dakota Highway 28
• South Dakota Highway 37

Protected area

• Fisher Grove State Park

Adjacent counties

• Brown County  –north
• Day County  –northeast
• Clark County  –east
• Beadle County  –south
• Hand County  –southwest
• Faulk County  –west

Lakes ^[4]

• Alkali Lake
• Cottonwood Lake
• Twin Lakes

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	477		—
1890	10,581		2,118.2%
1900	9,487		−10.3%
1910	15,981		68.5%
1920	15,768		−1.3%
1930	15,304		−2.9%
1940	12,527		−18.1%
1950	12,204		−2.6%
1960	11,706		−4.1%
1970	10,595		−9.5%
1980	9,201		−13.2%
1990	7,981		−13.3%
2000	7,454		−6.6%
2010	6,415		−13.9%
2020	6,361		−0.8%
2023 (est.)	6,166	[7]	−3.1%
U.S. Decennial Census [8] 1790-1960 [9] 1900-1990 [10] 1990-2000 [11] 2010-2020 [1]

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 6,361 people, 2,520 households, and 1,560 families residing in the county. ^[12] The population density was 4.2 inhabitants per square mile (1.6/km²). There were 2,983 housing units.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 6,415 people, 2,608 households, and 1,677 families in the county. The population density was 4.3 inhabitants per square mile (1.7/km²). There were 3,139 housing units at an average density of 2.1 units per square mile (0.81 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.1% white, 1.2% American Indian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.4% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.1% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 52.6% were German, 11.6% were Norwegian, 10.0% were Irish, 9.2% were English, and 5.5% were American.

Of the 2,608 households, 26.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.4% were married couples living together, 6.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 35.7% were non-families, and 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.89. The median age was 44.4 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $45,000 and the median income for a family was $60,639. Males had a median income of $40,273 versus $26,139 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,295. About 8.2% of families and 17.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.0% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over.

Several Hutterite communities are in Spink County, including near Ashton and Stratford. ^[13]

Communities

Cities

• Ashton
• Conde
• Doland
• Frankfort
• Mellette
• Redfield (county seat)

Towns

• Brentford
• Northville
• Tulare
• Turton

Census-designated places

• Camrose Colony
• Clark Colony
• Glendale Colony
• Hillside Colony
• Mansfield (partial)
• Spink Colony

Other unincorporated communities ^[4]

• Athol
• Crandon

Townships

• Antelope
• Athol
• Belle Plaine
• Belmont
• Benton
• Beotia
• Buffalo
• Capitola
• Clifton
• Conde
• Cornwall
• Crandon
• Exline
• Frankfort
• Garfield
• Great Bend
• Groveland
• Harmony
• Harrison
• Jefferson
• Lake
• La Prairie
• Lincoln
• Lodi
• Mellette
• Northville
• Olean
• Prairie Center
• Redfield
• Richfield
• Spring
• Sumner
• Tetonka
• Three Rivers
• Tulare
• Turton
• Union

Politics

Spink County was historically a swing county, but in the past few decades has become fairly Republican. In no national election since 1992 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate (as of 2020).

United States presidential election results for Spink County, South Dakota ^[14]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	2,104	66.52%	998	31.55%	61	1.93%
2016	1,854	62.83%	919	31.14%	178	6.03%
2012	1,670	54.92%	1,300	42.75%	71	2.33%
2008	1,660	50.78%	1,550	47.42%	59	1.80%
2004	2,259	59.86%	1,478	39.16%	37	0.98%
2000	1,957	59.59%	1,274	38.79%	53	1.61%
1996	1,651	45.00%	1,636	44.59%	382	10.41%
1992	1,527	37.14%	1,732	42.12%	853	20.74%
1988	1,969	48.47%	2,071	50.98%	22	0.54%
1984	2,627	60.75%	1,680	38.85%	17	0.39%
1980	2,915	60.30%	1,572	32.52%	347	7.18%
1976	2,003	42.81%	2,650	56.64%	26	0.56%
1972	2,547	52.19%	2,321	47.56%	12	0.25%
1968	2,068	42.08%	2,669	54.30%	178	3.62%
1964	1,953	38.50%	3,120	61.50%	0	0.00%
1960	2,738	51.65%	2,563	48.35%	0	0.00%
1956	2,683	48.29%	2,873	51.71%	0	0.00%
1952	3,693	65.06%	1,983	34.94%	0	0.00%
1948	2,310	45.59%	2,702	53.33%	55	1.09%
1944	2,365	50.86%	2,285	49.14%	0	0.00%
1940	2,975	48.70%	3,134	51.30%	0	0.00%
1936	2,078	35.39%	3,569	60.79%	224	3.82%
1932	2,433	36.67%	4,046	60.98%	156	2.35%
1928	3,868	60.89%	2,451	38.59%	33	0.52%
1924	2,613	57.81%	595	13.16%	1,312	29.03%
1920	2,923	65.09%	785	17.48%	783	17.43%
1916	1,660	48.61%	1,622	47.50%	133	3.89%
1912	0	0.00%	1,347	44.53%	1,678	55.47%
1908	1,847	59.01%	1,121	35.81%	162	5.18%
1904	2,127	74.53%	492	17.24%	235	8.23%
1900	1,496	56.41%	1,087	40.99%	69	2.60%
1896	1,132	51.31%	1,061	48.10%	13	0.59%
1892	1,133	53.04%	171	8.01%	832	38.95%

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Spink County, South Dakota

References

1. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. "Dakota Territory, South Dakota, and North Dakota: Individual County Chronologies". Dakota Territory Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. The Newberry Library. 2006. Archived from the original on April 2, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2015.
4. "Spink County · South Dakota". Google Maps. Retrieved April 27, 2024.
5. ""Find an Altitude" Google Maps (accessed February 8, 2019)". Archived from the original on May 21, 2019. Retrieved February 8, 2019.
6. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved March 28, 2015.
7. "County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2023" . Retrieved March 17, 2024.
8. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 28, 2015.
9. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved March 28, 2015.
10. Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 28, 2015.
11. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2015.
12. "US Census Bureau, Table P16: Household Type". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
13. "New Hutterite Community being Planned in Spink County". Rapid City Journal . Associated Press. July 8, 2015. Retrieved July 8, 2015.
14. Leip, David. "Atlas of US Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved April 15, 2018.

44°56′N98°21′W / 44.94°N 98.35°W / 44.94; -98.35