Spink County, South Dakota | |
|---|---|
 Spink County Courthouse (2013) | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofSouth Dakota | |
 South Dakota's location within theU.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 after | 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) | 6,108 |
| • Density | 4.229/sq mi (1.633/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | At-large |
| Website | www |
Spink County is acounty in theU.S. state ofSouth Dakota. As of the2020 census, the population was 6,361.[1] Itscounty seat isRedfield.[2] The county was created in 1873, and was organized in 1879 withinDakota Territory.[3]
Spink county was formed in 1879 as part of Dakota Territory. ItFolded to South Dakota in 1889. Spink County's population peaked before the Great Depression. In the years following, Spink County became one of the counties with the greatest percentage loss in population as part of the depopulation of the Great Plains.
The terrain of Spink County consists of rolling hills, dedicated to agriculture. TheJames 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]
Source:[4]
| 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% | |
| 2024 (est.) | 6,108 | [7] | −4.0% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[8] 1790–1960[9] 1900–1990[10] 1990–2000[11] 2010–2020[1] | |||
As of the2020 census, there were 6,361 people, 2,520 households, and 1,560 families residing in the county.[12] Thepopulation density was 4.2 inhabitants per square mile (1.6/km2). There were 2,983 housing units.
As of the2010 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% wereGerman, 11.6% wereNorwegian, 10.0% wereIrish, 9.2% wereEnglish, and 5.5% wereAmerican.
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 thepoverty line, including 19.0% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over.
SeveralHutterite communities are in Spink County, including near Ashton andStratford.[13]
Source:[4]
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 2024).
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1892 | 1,133 | 53.04% | 171 | 8.01% | 832 | 38.95% |
| 1896 | 1,132 | 51.31% | 1,061 | 48.10% | 13 | 0.59% |
| 1900 | 1,496 | 56.41% | 1,087 | 40.99% | 69 | 2.60% |
| 1904 | 2,127 | 74.53% | 492 | 17.24% | 235 | 8.23% |
| 1908 | 1,847 | 59.01% | 1,121 | 35.81% | 162 | 5.18% |
| 1912 | 0 | 0.00% | 1,347 | 44.53% | 1,678 | 55.47% |
| 1916 | 1,660 | 48.61% | 1,622 | 47.50% | 133 | 3.89% |
| 1920 | 2,923 | 65.09% | 785 | 17.48% | 783 | 17.43% |
| 1924 | 2,613 | 57.81% | 595 | 13.16% | 1,312 | 29.03% |
| 1928 | 3,868 | 60.89% | 2,451 | 38.59% | 33 | 0.52% |
| 1932 | 2,433 | 36.67% | 4,046 | 60.98% | 156 | 2.35% |
| 1936 | 2,078 | 35.39% | 3,569 | 60.79% | 224 | 3.82% |
| 1940 | 2,975 | 48.70% | 3,134 | 51.30% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1944 | 2,365 | 50.86% | 2,285 | 49.14% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 2,310 | 45.59% | 2,702 | 53.33% | 55 | 1.09% |
| 1952 | 3,693 | 65.06% | 1,983 | 34.94% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 2,683 | 48.29% | 2,873 | 51.71% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 2,738 | 51.65% | 2,563 | 48.35% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 1,953 | 38.50% | 3,120 | 61.50% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 2,068 | 42.08% | 2,669 | 54.30% | 178 | 3.62% |
| 1972 | 2,547 | 52.19% | 2,321 | 47.56% | 12 | 0.25% |
| 1976 | 2,003 | 42.81% | 2,650 | 56.64% | 26 | 0.56% |
| 1980 | 2,915 | 60.30% | 1,572 | 32.52% | 347 | 7.18% |
| 1984 | 2,627 | 60.75% | 1,680 | 38.85% | 17 | 0.39% |
| 1988 | 1,969 | 48.47% | 2,071 | 50.98% | 22 | 0.54% |
| 1992 | 1,527 | 37.14% | 1,732 | 42.12% | 853 | 20.74% |
| 1996 | 1,651 | 45.00% | 1,636 | 44.59% | 382 | 10.41% |
| 2000 | 1,957 | 59.59% | 1,274 | 38.79% | 53 | 1.61% |
| 2004 | 2,259 | 59.86% | 1,478 | 39.16% | 37 | 0.98% |
| 2008 | 1,660 | 50.78% | 1,550 | 47.42% | 59 | 1.80% |
| 2012 | 1,670 | 54.92% | 1,300 | 42.75% | 71 | 2.33% |
| 2016 | 1,854 | 62.83% | 919 | 31.14% | 178 | 6.03% |
| 2020 | 2,104 | 66.52% | 998 | 31.55% | 61 | 1.93% |
| 2024 | 2,145 | 68.33% | 921 | 29.34% | 73 | 2.33% |
Places adjacent to Spink County, South Dakota | ||||||||||||||||
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Municipalities and communities ofSpink County, South Dakota,United States | ||
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| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
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