Perkins County, South Dakota
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Perkins County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,835.<ref name="QF">Template:Cite web</ref> Its county seat is Bison.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The county was established in 1908 and organized in 1909.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It was named for Sturgis, South Dakota, official Henry E. Perkins.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Geography
[edit]Perkins County lies on the north edge of South Dakota. Its north boundary line abuts the south boundary line of the state of North Dakota. The Grand River flows eastward through the upper part of the county, and the Moreau River flows eastward through the lower part of the county. Shadehill Reservoir is a large impoundment on the Grand River in the county.
Perkins County terrain consists of semi-arid rolling hills, carved by drainage creeks, sparsely dedicated to agriculture.<ref name=PCSD>Perkins County SD Google Maps (accessed February 8, 2019)</ref> The terrain slopes to the east; its highest point is on its lower west boundary line, at Template:Convert ASL.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (0.7%) is water.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It is the second-largest county by area in South Dakota. Meade County is the state's largest county by area.
Perkins County came to media attention in 2009 when Stephen Von Worley calculated that it was the site of the "McFarthest Spot" — the point in the continental United States that is most distant from a McDonald's restaurant: Template:Convert as the crow flies and Template:Convert by car. However, it was updated in 2010 and the spot was updated to the middle of the Nevada Desert.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Major highways
[edit]- File:US 12.svg U.S. Highway 12
- File:SD 20.svg South Dakota Highway 20
- File:SD 73.svg South Dakota Highway 73
- File:SD 75.svg South Dakota Highway 75
Adjacent counties
[edit]- Adams County, North Dakota - north
- Corson County - east
- Ziebach County - southeast
- Meade County - south
- Butte County - southwest
- Harding County - west
Protected areas
[edit]Source:<ref name=PCSD/> Template:Div col
- Grand River National Grassland (part)<ref>Map of the Grand River National Grassland</ref>
- Hugh Glass State Lakeside Use Area
- Lemmon Lake State Game Production Area
- Llewellyn Johns State Recreation Area
- Owens Lake State Game Production Area
- Shadehill State Game Production Area
- Shadehill State Recreation Area
- Sorum Dam State Game Production Area
- Vobejda Dam State Game Production Area
Lakes
[edit]Source:<ref name=PCSD/> Template:Div col
- Flat Creek Lake
- Lemmon Lake
- Owens Lake
- Shadehill Reservoir
- Sorum Dam
- Vobejda Dam
Demographics
[edit]2020 census
[edit]As of the 2020 census, there were 2,835 people, 1,257 households, and 784 families residing in the county.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The population density was Template:Convert. There were 1,710 housing units.
2010 census
[edit]As of the 2010 census, there were 2,982 people, 1,291 households, and 838 families in the county. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 1,739 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the county was 96.9% white, 1.3% American Indian, 0.1% black or African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.5% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.7% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 47.4% were German, 26.2% were Norwegian, 10.8% were English, 8.7% were Irish, 8.4% were Swedish, and 5.8% were American.
Of the 1,291 households, 24.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.2% were married couples living together, 4.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 35.1% were non-families, and 32.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.85. The median age was 48.5 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $33,361 and the median income for a family was $55,313. Males had a median income of $30,255 versus $27,361 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,780. About 11.2% of families and 18.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.6% of those under age 18 and 21.2% of those age 65 or over.
Communities
[edit]Cities
[edit]Town
[edit]- Bison (county seat)
Census-designated place
[edit]Unincorporated Communities
[edit]Ghost Towns
[edit]Townships
[edit]- Ada
- Anderson
- Antelope
- Barrett
- Beck-Highland
- Bison
- Brushy
- Burdick
- Cash
- Castle Butte
- Chance
- Chaudoin
- Clark
- De Witt
- Duell
- Englewood
- Flat Creek
- Foster
- Fredlund
- Glendo
- Grand River
- Hall
- Horse Creek
- Liberty
- Lincoln
- Lemmon
- Lodgepole
- Lone Tree
- Maltby
- Marshfield
- Martin
- Meadow
- Moreau
- Plateau
- Rainbow
- Rockford
- Scotch Cap
- Sidney
- Strool
- Trail
- Vail
- Vickers
- Viking
- Vrooman
- Wells
- White Butte
- White Hill
- Wilson
- Wyandotte
Unorganized territories
[edit]- Duck Creek
- East Perkins
- Independence
- Pleasant Valley
- South Perkins
- Southwest Perkins
- West Central Perkins
- West Perkins
Politics
[edit]Like most of South Dakota, Perkins County is overwhelmingly Republican. No Democratic presidential candidate has won Perkins County since Franklin D. Roosevelt did so during his 46-state landslide in 1936. Jimmy Carter in 1976 came within 36 votes of carrying the county, but since then the only Democrat to gain even 30 percent of the county's vote has been Michael Dukakis during the drought-affected 1988 election. Template:PresHead Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresFoot
Education
[edit]School districts in the county include:<ref>Template:Cite web - Text list</ref>
See also
[edit]References
[edit]Template:Commons category Template:Reflist
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