Perkins County, South Dakota facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Perkins County
U.S. county
Petrified Wood Park in Lemmon, South Dakota
Location within the U.S. state of South Dakota
South Dakota's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	South Dakota
Founded	November 3, 1908 (established) 1909 (organized)
Named for	Henry E. Perkins
Seat	Bison
Largest city	Lemmon
Area
• Total	2,891 sq mi (7,490 km2)
• Land	2,870 sq mi (7,400 km2)
• Water	20 sq mi (50 km2)  0.7%
Population  (2020)
• Total	2,835
• Estimate  (2021)	2,819
• Density	0.9806/sq mi (0.37862/km2)
Time zone	UTC−7 (Mountain)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−6 (MDT)
Congressional district	At-large

Perkins County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,835. Its county seat is Bison. The county was established in 1908 and organized in 1909. It was named for Sturgis, South Dakota, official Henry E. Perkins.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,890 square miles (7,500 km²), of which 2,870 square miles (7,400 km²) is land and 20 square miles (52 km²) (0.7%) is water. It is the second-largest county by area in South Dakota, behind Meade County.

Shadehill Reservoir, a large impoundment on the Grand River, is located in Perkins County.

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 12
• South Dakota Highway 20
• South Dakota Highway 73
• South Dakota Highway 75

Adjacent counties

• Adams County, North Dakota - north
• Corson County, South Dakota - east
• Ziebach County, South Dakota - southeast
• Meade County, South Dakota - south
• Butte County, South Dakota - southwest
• Harding County, South Dakota - west

National protected area

• Grand River National Grassland (part)

Demographics

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 2,982 people, 1,291 households, and 838 families in the county. The population density was 1.0 inhabitant per square mile (0.39/km²). There were 1,739 housing units at an average density of 0.6 per square mile (0.23/km²). 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

City

• Lemmon

Town

• Bison (county seat)

Census-designated place

• Prairie City

Townships

The county is divided into forty-nine townships:

Unorganized territories

The county contains eight areas of unorganized territory:

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Perkins (Dakota del Sur) para niños