Corson County, South Dakota

Corson County, South Dakota
Corson County Courthouse in McIntosh, South Dakota in 1993. This building was destroyed by fire on April 10, 2006.
Location in the state of South Dakota
South Dakota's location in the U.S.
Founded	1909
Named for	Dighton Corson
Seat	McIntosh
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	2,529 sq mi (6,551 km²) 2,473 sq mi (6,405 km²) 56 sq mi (146 km²), 2.23%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	4,050 1.7/sq mi (0.7/km²)

Triceratops skull from Corson County. Collections of Houston Museum of Natural Science.

Corson County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2010 census, the population was 4,050.^[1] Its county seat is McIntosh.^[2]

It was named for Dighton Corson, a native of Maine, who came to the Black Hills in 1876, and in 1877 began practicing law at Deadwood. He was one of the first attorneys for the Homestake Mine. Elected to the South Dakota Supreme Court in 1889, he served until he retired in 1913.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,529 square miles (6,550.1 km²), of which 2,473 square miles (6,405.0 km²) is land and 56 square miles (145.0 km²) (2.23%) is water. The entire county lies within the Standing Rock Indian Reservation.

Townships

The county is divided into eleven townships: Custer, Delaney, Lake, Mission, Pleasant Ridge, Prairie View, Ridgeland, Rolling Green, Sherman, Wakpala, and Watauga; and four areas of unorganized territory: Central Corson, Lemmon No. 2, Northeast Corson, and West Corson.

Major highways

U.S. Highway 12 South Dakota Highway 20 South Dakota Highway 63 South Dakota Highway 65

South Dakota Highway 1806

Adjacent counties

• Sioux County, North Dakota - north
• Campbell County, South Dakota - east
• Walworth County, South Dakota - southeast
• Dewey County, South Dakota - south
• Ziebach County, South Dakota - southwest
• Perkins County, South Dakota - west

National protected area

• Grand River National Grassland (part)

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1910	2,929		—
1920	7,249		147.5%
1930	9,535		31.5%
1940	6,755		−29.2%
1950	6,168		−8.7%
1960	5,798		−6.0%
1970	4,994		−13.9%
1980	5,196		4.0%
1990	4,195		−19.3%
2000	4,181		−0.3%
2010	4,050		−3.1%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census^[3] of 2000, there were 4,181 people, 1,271 households, and 949 families residing in the county. The population density was 1.7 people per square mile (0.7/km²). There were 1,536 housing units at an average density of 0.6 per square mile (0.2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 60.80% Native American, 37.19% White, 0.10% Black or African American, 0.05% Asian, 0.22% from other races, and 1.65% from two or more races. 2.13% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 27.3% were of German ancestry.

There were 1,271 households out of which 38.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% were married couples living together, 19.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.3% were non-families. 22.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.29 and the average family size was 3.82.

In the county, the population was spread out with 36.9% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 18.5% from 45 to 64, and 10.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 102.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.8 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $20,654, and the median income for a family was $23,889. Males had a median income of $22,717 versus $19,609 for females. The per capita income for the county was $8,615. About 32.80% of families and 41.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 48.60% of those under age 18 and 32.70% of those age 65 or over. The county's per-capita income makes it one of the poorest counties in the United States.

Cities, towns, and unincorporated communities

• Bullhead
• Little Eagle
• McIntosh
• McLaughlin
• Morristown
• Walker

Notable residents

• Ted Klaudt

See also

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

References

1. ^ United States Census Bureau. "2010 Census Data". United States Census Bureau. http://2010.census.gov/2010census/data/. Retrieved 4 August 2011. 
2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
3. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 

Coordinates: 45°43′N 101°11′W / 45.72°N 101.18°W / 45.72; -101.18