Bennett County, South Dakota

Infobox U.S. County
county = Bennett County
state = South Dakota


founded year = 1909
founded date =
seat wl = Martin
largest city wl =
area_total_sq_mi = 1191
area_total_km2 = 3084
area_land_sq_mi = 1185
area_land_km2 = 3070
area_water_sq_mi = 5
area_water_km2 = 14
area percentage = 0.45%
census yr = 2000
pop = 3574
density_sq_mi = 3
density_km2 = 1
time zone =
UTC offset =
DST offset =
footnotes =
web =
named for = John E. Bennett or Granville C. Bennett

Bennett County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of 2000, the population was 3,574. Its county seat is MartinGR|6.

History

Although created in 1909, Bennett County, previously part of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, remained a part of Fall River County until its organization in 1912, when its first board of county commissioners was elected on April 27. In November 1912, the town of Martin was chosen as the county seat.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,191 square miles (3,084 km²), of which, 1,185 square miles (3,070 km²) of it is land and 5 square miles (14 km²) of it (0.45%) is water.

Townships

The county is divided into two areas of unorganized territory: East Bennett and West Bennett.

Major highways

*
*

Adjacent counties

* Jackson County, South Dakota - north
* Todd County, South Dakota - east
* Cherry County, Nebraska - south
* Shannon County, South Dakota - west

Demographics

USCensusPop
1910 = 96
1920 = 1924
1930 = 4590
1940 = 3983
1950 = 3396
1960 = 3053
1970 = 3088
1980 = 3044
1990 = 3206
2000 = 3574
estyear = 2007
estimate = 3441

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 3,574 people, 1,123 households, and 818 families residing in the county. The population density was 3 people per square mile (1/km²). There were 1,278 housing units at an average density of 1 per square mile (0/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 40.91% White, 0.28% Black or African American, 52.07% Native American, 0.06% Asian, 0.14% Pacific Islander, 0.17% from other races, and 6.38% from two or more races. 2.01% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 14.2% were of German and 6.1% of Irish ancestry.

There were 1,123 households out of which 39.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.60% were married couples living together, 17.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.10% were non-families. 23.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.14 and the average family size was 3.74.

In the county, the population was spread out with 36.30% under the age of 18, 9.20% from 18 to 24, 25.30% from 25 to 44, 18.00% from 45 to 64, and 11.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 98.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.90 males. The county's per-capita income makes it one of the poorest counties in the United States.

The median income for a household in the county was $25,313, and the median income for a family was $28,363. Males had a median income of $26,042 versus $17,472 for females. The per capita income for the county was $10,106. About 30.30% of families and 39.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 48.80% of those under age 18 and 23.10% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

*Allen
*Martin
*Vetal
*Harrington
*Tuthill

References