Gregory County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,994. Its county seat is Burke. The county was created in 1862 and organized in 1898. It was named for the politician J. Shaw Gregory.

Geography

Gregory County lies on the south line of South Dakota. Its south boundary line abuts the north boundary line of Nebraska. The Missouri River flows southeastward along its east boundary line. The county terrain consists of rolling hills, sloping to the southeast. The eastern part of the county is etched with gullies and drainages, flowing to the river basin. The county's highest point is in the SW corner, at ASL.

Gregory County has a total area of , of which is land and (3.7%) is water.

Major highways

  • 20px U.S. Highway 18
  • 23px U.S. Highway 281
  • 20px South Dakota Highway 43
  • 20px South Dakota Highway 44
  • 20px South Dakota Highway 47
  • 23px South Dakota Highway 251
  • 23px South Dakota Highway 1806

Adjacent counties

  • Lyman County – north
  • Charles Mix County – east
  • Boyd County, Nebraska – south
  • Keya Paha County, Nebraska – southwest
  • Tripp County – west

Protected areas

Source:

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|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<br>1790–1960 1900–1990<br>1990–2000 2010–2020 The population density was . There were 2,186 housing units.

Of the residents, 22.5% were under the age of 18 and 27.7% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 48.0 years. For every 100 females there were 98.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 97.8 males.

The racial makeup of the county was 87.7% White, 0.2% Black or African American, 6.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, 0.4% from some other race, and 4.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.3% of the population.

There were 1,721 households in the county, of which 25.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 24.8% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 34.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

  • Dixon
  • Lucas

Townships

  • Burke
  • Carlock
  • Dickens
  • Dixon
  • Edens
  • Ellston
  • Fairfax
  • Jones
  • Landing Creek
  • Pleasant Valley
  • Star Valley
  • Whetstone

Unorganized territories

  • East Gregory
  • North Gregory
  • Southeast Gregory
  • Spring Valley

Economy

Farming and ranching are two main economic factors of the county.

Politics

Like all of South Dakota outside Native American counties, Gregory County is powerfully Republican. No Democrat has carried Gregory County since Jimmy Carter in 1976. Like almost all of rural America, recent swings away from the Democratic Party have been very rapid: Donald Trump's 79.0 percent of the county's vote is the largest any candidate has obtained in the county since South Dakota statehood.

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National Register of Historic Places sites

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Gregory County, South Dakota
  • Fort Randall

References