Spink County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,361. Its county seat is Redfield. The county was created in 1873, and was organized in 1879 within Dakota Territory.

History

Spink county was formed in 1879 as part of Dakota Territory. It folded to South Dakota in 1889. Spink County's population peaked before the Great Depression. In the years following, Spink County became one of the counties with the greatest percentage loss in population as part of the depopulation of the Great Plains.

Geography

The terrain of Spink County consists of rolling hills, dedicated to agriculture. The James River flows southerly through the central portion of the county. The terrain slopes to the south; its highest point is in its northeast corner, at ASL. The county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.4%) is water.

Major highways

  • 23px U.S. Highway 212
  • 23px U.S. Highway 281
  • 20px South Dakota Highway 20
  • 20px South Dakota Highway 26
  • 20px South Dakota Highway 28
  • 20px South Dakota Highway 37

Protected area

  • Fisher Grove State Park

Adjacent counties

  • Brown Countynorth
  • Day Countynortheast
  • Clark Countyeast
  • Beadle Countysouth
  • Hand Countysouthwest
  • Faulk Countywest

Lakes

Source:

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2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 6,361 people, 2,520 households, and 1,560 families residing in the county. The population density was , and there were 2,983 housing units, of which 15.5% were vacant.

Of the residents, 23.3% were under the age of 18 and 22.0% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 42.9 years. For every 100 females there were 99.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 98.5 males.

Of the 2,520 households, 26.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 23.1% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 34.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Communities

Cities

  • Ashton
  • Conde
  • Doland
  • Frankfort
  • Mellette
  • Redfield (county seat)

Towns

  • Brentford
  • Northville
  • Tulare
  • Turton

Census-designated places

  • Camrose Colony
  • Clark Colony
  • Glendale Colony
  • Hillside Colony
  • Mansfield (partial)
  • Spink Colony

Other unincorporated communities

Source:

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See also

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

References