Edmunds County, South Dakota


Edmunds County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. At the 2020 census, the population was 3,986. Its county seat is Ipswich. The county was established in 1873 and organized in 1883. It is named for Newton Edmunds, the second Governor of Dakota Territory.
Edmunds County is part of the Aberdeen, SD Micropolitan Statistical Area.
WWW edmunds.sdcounties.org

Geography

The terrain of Edmunds County consists of rolling hills, mostly dedicated to agriculture. The terrain's highest point is on the west portion of the north boundary line, at ASL. The county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Protected areas

  • Bowdle-Hosmer State Game Production Area
  • Heilman State Game Production Area
  • Hosmer State Game Production Area
  • Light State Game Production Area
  • Losee State Game Production Area
  • Mina Lake State Recreation Area
  • Mina State Game Production Area
  • North Scatterwood State Game Production Area
  • Rosette State Game Production Area
  • Schaber State Game Production Area
  • Shaner State Game Production Area
  • Steigelmier State Game Production Area

Lakes

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 3,986 and 1,052 families residing in the county. Of the residents, 22.9% were under the age of 18 and 23.0% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 44.7 years. For every 100 females there were 104.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 104.3 males.
The population density was. There were 1,940 housing units, of which 20.3% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 78.3% were owner-occupied and 21.7% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 13.2%.
The racial makeup of the county was 95.4% White, 0.3% Black or African American, 1.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, 0.6% from some other race, and 2.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.5% of the population.
There were 1,546 households in the county, of which 25.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 17.7% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 28.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 4,071 people, 1,607 households and 1,057 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 1,966 housing units at an average density of. The racial make-up of the county was 97.8% white, 0.4% American Indian, 0.1% black or African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.5% from other races, and 1.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 70.8% were German, 11.4% were Norwegian, 10.1% were Russian, 5.9% were English and 2.4% were American.
Of the 1,607 households, 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.9% were married couples living together, 4.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 34.2% were non-families, and 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.84. The median age was 45.7 years.
The median household income was $47,026 and the median family income was $56,599. Males had a median income of $37,713 and females $26,287. The per capita income was $24,268. About 6.9% of families and 11.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.0% of those under age 18 and 13.6% of those age 65 or over.

Notable events

Edmunds County is where the Learjet of the PGA golfer Payne Stewart crashed, killing him and five others on board. The plane crashed just south of the community of Mina at the approximate coordinates of 45°25' N 98°45' W.

Communities

Cities

Census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

Townships

  • Adrian
  • Belle
  • Bowdle
  • Bryant
  • Clear Lake
  • Cleveland
  • Cloyd
  • Cordlandt
  • Cottonwood Lake
  • Fountain
  • Glen
  • Glover
  • Harmony
  • Hillside
  • Hosmer
  • Hudson
  • Huntley
  • Ipswich
  • Kent
  • Liberty
  • Madison
  • Modena
  • Montpelier
  • North Bryant
  • Odessa
  • Pembrook
  • Powell
  • Richland
  • Rosette
  • Sangamon
  • Union
  • Vermont

Politics

Edmunds County voters have long been reliably Republican. Since 1936, in only three elections has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate. Although it was one of only 129 counties nationwide to back George McGovern in his landslide 1972 defeat, it has voted for fewer Democratic presidential nominees than any other county McGovern carried, with Jimmy Carter in 1976 the last Democrat to carry the county and Kamala Harris not passing twenty percent in 2024.

Education

School districts include:
  • Bowdle School District 22-1
  • Faulkton School District 24-4
  • Edmunds Central School District 22-5
  • Hoven School District 53-2
  • Ipswich School District 22-6
  • Northwestern Area School District 56-7
  • Warner School District 06-5