Fort Towson

Deuel County (/ˈdl/ DOOL)[1] is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,295.[2] Its county seat is Clear Lake.[3] The county was created in 1862, and was organized in 1878.[4] It is named for Jacob Deuel, a legislator in 1862.[5]

Geography

Soils of Deuel County

Deuel County lies on the east boundary line of South Dakota. Its east boundary line abuts the west boundary line of the state of Minnesota. Its terrain consists of rolling hills, sloped to the northeast. The area is largely devoted to agriculture. The county's highest elevation occurs on its upper west boundary line, at 1,936 ft (590 m) ASL.[6] The county has a total area of 637 square miles (1,650 km2), of which 623 square miles (1,610 km2) is land and 14 square miles (36 km2) (2.2%) is water.[7]

Major highways

Adjacent Counties

Lakes

  • Bullhead Lake
  • Briggs Lake
  • Clear Lake
  • East Coteau Lake
  • Fish Lake
  • Fox Lake
  • Lake Alice
  • Lake Cochrane
  • Lake Francis
  • Lake Ketchum
  • Lake Oliver
  • Lake Milk
  • Lone Tree Lake
  • North Coteau Lake
  • Round Lake
  • Rush Lake
  • Salt Lake (part)
  • School Lake
  • Slough Up’Nort
  • South Coteau Lake
  • Wigdale Lake

Protected areas

  • Altamont State Public Shooting Area[8]
  • Astoria State Wildlife Management Area[9]
  • Briggs Lake State Public Shooting Area[10]
  • Crystal Springs State Public Shooting Area[11]
  • Lake Cochrane State Recreation Area[12]
  • Lake Francis State Public Shooting Area[13]
  • Lone Tree Lake State Public Shooting Area[14]
  • Mitchell State Public Shooting Area[15]
  • Mud Lake State Public Shooting Area[16]
  • Nelson State Wildlife Management Area[17]
  • Rome State Wildlife Management Area[18]
  • Round Lake State Wildlife Management Area[19]
  • Runge State Wildlife Management Area[20]
  • Rush Lake State Public Shooting Area[21]
  • Sharp State Public Shooting Area[22]
  • Singsaas Slough State Wildlife Management Area[23]
  • Sokota State Wildlife Management Area (partial)[24]

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note
187037
18802,3026,121.6%
18904,57498.7%
19006,65645.5%
19107,76816.7%
19208,75912.8%
19308,732−0.3%
19408,450−3.2%
19507,689−9.0%
19606,782−11.8%
19705,686−16.2%
19805,289−7.0%
19904,522−14.5%
20004,498−0.5%
20104,364−3.0%
20204,295−1.6%
2023 (est.)4,354[25]1.4%
U.S. Decennial Census[26]
1790-1960[27] 1900-1990[28]
1990-2000[29] 2010-2020[2]

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 4,295 people, 1,786 households, and 1,177 families residing in the county.[30] The population density was 6.9 inhabitants per square mile (2.7/km2). There were 2,132 housing units.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 4,364 people, 1,819 households, and 1,228 families in the county. The population density was 7.0 inhabitants per square mile (2.7/km2). There were 2,204 housing units at an average density of 3.5 units per square mile (1.4 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.5% white, 0.3% American Indian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.1% Asian, 1.0% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 50.4% were German, 25.4% were Norwegian, 8.0% were Irish, 6.6% were Dutch, 5.5% were English, and 2.9% were American.

Of the 1,819 households, 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.6% were married couples living together, 5.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.5% were non-families, and 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.92. The median age was 43.9 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $47,000 and the median income for a family was $55,439. Males had a median income of $35,197 versus $26,020 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,276. About 3.0% of families and 6.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.6% of those under age 18 and 11.9% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

Towns

Unincorporated communities

Townships

  • Altamont
  • Antelope Valley
  • Blom, Brandt
  • Clear Lake
  • Glenwood
  • Goodwin
  • Grange
  • Havana
  • Herrick
  • Hidewood
  • Lowe
  • Norden
  • Portland
  • Rome
  • Scandinavia

Politics

Deuel County is a typical eastern South Dakota county in its political history, which is somewhat akin to the Midwestern states of Iowa and Minnesota. It was strongly Republican in its early years, with no Democrat except William Jennings Bryan gaining forty percent up to 1928. Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 became the first Democrat to carry the county, but lost it to Alf Landon in 1936, whilst – like most of the Midwest – the county showed a powerful anti-Roosevelt trend in 1940 and 1944 due to opposition to World War II. From 1964, the county showed a strong trend towards the Democratic Party – so much so that it was one of only 130 counties nationwide to support South Dakota native George McGovern in 1972 against Richard Nixon, and one of only five nationwide to have supported both landslide losers Landon and McGovern.[a]

Between 1976 and 2010, Deuel was a competitive swing county, voting for the winning candidate in every election until 2008 when Barack Obama lost by 34 votes. Over the past two elections, however, Deuel – in common with many rural counties nationwide – has shown an abrupt swing towards the Republican Party. Donald Trump’s 2016 win was the largest since Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952.

United States presidential election results for Deuel County, South Dakota[32]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 1,699 72.30% 609 25.91% 42 1.79%
2016 1,366 65.67% 570 27.40% 144 6.92%
2012 1,175 54.12% 941 43.34% 55 2.53%
2008 1,088 49.05% 1,054 47.52% 76 3.43%
2004 1,406 58.29% 961 39.84% 45 1.87%
2000 1,245 55.98% 926 41.64% 53 2.38%
1996 955 40.66% 1,090 46.40% 304 12.94%
1992 778 32.11% 880 36.32% 765 31.57%
1988 1,251 49.49% 1,246 49.29% 31 1.23%
1984 1,537 61.73% 941 37.79% 12 0.48%
1980 1,657 60.39% 891 32.47% 196 7.14%
1976 1,177 44.38% 1,465 55.24% 10 0.38%
1972 1,357 49.60% 1,370 50.07% 9 0.33%
1968 1,398 53.26% 1,076 40.99% 151 5.75%
1964 1,317 46.36% 1,524 53.64% 0 0.00%
1960 1,907 61.92% 1,173 38.08% 0 0.00%
1956 1,698 55.47% 1,363 44.53% 0 0.00%
1952 2,279 72.17% 879 27.83% 0 0.00%
1948 1,357 49.91% 1,324 48.69% 38 1.40%
1944 1,910 61.81% 1,180 38.19% 0 0.00%
1940 2,304 66.40% 1,166 33.60% 0 0.00%
1936 1,595 50.59% 1,440 45.67% 118 3.74%
1932 1,131 40.22% 1,658 58.96% 23 0.82%
1928 1,869 64.40% 999 34.42% 34 1.17%
1924 1,362 60.32% 168 7.44% 728 32.24%
1920 1,569 69.95% 159 7.09% 515 22.96%
1916 908 59.35% 584 38.17% 38 2.48%
1912 0 0.00% 441 31.17% 974 68.83%
1908 1,022 64.77% 425 26.93% 131 8.30%
1904 1,348 80.33% 279 16.63% 51 3.04%
1900 1,052 62.77% 604 36.04% 20 1.19%
1896 698 50.95% 668 48.76% 4 0.29%
1892 441 43.79% 126 12.51% 440 43.69%

See also

Notes

  1. ^ The others are Middlesex and Norfolk in Massachusetts, Washtenaw County in Michigan, and Jackson County, Illinois.

References

  1. ^ "Broadcast Pronunciation Guide and South Dakota Pronunciations". Associated Press. Archived from the original on June 14, 2011. Retrieved November 10, 2009.
  2. ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
  3. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  4. ^ "Dakota Territory, South Dakota, and North Dakota: Individual County Chronologies". Dakota Territory Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. The Newberry Library. 2006. Archived from the original on April 2, 2018. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
  5. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. p. 105.
  6. ^ ""Find an Altitude" Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)". Archived from the original on May 21, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  7. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  8. ^ Altamond State Public Shooting Areas, Clear Lake SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  9. ^ Astoria State Wildlife Management Area, Astoria SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  10. ^ Briggs Lake State Public Shooting Area, Gary SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  11. ^ Crystal Springs State Public Shooting Area, Clear Lake SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  12. ^ Lake Cochrane State Recreation Area Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  13. ^ Lake Francis State Public Shooting Area Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  14. ^ Lone Tree Lake State Public Shooting Area Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  15. ^ Mitchell State Public Shooting Area, Revillo SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  16. ^ Mud Lake State Public Shooting Area, Gary SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  17. ^ Nelson State Wildlife Management Area, Clear Lake SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  18. ^ Rome State Wildlife Management Area, Strandburg SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  19. ^ Round Lake State Wildlife Management Area, Strandburg SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  20. ^ Runge State Wildlife Management Area, Gary SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  21. ^ Rush Lake State Public Shooting Area, Clear Lake SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  22. ^ Sharp State Public Shooting Area, Clear Lake SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  23. ^ Singsaas Slough State Wildlife Management Area, Astoria SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  24. ^ Sokota State Wildlife Management Area, Hendricks MN Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  25. ^ "County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2023". Retrieved March 17, 2024.
  26. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  27. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  28. ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  29. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  30. ^ "US Census Bureau, Table P16: Household Type". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
  31. ^ Tunerville SD Google Maps (accessed February 2, 2019)
  32. ^ Leip, David. "Atlas of US Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved April 15, 2018.

44°46′N 96°40′W / 44.76°N 96.67°W / 44.76; -96.67