Codington County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 28,325, making it the 7th most populous county in South Dakota. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Watertown. The county was created in 1877 and organized in 1878. It is named for Rev. George S. S. Codington, Dakota Territory legislator. Codington County comprises the Watertown, SD Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

Codington County terrain consists of rolling hills dotted with lakes and ponds, especially in the southwest portion. The land is largely devoted to agriculture.''Codington County SD'' Google Maps (accessed February 1, 2019)
/ref> The terrain is higher on the county's east and west sides, and generally slopes to the south. The county has a total area of , of which is land and (4.0%) is water.

Major highways

Interstate 29 Interstate 29 (I-29) is an Interstate Highway in the Midwestern United States. I-29 runs from Kansas City, Missouri, at a junction with I-35 and I-70, to the Canada–US border near Pembina, North Dakota, where it connects with Manitoba ...

* U.S. Highway 81 * U.S. Highway 212 * South Dakota Highway 20 * South Dakota Highway 20P

Transit

Jefferson Lines Jefferson Lines (JL or JLI) is a regional intercity bus company operating in 14 states in the Midwest and the West of the United States. History The company is operated by Jefferson Partners L.P., located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Jefferson P ...

Adjacent counties

Grant County Grant County may refer to: Places ;Australia * County of Grant, Victoria ;United States * Grant County, Arkansas * Grant County, Indiana * Grant County, Kansas *Grant County, Kentucky Grant County is a county located in the northern pa ...

- northeast * Deuel County - southeast * Hamlin County - south * Clark County - west * Day County - northwest

Protected areas

* American Game Association State Game Production Area * Blythe State Game Production Area * Christopherson Game Production Area * Clarksean State Game Production Area * Codington County State Game Production Area * Curley State Game Production Area * Elmore State Game Production Area * Gilbert State Game Production Area * Goose Lake State Game Production Area * Hanson State Game Production Area * Horseshoe Lake State Game Production Area * Larson State Game Production Area * McKillicans Lake State Game Production Area * North Nichols State Game Production Area * North Stink Lake State Game Production Area * Pelican Lake State Recreation Area * Punished Womans Lake State Game Production Area * Sandy Shore State Recreation Area * Spencer State Game Production Area * Spoonbill Pass State Game Production Area * Thompson's Point State Lakeside Use Area * Warner Lake State Game Production Area * Wolf State Game Production Area (partial)

Major lakes

* Cottonwood Lake * Dry Lake * Goose Lake * Grass Lake * Horseshoe Lake * Kings Lake * Lake Kampeska * Lake Nicholson * Long Lake * McKillicans Lake * Medicine Lake * Pelican Lake * Punished Womans Lake * Round Lake * Still Lake * Warner Lake

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 28,325 people, 12,026 households, and 7,199 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 13,211 housing units.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 27,227 people, 11,432 households, and 7,216 families in the county. The population density was . There were 12,397 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 95.3% white, 2.0% American Indian, 0.4% Asian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.6% from other races, and 1.3% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.6% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 54.3% were

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, 22.6% were Norwegian, 9.6% were Irish, 6.7% were English, and 3.3% were American. Of the 11,432 households, 30.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.9% were married couples living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 36.9% were non-families, and 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.93. The median age was 37.7 years. The median income for a household in the county was $43,275 and the median income for a family was $60,202. Males had a median income of $39,076 versus $26,945 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,781. About 8.9% of families and 12.7% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 13.7% of those under age 18 and 16.8% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

* Watertown (county seat)

Towns

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

Henry Henry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Henry (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters * Henry (surname) * Henry, a stage name of François-Louis Henry (1786–1855), French baritone Arts and entertainmen ...

* Kranzburg * South Shore * Wallace

Census-designated place

* Waverly

Unincorporated communities

* Appleby *

Grover Grover is a blue Muppet character on the PBS/HBO children's television show ''Sesame Street''. Self-described as lovable, cute, and furry, he is a blue monster who rarely uses contractions when he speaks or sings. Grover was originally perfo ...

* Kampeska * Rauville''Rauville SD'' Google Maps (accessed February 1, 2019)
/ref>

Townships

* Dexter * Eden * Elmira * Fuller * Germantown * Graceland * Henry * Kampeska * Kranzburg * Lake * Leola * Pelican * Phipps * Rauville * Richland * Sheridan * Waverly

Politics

Codington County voters have been reliably Republican for several decades. In no national election since 1976 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate.

References

{{authority control 1878 establishments in Dakota Territory Populated places established in 1878 Watertown, South Dakota micropolitan area