Kennebec is a town in and

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

Lyman County Lyman County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,718. Its county seat is Kennebec. Lyman County was created by the Dakota Territorial Legislature on January 8, 1873, but was not o ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. 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 Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

, United States. The population was 281 at the 2020 census.

History

Kennebec was laid out in 1905. Kennebec has served as county seat of Lyman County since 1922. The courthouse dates from 1925.

Transportation

The highways that run in or near Kennebec are east-west

Interstate 90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West, Great Plains, Midwest, and ...

(I‑90) and South Dakota Highway 273 (SD 273), which is a north-south highway. The one main transportation for Kennebec is by

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

(I‑90 and SD 273), as there is no

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

, municipal or commercial. There are no trains for passengers but the Ringneck & Western Railroad provides freight service to the Wheat Growers' Kennebec Elevator.

Geography

Kennebec is located at (43.904284, -99.862801). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the town has a total area of , all land. Kennebec has been assigned the ZIP code 57544 and the FIPS place code 33580. Kennebec is located in section of agricultural use area in Kennebec Township. Medicine Creek is about one eighth of a mile south of Kennebec. Kennebec is located about west-northwest of Chamberlain, east of Murdo, west of

Mitchell Mitchell may refer to: People *Mitchell (surname) *Mitchell (given name) Places Australia * Mitchell, Australian Capital Territory, a light-industrial estate * Mitchell, New South Wales, a suburb of Bathurst * Mitchell, Northern Territo ...

, and east of

Rapid City Rapid City ( lkt, link=no, Mni Lúzahaŋ Otȟúŋwahe; "Swift Water City") is the second most populous city in South Dakota and the county seat of Pennington County. Named after Rapid Creek, where the settlement developed, it is in western So ...

Climate

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2010, there were 240 people, 112 households, and 69 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was . There were 146 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 90.0%

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, 6.7% Native American, and 3.3% from two or more races. There were 112 households, of which 23.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 38.4% were non-families. 33.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.72. The median age in the town was 45.6 years. 22.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 20.8% were from 25 to 44; 25.4% were from 45 to 64; and 26.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 51.7% male and 48.3% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 286 people, 120 households, and 80 families residing in the town. The

was 336.9 people per square mile (129.9/km²). There were 152 housing units at an average density of 179.1 per square mile (69.0/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 88.46%

, 6.64% Native American, 1.05%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, and 3.85% from two or more races.

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Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 0.70% of the population. There were 120 households, out of which 24.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were

living together, 4.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.3% were non-families. 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.01. In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.8% under the age of 18, 4.2% from 18 to 24, 25.2% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 20.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 110.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.8 males. The median income for a household in the town was $36,875, and the median income for a family was $50,000. Males had a median income of $26,161 versus $17,813 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the town was $20,815. About 3.9% of families and 8.1% 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 t ...

, including 6.1% of those under the age of eighteen and 5.2% of those 65 or over.

Notable people

James Abdnor Ellis James Abdnor (February 13, 1923 – May 16, 2012) was an American politician who served as a member of the United States Senate from South Dakota. He was also the 15th Administrator of the Small Business Administration under presidents Rona ...

, South Dakota politician who was United States Senator from 1981 to 1987 and was administrator of the Small Business Administration from 1987 to 1989 *

James Schaefer James George Schaefer (August 30, 1938 – May 29, 2018) was an American politician and a Republican member of the South Dakota House of Representatives. Schaefer was first elected to the state House from District 21 in 2010. Redistricting i ...

, South Dakota state legislator and rancher *

Merrill Q. Sharpe Merrell Quentin Sharpe (January 11, 1888 – January 22, 1962) was an American politician from Kennebec, South Dakota. Affiliated with the Republican Party, Sharpe was the attorney general of South Dakota from 1929 through 1933, and governor of So ...

, Governor of South Dakota

References

External links

{{Authority control Towns in Lyman County, South Dakota Towns in South Dakota County seats in South Dakota Populated places established in 1905 1905 establishments in South Dakota