Kingsbury 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 of

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 5,187. 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 De Smet. The county was created in 1873, and was organized in 1880. It was named for brothers George W. and T. A. Kingsbury, descendants of the colonial English Kingsbury family in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, Massachusetts. They were prominently involved in the affairs of Dakota Territory and served as elected members of several Territorial Legislatures.

History

John C. Fremont John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

surveyed the area in 1838, naming lakes Preston and Albert.History of Southeastern Dakota, Its Settlement and Growth (Sioux City, Iowa: Western Publishing Company, 1881), 270–272. The 1851 Treaty of Mendota with the Santee Sioux and the 1858 Yankton Treaty ceded the region for American settlement.Robinson, Doane, History of South Dakota (B.F. Bowen & Co., 1904), 136. American presence was minimal until the Dakota Boom, with the notable exception of Jacob Hanson's settlement at Lake Albert in 1873. Settlement surged in 1879 with the Chicago & North Western Railroad’s extension to De Smet. Kingsbury County was created in 1873, named for territorial legislators George W. and T. A. Kingsbury and was organized on December 13, 1879 with De Smet as the county seat. Settlements at Lake Preston, Arlington, and Iroquois grew rapidly, driven by the railroad and fertile prairie lands. By 1880, the county’s population reached 1,234. Agriculture, particularly corn and wheat, anchored early economic growth, with towns like Lake Preston boasting mills and newspapers by 1881. De Smet gained fame as the setting for Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House series, including The Long Winter and Little Town on the Prairie, chronicling her family’s life there from 1879.

Geography

The terrain of Kingsbury County consists of low rolling hills. The central and east portions of the county hold numerous lakes and ponds. The land is largely devoted to agriculture. The terrain generally slopes to the southwest, and the highest point is near the midpoint of the east boundary line, at ASL. The county has a total area of , of which is land and (6.2%) is water.

Lakes

Source: * Cherry Lake * Mud Lake * Lake Albert * Lake Badger * Lake Henry * Lake Iroquois * Lake Preston * Lake Thisted * Lake Thompson * Lake Whitewood * Osceola Lake * Plum Lake * Spring Lake * Spirit Lake * Twin Lakes (partial)

Major highways

* U.S. Highway 14 * U.S. Highway 81 * South Dakota Highway 25

Adjacent counties

* Hamlin County – northeast * Brookings County – east * Lake County – southeast * Miner County – south * Sanborn County – southwest * Beadle County – west * Clark County – northwest

Protected areas

* Arnold State Public Shooting Area

Demographics

Industrialization of agriculture and the attraction of urban areas have contributed to the decline in population of Kingsbury County, similar to what has occurred in other Plains rural areas. In 2010 it had less than half the population of its peak in 1930, before the

Dust Bowl The Dust Bowl was a period of severe dust storms that greatly damaged the ecology and agriculture of the American and Canadian prairies during the 1930s. The phenomenon was caused by a combination of natural factors (severe drought) and hum ...

and the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 5,187 people, 2,191 households, and 1,398 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 2,615 housing units.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 5,148 people, 2,222 households, and 1,418 families in the county. The population density was . There were 2,720 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 98.1% white, 0.5% American Indian, 0.3% Asian, 0.1% black or African American, 0.3% from other races, and 0.8% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.4% of the population. In terms of European ancestry, 42.8% were German, 25.5% were Norwegian, 10.9% were Danish, 9.6% were Irish, 7.2% were English, and 3.5% were American. Of the 2,222 households, 24.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.6% were married couples living together, 5.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 36.2% were non-families, and 32.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.81. The median age was 47.1 years. The median income for a household in the county was $44,948 and the median income for a family was $56,925. Males had a median income of $35,585 versus $28,141 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,660. About 7.0% of families and 9.2% 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 8.8% of those under age 18 and 10.8% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

* De Smet (county seat) * Arlington (partial) *

Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...

(partial) * Lake Preston *

Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...

Towns

Badger Badgers are medium-sized short-legged omnivores in the superfamily Musteloidea. Badgers are a polyphyletic rather than a natural taxonomic grouping, being united by their squat bodies and adaptions for fossorial activity rather than by the ...

* Bancroft * Erwin * Hetland

Census-designated place

* Spring Lake Colony

Unincorporated communities

* Esmond *

Osceola Osceola (1804 – January 30, 1838, Vsse Yvholv in Muscogee language, Creek, also spelled Asi-yahola), named Billy Powell at birth, was an influential leader of the Seminole people in Florida. His mother was Muscogee, and his great-grandfa ...

Ghost town

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

Townships

Baker A baker is a tradesperson who baking, bakes and sometimes Sales, sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source. The place where a baker works is called a bakery. History Ancient histo ...

* De Smet *

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

* Esmond * Hartland *

* Le Sueur *

* Mathews * Spirit Lake * Spring Lake * Whitewood

Notable people

* Harvey Dunn - painter and professor of Fine Arts * Eugene Peter Knudsen - Minnesota state legislator and farmer * Theodore Schultz - Nobel prize winning economist *

Laura Ingalls Wilder Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder (February 7, 1867 – February 10, 1957) was an American writer, teacher, and journalist. She is best known as the author of the children's book series ''Little House on the Prairie'', published between 1932 and 1 ...

- author

Politics

Kingsbury County voters have been reliably Republican for decades. In only two national elections since 1932 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate (as of 2024).

References

External links

Official website