Lake Preston is a city in

Kingsbury County Kingsbury County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,187. Its county seat is De Smet. The county was created in 1873, and was organized in 1880. It was named for brothers George W. and T. ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who comprise a large porti ...

, United States. The population was 599 at the 2010 census.

History

A post office called Preston was established in 1879, and the name was changed to Lake Preston in 1882. The town site was

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Surveys to show the distance and bea ...

ted in 1881. It was located in the

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of N ...

at the time. The city took its name from nearby Lake Preston.

Geography

Lake Preston is located at (44.362848, -97.374872). 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 t ...

, the city has a total area of , all land. Lake Preston has been assigned the ZIP code 57249 and the

FIPS place code The Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) of the United States are a set of publicly announced standards that the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed for use in computer systems of non-military, American ...

35500.

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 in ...

of 2010, there were 599 people, 295 households, and 162 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical ...

was . There were 346 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.3%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 0.3% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.5% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 0.7% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

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 1.2% of the population. There were 295 households, of which 20.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% were married couples living together, 5.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 2.4% had a male householder with no wife present, and 45.1% were non-families. 40.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.03 and the average family size was 2.77. The median age in the city was 47.6 years. 20.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 5.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 17.8% were from 25 to 44; 34.5% were from 45 to 64; and 21.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 50.9% male and 49.1% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 737 people, 317 households, and 183 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 355 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.91%

, 0.81% Native American, and 0.27% from two or more races.

of any race were 0.95% of the population. There were 317 households, out of which 26.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.2% were married couples living together, 5.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.0% were non-families. 38.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 23.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.15 and the average family size was 2.88. In the city, the population was spread out, with 22.7% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 19.0% from 45 to 64, and 29.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $29,125, and the median income for a family was $42,143. Males had a median income of $29,750 versus $18,750 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 city was $16,426. About 6.5% 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 6.6% of those under age 18 and 15.0% of those age 65 or over.

In the media

Lake Preston is mentioned in the historical novel '' The Long Winter'' by American novelist

Laura Ingalls Wilder Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder (February 7, 1867 – February 10, 1957) was an American writer, mostly known for the '' Little House on the Prairie'' series of children's books, published between 1932 and 1943, which were based on her childhood ...

. In the very severe winter of 1880–1881, a neighbor of Ingalls, David Gilbert, volunteered to make the very risky run from

De Smet, South Dakota De Smet is a city in and the county seat of Kingsbury County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 1,089 at the 2010 census. History Located in the area of South Dakota known as "East River" (east of the Missouri River, which diagona ...

to Lake Preston (called, at that time, simply "Preston,

") to take outgoing mail and bring back the incoming mail. Though the distance was only about 12 miles, the trip was dangerous because of blizzards coming up very quickly throughout that winter, and a person caught on the prairie during a blizzard had almost no chance of survival.

Notable people

Ora McMurry,

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) The Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) is a military decoration awarded to ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Robert Wood,

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...

References

{{Authority control Cities in South Dakota Cities in Kingsbury County, South Dakota 1879 establishments in Dakota Territory