Bennett County, South Dakota
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Bennett 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 ...
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 3,381. 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
Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...
. Bennett County was removed from the Pine Ridge Reservation by an act of Congress in 1911, much of Bennett County however is still held in trust by the Reservation. To the east is the Rosebud Indian Reservation, where dwell the '' Sicangu Oyate'', also known the Upper Brulé Sioux Nation and the Rosebud Sioux Tribe (RST), a branch of the
Lakota people The Lakota (; or ) are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American people. Also known as the Teton Sioux (from ), they are one of the three prominent subcultures of the Sioux people, with the Eastern Dakota (Santee) and Western D ...
. The North American continental pole of inaccessibility is in Bennett County, located from the nearest coastline, between Allen and Kyle ( Oglala Lakota County) at . Historically, ranching and dry land farming have been the chief agricultural pursuits possible given climate and soil conditions.


History

This land has for centuries been the traditional territory of the
Oglala Lakota The Oglala (pronounced , meaning 'to scatter one's own' in Lakota language, Lakota) are one of the seven subtribes of the Lakota people who, along with the Dakota people, Dakota, make up the Sioux, Očhéthi Šakówiŋ (Seven Council Fires). A ...
, also known as the
Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin ( ; Dakota/ Lakota: ) are groups of Native American tribes and First Nations people from the Great Plains of North America. The Sioux have two major linguistic divisions: the Dakota and Lakota peoples (translati ...
; it has been part of their legally defined territory since the treaty of 1851 and has remained within its legal boundaries through various other Treaties and Acts that reduced their land base to the current boundaries of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation when the reservation was created by the Act of March 2, 1889 (25 Stat. 888). Despite its reservation status, most of the county was opened for settlement by the Act of May 27, 1910, where the US Congress "authorized and directed the Secretary of Interior to sell and dispose of all that portion of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, in the State of South Dakota, lying and being in Bennett County". Open settlement was ended by a Secretarial Order of June 10, 1936, which restored "to tribal ownership of all lands which are now, or may hereafter be, classified as undisposed-of surplus opened lands of the Pine Ridge Reservation...." The allotment process left the county's landownership a "
checkerboard A checkerboard (American English) or chequerboard (British English) is a game board of check (pattern), checkered pattern on which checkers (also known as English draughts) is played. Most commonly, it consists of 64 squares (8×8) of alternating ...
" mixture of Indian trust lands and state and private lands. The county was created in 1909, with land partitioned from Fall River County. On April 27, 1912, the county's first board of commissioners was elected. In November 1912, residents chose the town of
Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...
as the county seat.


Dispute Over Reservation Status

A 1975 decision of the Eighth Circuit Court decided that Bennett County was not to be considered part of the Pine Ridge Reservation. However, the federal government participated in that lawsuit only as amicus, and did not consider itself bound by that decision because it did not participate in the litigation. The United States was a party in United States v. Bennett County, 394 F.2d 8 (8th Cir. 1968), in which the State of South Dakota had to obtain permission from the Department of the Interior in order to fix roads or condemn property in Bennett County, consistent with the property's reservation status. Putnam v. United States 248 F.2d 292 (8th Cir. 1957) ruled that "Bennett County is within the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation created by the Act of Congress of March 2, 1889, 25 Stat. 888." The Federal Government recognizes Bennett County as being entirely within the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. In 2004, in State of South Dakota v. Acting Great Plains Regional Director, Bureau of Indian Affairs Docket Number IBIA3-24-A the State of South Dakota argued against an Oglala Sioux Tribal member's application to the BIA to return a 10-acre tract of land in Bennett County into Federal Trust arguing it was outside of the Boundary of the Pine Ridge Reservation. The judge ruled in favor of the applicant and Bureau of Indian Affairs' affirming that Bennett County is indeed within the boundaries of the Reservation.


Native/Non-Native Relations

Both Lakota and European Americans have worked during recent decades to improve relations between the groups, which residents commonly refer to as full-bloods, mixed-bloods (usually both identified as Native American) and whites. Intermarriage continues between the groups and cooperation has been increasing. In the mid-1990s, residents co-sponsored a concurrent
powwow A powwow (also pow wow or pow-wow) is a gathering with dances held by many Native Americans in the United States, Native American and First Nations in Canada, First Nations communities. Inaugurated in 1923, powwows today are an opportunity fo ...
and
rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working vaqu ...
in the county. By the 1990s, people of Native American descent comprised the majority of county residents. In the 2000 Census, 5.7% of the people in Bennett County identified as
mixed-race The term multiracial people refers to people who are mixed with two or more races and the term multi-ethnic people refers to people who are of more than one ethnicities. A variety of terms have been used both historically and presently for mul ...
Native American-European American (more Lakota socially identify as having mixed-race ancestry). This is the highest percentage of any county within US boundaries, except northeastern Oklahoma and White Earth Indian Reservation in northwestern Minnesota. Bennett County was in national news in 2014 when the township of Swett was put up for sale. The township's two residents listed six acres and all property in the township for sale for nearly $400,000. By 2016 the price had been reduced to $250,000, still with no takers.


Geography

Bennett County lies on the south line of South Dakota. Its south boundary line abuts the north boundary line of the state of
Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...
. The Little White River flows eastward through the lower central part of the county. The highest point on the county's terrain is the SW corner, at ASL. Its lowest point is along the north boundary line, at ASL. The terrain consists of rolling hills cut with drainage gullies, sloping to the east-northeast. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.5%) is water. It is the 23rd largest county in South Dakota by total area. The eastern portion of South Dakota's counties (48 of 66) observe Central Time; the western counties (18 of 66) observe
Mountain Time The Mountain Time Zone of North America keeps time by subtracting seven hours from Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) when standard time ( UTC−07:00) is in effect, and by subtracting six hours during daylight saving time ( UTC−06:00). The clo ...
. Bennett County is the easternmost of the SD counties to observe Mountain Time.


Major highways

* U.S. Highway 18 * South Dakota Highway 73


Adjacent counties

* Jackson County - north * Mellette County – northeast (boundary of Central Time) * Todd County - east (boundary of Central Time) * Cherry County, Nebraska - south (eastern part of county observes Central Time) * Sheridan County, Nebraska – southwest * Oglala Lakota County - west


Protected areas

* Lacreek National Wildlife Refuge * Little White River Recreation Area * Little White River State Game Production Area * Todd State Game Production Area


Demographics

As of the third quarter of 2024, the median home value in Bennett County was $143,900. As of the 2023
American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...
, there are 1,024 estimated households in Bennett County with an average of 3.23 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $44,569. Approximately 27.7% of the county's population lives at or 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 ...
. Bennett County has an estimated 51.1% employment rate, with 20.3% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 86.9% holding a high school diploma. The top five reported ancestries (people were allowed to report up to two ancestries, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (88.3%), Spanish (0.1%), Indo-European (0.0%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.9%), and Other (10.7%). The median age in the county was 28.8 years. Bennett County, South Dakota – racial and ethnic composition


2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 3,381 people, 1,085 households, and 737 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 1,177 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 29.9%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.21%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, , 0.21% Asian, 0.00%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.12% from some other races and 7.66% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.57% of the population.


2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 3,431 people, 1,090 households, and 766 families in the county. The population density was . There were 1,263 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 33.72%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.12%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, , 0.38% Asian, 0.09%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.20% from some other races and 4.02% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.95% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 20.9% 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 ...
, 5.1% were Swedish, and 1.9% were American. Of the 1,090 households, 42.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.3% were married couples living together, 20.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.7% were non-families, and 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 3.11 and the average family size was 3.73. The median age was 28.7 years. The median income for a household in the county was $32,841 and the median income for a family was $38,487. Males had a median income of $40,158 versus $31,406 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,153. About 24.3% of families and 32.1% 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 ...
, including 42.3% of those under age 18 and 15.4% of those age 65 or over.


Communities


Cities

*
Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...
(county seat)


Census-designated places

* Allen


Unincorporated communities

* Blackpipe * Harrington * Tuthill * Vetal


Former communities

* Swett


Politics

Bennett is a solidly Republican county in Presidential elections. It has not been carried by a Democratic Presidential nominee since
Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...
’s landslide of 1964, although vis-à-vis most West River counties it has a sizeable Democratic vote and a substantial Native American population. Both
John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...
in 2004 and
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
in 2008 came within five percentage points of carrying the county.


Education

The Bennett County School District serves all of Bennett County. The
Bureau of Indian Education The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) is a division of the U.S. Department of the Interior under the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs that directs and manages education functions. Formerly known as the Office of Indian Education Programs ...
(BIE) is affiliated with the American Horse School, a
K-8 school K8 or K-8 may refer to: * K-8 (Kansas highway), two highways in Kansas, one in northern Kansas, one in southern Kansas * K-8 school, a type of school that includes kindergarten and grades one through eight * K8 telephone box, designed by Bruce M ...
in Allen operated by a tribal group.


See also

* National Register of Historic Places listing


References

{{Coord, 43.18, -101.66, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-SD_source:UScensus1990 1912 establishments in South Dakota Populated places established in 1912