De Smet, South Dakota facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
De Smet, South Dakota
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Downtown De Smet, September 2010
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Location in Kingsbury County and the state of South Dakota
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| Country | United States |
| State | South Dakota |
| County | Kingsbury |
| Founded | 1880 |
| Incorporated | 1883 |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1.16 sq mi (3.00 km2) |
| • Land | 1.16 sq mi (3.00 km2) |
| • Water | 0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,719 ft (524 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 1,056 |
| • Density | 911.92/sq mi (351.97/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| ZIP Code |
57231
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| Area code(s) | 605 |
| FIPS code | 46-16260 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1267353 |
De Smet is a small city in South Dakota, United States. It is the main town in Kingsbury County. In 2020, about 1,056 people lived there. De Smet is famous for being the home of the Ingalls family, whose stories were told in the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder.
Contents
History of De Smet
De Smet is located in the eastern part of South Dakota. It was first planned out by European Americans in 1880. The city was named after a Belgian missionary named Pierre-Jean De Smet. He was a Jesuit priest who worked with Native Americans in the 1800s.
In the mid-1880s, the area faced tough times. There were big prairie fires and crops failed because of a three-year drought. Many settlers had to move their farms to other places. By 1917, De Smet became a "cow town." This meant many trains passed through, carrying cattle to sell at markets.
The Charles Ingalls family, originally from Wisconsin, moved to De Smet in 1879. Their adventures and pioneer life were written about by their daughter, Laura Ingalls Wilder. Her famous Little House books tell stories from their time in Minnesota, Kansas, Dakota Territory, and Iowa.
Laura Ingalls and her husband Almanzo Wilder first settled near De Smet. Almanzo's brother, Royal, also lived there. Laura's older sister, Eliza Jane, even claimed her own land. She was one of the first women to do this on her own. The Wilders lived on a farm outside De Smet. Royal also owned a feed store in town. The Ingalls family also had a farm outside of town. In winter, they often stayed in De Smet, especially when the girls were in school.
After building their home and starting a farm, Charles Ingalls helped create the First Congregational Church of De Smet. He also helped build the church building. The first church service was held there on August 30, 1882. Charles, his wife Caroline, and their oldest daughter Mary were among the first eight members of the church.
Geography and Climate
De Smet covers about 1.16 square miles (3.00 square kilometers) of land. It has no large bodies of water.
Weather in De Smet
De Smet has a climate with warm summers and very cold winters.
| Climate data for De Smet, South Dakota (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1893−present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 65 (18) |
68 (20) |
88 (31) |
96 (36) |
105 (41) |
110 (43) |
111 (44) |
108 (42) |
105 (41) |
93 (34) |
80 (27) |
64 (18) |
111 (44) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 23.2 (−4.9) |
28.5 (−1.9) |
40.6 (4.8) |
55.0 (12.8) |
67.1 (19.5) |
76.9 (24.9) |
81.5 (27.5) |
79.1 (26.2) |
71.6 (22.0) |
56.9 (13.8) |
40.7 (4.8) |
27.7 (−2.4) |
54.1 (12.3) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 14.1 (−9.9) |
18.9 (−7.3) |
30.7 (−0.7) |
44.1 (6.7) |
56.3 (13.5) |
66.5 (19.2) |
71.2 (21.8) |
69.0 (20.6) |
60.9 (16.1) |
46.4 (8.0) |
31.4 (−0.3) |
19.0 (−7.2) |
44.0 (6.7) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 4.9 (−15.1) |
9.2 (−12.7) |
20.9 (−6.2) |
33.2 (0.7) |
45.4 (7.4) |
56.1 (13.4) |
61.0 (16.1) |
58.9 (14.9) |
50.1 (10.1) |
35.9 (2.2) |
22.0 (−5.6) |
10.3 (−12.1) |
34.0 (1.1) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −44 (−42) |
−40 (−40) |
−26 (−32) |
−3 (−19) |
11 (−12) |
27 (−3) |
32 (0) |
30 (−1) |
14 (−10) |
−8 (−22) |
−18 (−28) |
−34 (−37) |
−44 (−42) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.60 (15) |
0.88 (22) |
1.36 (35) |
2.30 (58) |
3.32 (84) |
4.06 (103) |
3.88 (99) |
3.07 (78) |
2.78 (71) |
1.98 (50) |
0.96 (24) |
0.74 (19) |
25.93 (659) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 6.2 (16) |
9.2 (23) |
6.9 (18) |
4.8 (12) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
1.6 (4.1) |
5.4 (14) |
7.3 (19) |
41.4 (105) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 3.5 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 6.9 | 9.7 | 9.8 | 8.2 | 7.1 | 6.4 | 5.8 | 3.8 | 4.0 | 74.4 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 3.9 | 3.7 | 3.0 | 1.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.8 | 2.4 | 4.2 | 19.6 |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
Population of De Smet
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1880 | 116 | — | |
| 1890 | 541 | 366.4% | |
| 1900 | 749 | 38.4% | |
| 1910 | 1,063 | 41.9% | |
| 1920 | 1,035 | −2.6% | |
| 1930 | 1,017 | −1.7% | |
| 1940 | 1,016 | −0.1% | |
| 1950 | 1,180 | 16.1% | |
| 1960 | 1,324 | 12.2% | |
| 1970 | 1,336 | 0.9% | |
| 1980 | 1,237 | −7.4% | |
| 1990 | 1,172 | −5.3% | |
| 2000 | 1,164 | −0.7% | |
| 2010 | 1,089 | −6.4% | |
| 2020 | 1,056 | −3.0% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census 2018 Estimate |
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In 2010, there were 1,089 people living in De Smet. There were 478 households, and 24.3% of them had children under 18. About 22% of the people were under 18 years old. Also, 29.9% were 65 or older. The average age in De Smet was 49.6 years.
Getting Around De Smet
- De Smet is located where two main roads meet: U.S. Route 14 (also called 5th Street) and South Dakota Highway 25 (Poinsett Avenue).
- The Wilder Field airport is about 3 miles (5 km) north of the town. It is owned by the city.
- A freight train line, the Rapid City, Pierre and Eastern Railroad, also passes through De Smet. It carries goods between Tracy, Minnesota, and Rapid City.
Famous People from De Smet
De Smet is well-known because it was the final home of author Laura Ingalls Wilder and her family. Laura's daughter, Rose Wilder Lane, who was also an author and activist, was born here.
Laura's father, Charles Ingalls, moved to De Smet in 1879 with his wife, Caroline, and their daughters Mary, Laura, Carrie, and Grace. After living in a few different places, Charles built their permanent home. This house became famous through Laura's books as "The House That Pa Built." Construction on this house started in 1887 and finished in 1889.
Charles Ingalls also owned and ran the Ingalls Store from 1880 to 1881. It was a small general store that sold many different items for homes. The original store building is no longer there. However, a marker in downtown De Smet shows where it used to be. The site is now home to a former bank building.
Other notable people from De Smet include:
- Walter Breuning, who lived to be very old (a supercentenarian).
- Artist-illustrator Harvey Dunn, who was born near De Smet in 1884. He later painted scenes of pioneer life.
- Harry George Armstrong, a major general in the United States Air Force. He was a doctor and airman, born in De Smet in 1899.
See also
In Spanish: De Smet (Dakota del Sur) para niños
