Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Oglala Lakota County
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Indian Health Service Hospital in Pine Ridge on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, November 2011
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Location within the U.S. state of South Dakota
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 South Dakota's location within the U.S. |
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| Country |  United States |
| State |  South Dakota |
| Founded | 1875 |
| Named for | Oglala Lakota people |
| Seat | None (de jure) Hot Springs (de facto) |
| Largest community | Pine Ridge |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2,097 sq mi (5,430 km2) |
| • Land | 2,094 sq mi (5,420 km2) |
| • Water | 2.8 sq mi (7 km2) 0.1% |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 13,672 |
| • Estimate
(2023)
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13,434  |
| • Density | 6.5198/sq mi (2.5173/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−7 (Mountain) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−6 (MDT) |
| Congressional district | At-large |
| Hot Springs in neighboring Fall River County serves as administrative center for county | |
Oglala Lakota County (known as Shannon County until May 2015) is a county in southwestern South Dakota, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,672. Oglala Lakota County does not have a functioning county seat; Hot Springs in neighboring Fall River County serves as its administrative center. The county was created as a part of the Dakota Territory in 1875, although it remains unorganized. Its largest community is Pine Ridge.
The county lies entirely within the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and contains part of Badlands National Park. It is one of five South Dakota counties entirely on an Indian reservation.
The county is named after the Oglala Lakota, a band of the Lakota people. Many of the county's inhabitants are members of this sub-tribe.
Reservation poverty affects the county, which is the poorest county in the United States (only 28 county-equivalents in the U.S. territories are poorer). Oglala Lakota County is the only dry county in South Dakota.
The newspaper for Oglala Lakota County is The Lakota Country Times.
Contents
History
The Wounded Knee Massacre occurred in Oglala Lakota County in 1890.
The county was originally named for Peter C. Shannon, Chief Justice of the Dakota Territory Supreme Court. Until 1982, Shannon County and Washabaugh County, South Dakota, were the last unorganized counties in the United States. Although it was organized and received a home rule charter that year, the county, as noted above, contracts with Fall River County for its Auditor, Treasurer, and Registrar of Deeds.
On November 4, 2014, voters in the county voted by a margin of 2,161 to 526 to rename Shannon County to Oglala Lakota County. The name change was ratified by the state legislature on March 5, 2015. May 1, 2015 was proclaimed by the governor as the official day for renaming the county.
Geography
Oglala Lakota County lies on the south side of South Dakota. Its south boundary line abuts the north boundary line of the state of Nebraska. The Cheyenne River flows northeastward along the northwest boundary of Oglala Lakota County. The White River flows northeastward through the central part of the county. The county terrain is composed of semi-arid rolling hills spotted with small mountain crests, oriented NE-SW. The terrain slopes to the northeast; its highest point is on the south boundary line, close to the SW corner, at 3,619 ft (1,103 m) ASL. The county has a total area of 2,097 square miles (5,430 km2), of which 2,094 square miles (5,420 km2) is land and 2.8 square miles (7.3 km2) (0.1%) is water.
The county includes the headwaters of the Little White River.
Major highways
U.S. Highway 18
South Dakota Highway 40
South Dakota Highway 391
South Dakota Highway 407
Adjacent counties
- Pennington County - north
- Jackson County - northeast
- Bennett County - east
- Sheridan County, Nebraska - south
- Dawes County, Nebraska - southwest
- Fall River County - west
- Custer County - northwest
National protected area
- Badlands National Park (part)
Lakes
- Alkali Lake
- Denby Lake
- Lee Lake
- Oglala Lake
- Two Lance Lake
- Wakpamani Lake
- White Clay Lake
Source:
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1920 | 2,003 | — | |
| 1930 | 4,058 | 102.6% | |
| 1940 | 5,366 | 32.2% | |
| 1950 | 5,669 | 5.6% | |
| 1960 | 6,000 | 5.8% | |
| 1970 | 8,198 | 36.6% | |
| 1980 | 11,323 | 38.1% | |
| 1990 | 9,902 | −12.5% | |
| 2000 | 12,466 | 25.9% | |
| 2010 | 13,586 | 9.0% | |
| 2020 | 13,672 | 0.6% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 13,434 | −1.1% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010-2020 |
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2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 13,672 people, 3,208 households, and 2,488 families residing in the county. The population density was 6.5 inhabitants per square mile (2.5/km2). There were 3,454 housing units.
Communities
Town
Census-designated places
Unincorporated communities
Townships
There are no townships. The county is divided into two areas of unorganized territory: East Oglala Lakota and West Oglala Lakota (formerly East Shannon and West Shannon, respectively).
See also
In Spanish: Condado de Shannon (Dakota del Sur) para niños
