Wessington Springs, South Dakota facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Wessington Springs
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| Wessington Springs, South Dakota | |
Jerauld County Courthouse in Wessington Springs
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Location in Jerauld County and the state of South Dakota
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| Country | United States |
| State | South Dakota |
| County | Jerauld |
| Incorporated | 1893 |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1.80 sq mi (4.67 km2) |
| • Land | 1.80 sq mi (4.67 km2) |
| • Water | 0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,660 ft (510 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 771 |
| • Density | 428.10/sq mi (165.25/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code |
57382
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| Area code(s) | 605 |
| FIPS code | 46-70220 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1267632 |
Wessington Springs is a town in central Jerauld County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 956 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Jerauld County.
Contents
History
The Wessington Springs townsite was founded in 1880 and platted in 1882, early in the era of agricultural settlement in the region. The town's boom era began in 1903, when a branch line of the Milwaukee Road railroad was constructed into the town from the east.
The town was the home of Wessington Springs College, an institution of higher learning that existed from 1887 until 1968. There is a baseball field in town that hosts an amateur baseball team named the Wessington Springs Owls.
2014 tornado
On June 18, 2014 the town of Wessington Springs was hit by a tornado. At approximately 7:45 PM the tornado tore through the heart of Wessington Springs and 50+ homes were destroyed, and 77 people were left homeless. Many other buildings and properties were damaged significantly. No fatalities were reported but several injuries were sustained. The town's emergency sirens gave residents significant advance notice to the threat, allowing residents to flee to the town's fallout shelter avoiding injury and death. The town was on lockdown for several hours to prevent further injuries and blockages.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.77 square miles (4.58 km2), all land.
Climate
| Climate data for Wessington Springs, 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) | 67 (19) |
71 (22) |
86 (30) |
99 (37) |
101 (38) |
109 (43) |
111 (44) |
109 (43) |
105 (41) |
97 (36) |
84 (29) |
68 (20) |
111 (44) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 50.1 (10.1) |
55.6 (13.1) |
70.4 (21.3) |
81.6 (27.6) |
88.3 (31.3) |
93.2 (34.0) |
99.3 (37.4) |
97.3 (36.3) |
92.6 (33.7) |
83.6 (28.7) |
68.0 (20.0) |
52.7 (11.5) |
100.7 (38.2) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 25.4 (−3.7) |
30.2 (−1.0) |
42.3 (5.7) |
55.6 (13.1) |
67.8 (19.9) |
78.1 (25.6) |
84.4 (29.1) |
82.3 (27.9) |
74.2 (23.4) |
58.7 (14.8) |
43.1 (6.2) |
29.7 (−1.3) |
56.0 (13.3) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 16.2 (−8.8) |
20.4 (−6.4) |
31.9 (−0.1) |
44.4 (6.9) |
56.8 (13.8) |
67.2 (19.6) |
73.0 (22.8) |
70.8 (21.6) |
62.4 (16.9) |
47.7 (8.7) |
33.2 (0.7) |
20.9 (−6.2) |
45.4 (7.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 7.0 (−13.9) |
10.6 (−11.9) |
21.6 (−5.8) |
33.3 (0.7) |
45.9 (7.7) |
56.3 (13.5) |
61.6 (16.4) |
59.4 (15.2) |
50.6 (10.3) |
36.6 (2.6) |
23.4 (−4.8) |
12.1 (−11.1) |
34.9 (1.6) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | −13.1 (−25.1) |
−9.0 (−22.8) |
0.8 (−17.3) |
19.5 (−6.9) |
33.1 (0.6) |
46.4 (8.0) |
52.4 (11.3) |
50.8 (10.4) |
37.5 (3.1) |
21.6 (−5.8) |
6.7 (−14.1) |
−7.3 (−21.8) |
−16.8 (−27.1) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −36 (−38) |
−39 (−39) |
−20 (−29) |
1 (−17) |
17 (−8) |
27 (−3) |
43 (6) |
23 (−5) |
18 (−8) |
5 (−15) |
−23 (−31) |
−27 (−33) |
−39 (−39) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.64 (16) |
0.73 (19) |
1.29 (33) |
3.02 (77) |
3.67 (93) |
3.85 (98) |
3.09 (78) |
2.90 (74) |
2.73 (69) |
2.09 (53) |
0.93 (24) |
0.72 (18) |
25.66 (652) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 7.5 (19) |
7.3 (19) |
6.4 (16) |
8.2 (21) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
1.7 (4.3) |
5.3 (13) |
8.1 (21) |
44.5 (113) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 4.8 | 4.6 | 5.7 | 8.4 | 10.7 | 11.3 | 8.0 | 7.6 | 7.2 | 6.7 | 4.2 | 4.8 | 84.0 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 4.2 | 3.8 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.7 | 2.4 | 3.9 | 20.0 |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1900 | 320 | — | |
| 1910 | 1,093 | 241.6% | |
| 1920 | 1,618 | 48.0% | |
| 1930 | 1,401 | −13.4% | |
| 1940 | 1,352 | −3.5% | |
| 1950 | 1,453 | 7.5% | |
| 1960 | 1,488 | 2.4% | |
| 1970 | 1,300 | −12.6% | |
| 1980 | 1,203 | −7.5% | |
| 1990 | 1,083 | −10.0% | |
| 2000 | 1,011 | −6.6% | |
| 2010 | 956 | −5.4% | |
| 2020 | 771 | −19.4% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census 2018 Estimate |
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2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 956 people, 465 households, and 266 families residing in the city. The population density was 540.1 inhabitants per square mile (208.5/km2). There were 526 housing units at an average density of 297.2 per square mile (114.7/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 99.0% White, 0.3% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 0.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.6% of the population.
There were 465 households, of which 16.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.3% were married couples living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 42.8% were non-families. 38.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 26.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.97 and the average family size was 2.57.
The median age in the city was 57 years. 16.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 4.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 14.7% were from 25 to 44; 27.2% were from 45 to 64; and 37.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 43.4% male and 56.6% female.
Media
The area is served by the True Dakotan weekly newspaper.
Notable people
- Kyle Evans, country and western singer/songwriter
- Emma Louise Lowe - Musician, educator, former First Lady of American Samoa and former First Lady of Guam
- Robert Vessey, seventh Governor of South Dakota
See also
In Spanish: Wessington Springs (Dakota del Sur) para niños
