# Douglas County, South Dakota

Douglas County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,835. Its county seat is Armour. The county was established in 1873 and organized in 1882. It is named for Stephen Douglas, Illinois political figure.

## Geography

The terrain of Douglas County consists of rolling hills, mostly dedicated to agriculture. The county's highest point is on its southwestern boundary, toward the SW corner, at 1,677 ft (511 m) ASL. The terrain slopes to the east. The county has a total area of 434 square miles (1,120 km$^2$), of which 432 square miles (1,120 km$^2$) is land and 1.9 square miles (4.9 km$^2$) (0.4%) is water. It is the second-smallest county in South Dakota by area.

### Major highways

* U.S. Highway 18
* U.S. Highway 281
* South Dakota Highway 44
* South Dakota Highway 50

### Adjacent counties

* Aurora County - north
* Davison County - northeast
* Hutchinson County - east
* Charles Mix County - southwest

### Lakes

* Corsica Lake

## Demographics
### 2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 2,835 people, 1,134 households, and 779 families residing in the county. The population density was 6.6 inhabitants per square mile (2.5/km$^2$). There were 1,341 housing units.

### 2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 3,002 people, 1,210 households, and 819 families in the county. The population density was 7.0 inhabitants per square mile (2.7/km$^2$). There were 1,439 housing units at an average density of 3.3 units per square mile (1.3 units/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the county was 96.6% white, 1.8% American Indian, 0.4% black or African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.3% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.8% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 34.8% were Dutch, 33.9% were German, 5.6% were Norwegian, 5.5% were Irish, 5.4% were Russian, and 5.1% were American.
Of the 1,210 households, 25.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.8% were married couples living together, 4.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.3% were non-families, and 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.89. The median age was 48.3 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $42,794 and the median income for a family was $53,750. Males had a median income of $36,689 versus $24,883 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,200. About 7.2% of families and 9.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.9% of those under age 18 and 15.2% of those age 65 or over.

## Communities
### Cities

* Armour (county seat)
* Corsica
* Delmont

### Census-designated places

* Greenwood Colony
* Harrison
* New Holland

### Unincorporated community

* Joubert

### Townships

* Belmont
* Chester
* Clark
* East Choleau
* Garfield
* Grandview
* Holland
* Independence
* Iowa
* Joubert
* Lincoln
* Valley
* Walnut Grove
* Washington

### Ghost towns

* Douglas City
* Flensburg
* Grand View
* Huston
* Maitland

## Politics

Douglas County voters have long been reliably Republican. In only two national elections since 1892 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate.
United States presidential election results for Douglas County, South Dakota :
| Year | Republican | Republican | Democratic | Democratic | Third party(ies) | Third party(ies) |
| Year | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| 2024 | 1,419 | 85.59% | 219 | 13.21% | 20 | 1.21% |
| 2020 | 1,468 | 86.00% | 216 | 12.65% | 23 | 1.35% |
| 2016 | 1,338 | 83.36% | 214 | 13.33% | 53 | 3.30% |
| 2012 | 1,334 | 78.93% | 332 | 19.64% | 24 | 1.42% |
| 2008 | 1,293 | 73.63% | 424 | 24.15% | 39 | 2.22% |
| 2004 | 1,596 | 79.32% | 393 | 19.53% | 23 | 1.14% |
| 2000 | 1,311 | 76.71% | 363 | 21.24% | 35 | 2.05% |
| 1996 | 1,210 | 63.38% | 524 | 27.45% | 175 | 9.17% |
| 1992 | 1,175 | 56.85% | 481 | 23.27% | 411 | 19.88% |
| 1988 | 1,438 | 67.23% | 695 | 32.49% | 6 | 0.28% |
| 1984 | 1,713 | 76.00% | 536 | 23.78% | 5 | 0.22% |
| 1980 | 1,855 | 75.31% | 508 | 20.63% | 100 | 4.06% |
| 1976 | 1,315 | 57.30% | 975 | 42.48% | 5 | 0.22% |
| 1972 | 1,434 | 61.68% | 887 | 38.15% | 4 | 0.17% |
| 1968 | 1,613 | 70.68% | 592 | 25.94% | 77 | 3.37% |
| 1964 | 1,189 | 50.86% | 1,149 | 49.14% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 2,002 | 78.73% | 541 | 21.27% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 1,713 | 67.81% | 813 | 32.19% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1952 | 2,103 | 79.93% | 528 | 20.07% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 1,301 | 63.71% | 736 | 36.04% | 5 | 0.24% |
| 1944 | 1,483 | 67.35% | 719 | 32.65% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940 | 1,977 | 65.53% | 1,040 | 34.47% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1936 | 1,418 | 44.75% | 1,680 | 53.01% | 71 | 2.24% |
| 1932 | 1,045 | 34.08% | 2,005 | 65.39% | 16 | 0.52% |
| 1928 | 1,949 | 68.68% | 879 | 30.97% | 10 | 0.35% |
| 1924 | 1,125 | 50.25% | 317 | 14.16% | 797 | 35.60% |
| 1920 | 1,247 | 63.49% | 386 | 19.65% | 331 | 16.85% |
| 1916 | 815 | 57.48% | 597 | 42.10% | 6 | 0.42% |
| 1912 | 0 | 0.00% | 714 | 47.41% | 792 | 52.59% |
| 1908 | 836 | 55.99% | 647 | 43.34% | 10 | 0.67% |
| 1904 | 859 | 61.89% | 499 | 35.95% | 30 | 2.16% |
| 1900 | 649 | 52.85% | 567 | 46.17% | 12 | 0.98% |
| 1896 | 533 | 58.06% | 380 | 41.39% | 5 | 0.54% |
| 1892 | 541 | 50.85% | 109 | 10.24% | 414 | 38.91% |