South Dakota Census

Federal
Many of the federal census records you'll want to use are found at the Family History Library and the National Archives and other federal and state archives. The United States Research Outline provides more detailed information about these records.

The Family History Library has the U.S. federal censuses for South Dakota for 1900, 1910, and 1920. The 1890 census has been destroyed. The 1890 veterans schedule and index are available at the Family History Library and at the National Archives.

A statewide soundex (phonetic) index is available on microfilm for the 1900 and 1920 censuses. The schedules and indexes are also available at the South Dakota State Historical Society.

For more information on each of the Federal Censuses, you can consult the following article: http://home.att.net/~wee-monster/census.html

South Dakota was included in the 1836 Wisconsin, the 1840 Iowa, the 1850 Minnesota (Pembina District), and the 1860, 1870, and 1880 Dakota territorial censuses.

Indexes to the federal censuses of the Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, and Dakota territories have been published in book and fiche format for 1836, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, and 1880. A partial soundex (phonetic) index is also available on microfilm for the 1880 census of Dakota Territory.

In addition to the federal censuses, territorial and state censuses exist for 1885 (Dakota territory), 1895, 1905, 1915, 1925, 1935, and 1945. Most of the 1895 census was destroyed. Unique information found in the 1905 to 1945 censuses includes ethnic background, education, maiden name, church affiliation, and military service.

The territorial and state censuses are at the South Dakota State Historical Society. The 1885 and 1895 censuses are also available at the Family History Library. The 1885 census has been indexed.

See the section on "Native Races" for information on tribal census reports.

Tips for Searching the Census

 * Shirley Hornbeck's "Some Do's and Dont's with Census Records".
 * Shirley Hornbeck's "This and That Genealogy Tips on the Census".
 * Be sure to check the Federal Mortality Schedules and some of the other schedules. 

Online Resources

 * General Databases:
 * Census Finder: South Dakota (This website is awesome in that it lists a lot of censuses for many of the counties that many have not heard of before. There are also many other records available that are linked through this website. Many of these can also be helpful in your research.)
 * Census Online (Click on a county in South Dakota and various censuses will be brought up which are applicable to that county. For example, in Clark County, it brings up from the 1900 and 1910 Federal Census the Germans from Russia.) * National Archives: Non-Population Censuses for South Dakota
 * Specific Censuses: 
 * 1860 Census: Dakota Territory (Interactive Search)
 * 1860 Federal Census Images: South Dakota
 * 1860 Census: SD (Dakota Territory, then) : (This file contains the 1860 census for those enumeration districts which would become South Dakota eventually. They are part of Minnesota Territory in 1860. This index was created by Judy Huber, huberj@btigate.com, from the original census on microfilm.) 
 * 1880 Federal Census (Search on FamilySearch.org)
 * 1880 Federal Census (Search and View the Images for Free on Ancestry.com)
 * 1883 Pensioners Census
 * 1885 Dakota Territory Census

There are are some sites that offer access to all of the US Federal Censuses, such as HeritageQuestOnline and Ancestry.com, but access to these records requires a fee. As is listed above, there are some earlier censuses listed above that are free to access. Also, some of the other Federal Censuses can be accessed for free by visiting a Family History Center in your area. The Family Search Indexing Project that is in progress now will eventually give access to these census records for free.