Hanson County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,461. Its county seat is Alexandria. The county was founded in 1871 and organized in 1873. It was named for Joseph R. Hanson, clerk of the first legislature. Hanson County is part of the Mitchell, SD Micropolitan Statistical Area. The county is somewhat unique among those in the United States in that there are no officially registered airports within the county borders.

Geography

The terrain of Hanson County consists of low rolling hills; its area is mostly devoted to agriculture. The James River flows southeastward through the lower western part of the county. The terrain slopes toward the river basin on both sides, and generally gently slopes to the south. Hanson county has a total area of 435.3 sqmi, of which 434.5 sqmi is land and 0.9 sqmi (0.2%) is water. It is the third-smallest county in South Dakota by area.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 3,461 people, 1,146 households, and 855 families residing in the county. The population density was 8.0 PD/sqmi. There were 1,279 housing units.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 3,331 people, 1,045 households, and 793 families in the county. The population density was 7.7 PD/sqmi. There were 1,177 housing units at an average density of 2.7 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 98.6% white, 0.3% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.2% from other races, and 0.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.5% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 63.7% were German, 10.8% were Irish, 6.2% were English, 5.2% were Norwegian, and 4.0% were American. Of the 1,045 households, 35.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.8% were married couples living together, 3.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 24.1% were non-families, and 21.7% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.14. The median age was 35.5 years. The median income for a household in the county was $46,556 and the median income for a family was $52,425. Males had a median income of $38,088 versus $23,750 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,391. About 13.8% of families and 13.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.6% of those under age 18 and 13.8% of those age 65 or over. Hanson County was mentioned as an "Extreme Whitopia" in Rich Benjamin's book, Searching for Whitopia.

Communities

Cities

Towns

Religious communities

Unincorporated community

Government

Townships

Politics

Hanson County voters tend to vote Republican. Since 1936, they have selected the Republican Party candidate in 65% of national elections.