Harding County, South Dakota

• White (non-Hispanic) 1,047 91.2%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race) 16 1.4%
• Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 17 1.5%
• Asian (non-Hispanic) 0 0.0%
• Two or more races (non-Hispanic) 46 4.0%
• American Indian / Alaska Native (non-Hispanic) 6 0.5%
• Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander (non-Hispanic) 0 0.0%
• Some other race (non-Hispanic) 16 1.4%

• Under 18 268 23.3%
• 18–24 64 5.6%
• 25–44 224 19.5%
• 45–64 354 30.8%
• 65 and over 238 20.7%

Median household income

$65,228

90% interval $58,781–$71,675

−$12,266 vs SD · 45th of 66

Below poverty line

11.8%

90% interval 8.9%–14.7%

+1.3 pp vs SD · 27th of 66

Unemployment (12-mo)

1.4%

−0.74 pp vs. state

County GDP

$90.7M

0.12% of state

Avg. annual pay

$50,576

Establishments

69

• Construction 100 22.1%
• Trade, transportation & utilities 83 18.3%
• Natural resources & mining 64 14.1%
• Leisure & hospitality 23 5.1%
• Public administration 17 3.8%

The sectors listed cover 63.4% of covered employment; BLS withholds the rest to avoid disclosing individual employers.

Home ownership

76.5%

+7.9 pp vs SD · 25th of 66

Median gross rent

$521

−$425 vs SD · 64th of 66

Owner-occupied

381

Renter-occupied

117

• Diversified

  Top three sectors employ 55% of the workforce, a relatively diversified local economy. Expect mixed employer backgrounds on the panel rather than concentration in any one institution or industry.

• Wide wage spread

  Highest-paid sector (Public administration, $87,623/yr) pays 5.1× the lowest (Leisure & hospitality, $17,247/yr). Stark intra-economy class divisions on the panel; calibrate damages and lost-wages framing to that range.

• Small-business scale

  Average establishment employs only 6.6 workers, a small-business-dominated local economy. Expect more self-employed and small-business-owner panelists than in institutional-employer venues.

• Republican 754 92.0%
• Democratic 48 5.9%
• Other / third-party 18 2.2%

• German or other West Germanic 21 1.9%
• Spanish 3 0.3%
• French, Haitian, or Cajun 2 0.2%

Households

498

Family households

287

57.6% of households

Married couples w/ children

73

25.4% of families

Single-mother families

2

0.7% of families

Veterans

86

9.8% of civilians 18+

• Catholic 348 26.5%
• Mainline Protestant 263 20.1%
• Evangelical Protestant 181 13.8%

Health insured

97.2%

±3.3 pp — too imprecise at this sample size to compare

With a disability

6.6%

±2.4 pp

66th of 66

Bachelor's or higher

30.4%

±6.7 pp

−1.5 pp vs SD · 14th of 66

Uninsured, under 65 (2024)

9.7%

90% interval 8.4%–11.0% · Census SAHIE

The under-65 uninsured rate is not comparable to the ACS insurance figures, which cover all ages.

Trial court

4th Judicial Circuit Court

Judges

3 (Circuit Court judges per circuit (general civil + felony criminal trial jurisdiction); vintage 2026 ujs.sd.gov directory + SDCL § 16-5-1. SD has 46 Circuit Court judges statewide (2025 UJS Guide to South Dakota Courts); the per-circuit figures shown are approximate (judges may sit by assignment across circuits). Magistrate Court judges (limited jurisdiction: misdemeanors, small claims) are separately allocated and not counted here.)

Court seats

Belle Fourche, Bison, Buffalo, Deadwood, Dupree, McIntosh, Sturgis, Timber Lake

This judicial district spans multiple counties.

Traffic fatalities

2

227.27 per 100k adults (18+)

Fatal crashes

2