FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 22, 2005

CONTACT: Chelle Somsen, (605) 773-5521

State Historical Society Notes 100^th Anniversary of State Census 

PIERRE, S.D. – The South Dakota State Historical Society announces the 100^th anniversary of the 1905 South Dakota State Census. The 1905 census, according to state law, provided for “the enumeration of all the inhabitants of the state, by name, age, sex, color, nationality, occupation, ability to read and write, and whether blind, deaf and dumb, idiotic or insane.” 

“The census shows the composition of the state in 1905, along with providing specific, detailed information about South Dakota citizens,” said Chelle Somsen, state archivist for the State Historical Society. “The 1905 census provides valuable data for both professional and amateur genealogists.”

The actual 1905 census cards are stored in the State Archives at the South Dakota Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre. The census cards, on microfilm, are easily accessible for people who do research at the archives. Other census years available at the State Archives include the Federal Census from 1860-1930 (minus the 1890 Federal Census, which was destroyed by a fire), the South Dakota State Census 1905 to 1945 (including a special census in 1885 and 1895, but only in certain counties), and the Bureau of Indian Affairs Census from 1880 to 1940.  

The 1905 state census (and other subsequent state census records) is in alphabetical order by last name. The surname group is then placed in alphabetical order by first name. General information found on the census includes name, county, city, address, (township, section, and range if applicable), age, occupation and place of birth. The census enumerators also marked if the individual was male or female, white, black, red or yellow, married, single, widowed or divorced, whether they could or could not read or write, and if they were blind, deaf, idiotic or insane.   

“There are several unique characteristics of the 1905 state census,” said Matthew T. Reitzel, manuscript archivist for the State Historical Society. “Some of the most useful categories for researchers include: Years in South Dakota, Years in the United States, Birthplace of Mother, Birthplace of Father and Card Number.” 

The Years in South Dakota and the United States categories are useful in naturalization searches to determine if relatives immigrated directly to South Dakota or if they resided in another state first, Reitzel said. The Birth Place of Mother and Father helps researchers determine if their relatives emigrated from a foreign country, if they were born in South Dakota or had origins in another state. The Card Number provides the family structure of a particular household. Census enumerators kept a running tally of each family they visited, starting with the head of the household. 

The Laws of the Ninth Session of the Legislature – 1905 dictated the procedures for counting the state’s population. The legislation established that a census would be taken in the state every tenth year starting on the first day of May 1905. The legislature appropriated $4,000 to fund the project and noted that anyone over the age of 20 who did not answer the enumerator’s questions would be fined $20 and deemed guilty of a misdemeanor. 

The 1905 census provides a glimpse of South Dakota 100 years ago. The state was comprised of 455,185 individuals. Of the total population, 33.1 percent resided in cities or towns, an increase from 26.6 percent in 1900. The foreign-born population in South Dakota stood at 19.7 percent, a number that steadily decreased since the entrance of South Dakota into the United States in 1889.  The age of state residents was also tallied, with 64,385 children under age 6; 148,212 children between ages 6 and 21; and 97,240 white males ages 18 to 45. A category also existed in the census called “Colored Population.” This section counted 166 African Americans and 3,249 American Indians from organized counties. 

“Unfortunately, no census enumerators traveled to the various reservations in the state,” Reitzel said. “The superintendent of the census contacted various Indian agents throughout the state who gave an unclassified count of the American Indian population at 18,452 individuals.”  

The 1905 census reveals other demographics. There were 175,072 individuals listed as being born in South Dakota, 54.3 percent of whom had foreign-born parents. The occupations of state residents were recorded for workers over age 10. The census tallied 328,137 individuals employed in South Dakota, with the two largest working groups being housewives at 73,251 and farmers at 67,482. There were 78,221 married men and 73,623 married women in South Dakota in 1905 who were over age 18. The discrepancy between married men and women occurred because some men hadn’t moved their families to the state and some married women were under the age of 18. The census counted 53,150 single men and 24,831 single women over age 18.

The final categories enumerated were for literacy, defective and insanity, and the criminal classes. The 1905 illiteracy rate in South Dakota was 1.2% (2.5% if you counted all the individuals who left that part of the census blank). The census tallied 730 individuals being insane (600 of which were in the asylum in Yankton), 255 blind, 517 deaf mutes, 371 idiotic persons (91 in the school of feeble minded in Redfield), and 198 convicts in the state penitentiary in Sioux Falls.  

 “Census data is only one aspect of the wide array of research possibilities at the Cultural Heritage Center,” Reitzel noted. “The State Historical Society Archives is an excellent starting point for anyone interested in doing family research. Individuals can personally look through naturalization records, newspapers, county and town histories, school records, WPA cemetery records, and other manuscript materials to piece together the narrative of their family’s past.”  

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The South Dakota State Historical Society, an office of the Department of Tourism and State Development, is headquartered at the South Dakota Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre. The center houses the society’s world-class museum, the archives, and the historic preservation, publishing and administrative/development offices. Call (605) 773-3458 or visit www.sdhistory.org for more information. The society also has an archaeology office in Rapid City; call (605) 394-1936 for more information.