Brown

Formed July 6, 1881 (49^th county)

Brown County (38,301), Aberdeen (28,490)                

The masonry and stone Classical Revival and Renaissance courthouse was constructed in 1904.  The facility is on a square surrounded by 1^st Avenue, Market Street, Railroad Avenue, and Court Street.  United States Highway 12 passes five blocks south of the location.  Kinney and Detweiler are the building designers.  An Administration Building was added in 1973.  The courthouse features a tower with a working clock and Lady Liberty on top.  County offices sit on both sides.  The county was established on July 6, 1881 as the 49^th county.  Columbia (1881 & 1889) and Aberdeen (1887 & 1890) have served as the county seat.  The county is named for Legislator Alfred Brown.  Aberdeen was named for Aberdeen, Scotland.  Brown County is the birthplace of 1 South Dakota governor, Ralph E. Herseth. 

Brown County government consists of a sheriff and 5 Commissioners.  Four Circuit Court Judges and One Magistrate Court Judge serve Brown, Campbell, Day, Edmunds, Faulk, Marshall, McPherson, Roberts, Spink, and Walworth counties.  The county is on the northeast border with North Dakota.  Sioux Falls, South Dakota is southeast and Pierre, South Dakota is southwest of the county.  The county center is 10.3 miles Northeast of Aberdeen nearer Ordway.  The county is surrounded clockwise by North Dakota and Marshall, Day, Spink, Edmunds, Faulk, and McPherson counties. 

The area of the county is 1713 square miles.  It is 13 out of 66 in the state.  It ranks 4 out of 66 in population in the state.  It has a density of 22.4 persons per square mile making it 12 out of 66 in the state.  Brown County has 81.4% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 12 crosses east to west in the county from Day County to Edmunds County.  United States Highway 281 enters from the north, North Dakota, and exits to the south, Spink County.  The county is a rectangle.  Aberdeen is located in the southwest quarter of the county.  Aberdeen is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 74.4% of the county population.  This county is in the Aberdeen Micropolitan Statistical Area.

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