Jerauld

Formed March 2, 1883 (53^rd county)

Jerauld County (1,663), Wessington Springs (772)

The tan brick Art Deco structure was constructed in 1930.  There was a wooden courthouse previously in Wessington Springs.  The courthouse is on 1^st Street between Wallace and Burrett streets.  The facility is four blocks north of South Dakota State Highway 34 in the town.  Perkins and McWayne provided the building designs.  It sits on a hill with veteran memorials and a canon on the grounds.  Jerauld County was established on March 2, 1883 as the 53^rd county with Wessington Springs as the only county seat.  The county is named for settler and state legislator, H. A. Jerauld.  The county seat was a combination of a trapper’s name and local springs. 

Jerauld County government consists of a sheriff and 5 Commissioners.  Five Circuit Court Judges and One Magistrate Court Judge serve Jerauld, Beadle, Brookings, Clark, Codington, Deuel, Grant, Hamlin, Hand, Kingsbury, Lake, Miner, Moody, and Sanborn counties.  The county is in eastern South Dakota.  Pierre, South Dakota is northwest and Sioux Falls, South Dakota is southeast of the county.  The county center is 5.3 miles Southwest of Wessington Springs.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Beadle, Sanborn, Aurora, Brule, Buffalo, and Hand counties. 

The area of the county is 530 square miles.  It is 57 out of 66 in the state.  It ranks 61 out of 66 in population in the state.  It has a density of 3.1 persons per square mile making it 47 out of 66 in the state.  Jerauld County has 61.9% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 281 passes north to south in the county from Beadle County to Aurora County.  Jerauld County is a rectangle.  Wessington Springs is located in the eastern third of the county.  Wessington Springs is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 46.4% of the county population.  The county is pronounced JER-ULD.