SDMap-doton-FortThompson, 2004
Fort Thompson’s story
137 years in pictures
Census counts: 1,088 in 1990, 1,224 in 2020. The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 2004 and 2 maps from 1966 on.
- 1889Fort Thompson is settled
Fort ThompsonSD
A town of 1,147, settled in 1889.
Population
1,147
Census survey, 2020–24
Median home value
$150K
Census ACS
Household income
$47K
median
Median age
22.8
years
Jobs based here
208
Balanced
Is Fort Thompson a good place to live?
The best of Fort Thompson’s subject grades is an A for cost of living; the weakest is a D− for incomes. 39% of the land in Fort Thompson is conserved, where South Dakota’s towns sit at 3.3% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. Fort Thompson has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Small town
1,147 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
How Fort Thompson grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within South Dakota), ordered by how far Fort Thompson is from typical.
Jobs & income$47K median household incomeD−Open →HealthNear the bottom of U.S. towns on CDC estimates; Sanford Chamberlain Medical Center 18.6 miles awayD−Open →Cost of livingAOpen →Hazard riskcold waves tops the listC−Open →SchoolsBehind 62% of South Dakota districts on tests and graduationC+Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 5.6 of 20; 17.5% of households have no car; 4.4% of workers walk, bike or ride transitB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
Moving to Fort Thompson: who provides what
Fort Thompson is unincorporated, so Buffalo County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerCentral Electric Coop14.7¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterFort Thompson Water System1 health-based violation in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet1 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesBuffalo CountyBuffalo County provides services here
Register to voteIn personSouth Dakota has no online registration; you can register in person until 15 days before Election Day or by mail (received 15 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereBuffalo County AuditorBuffalo County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jul 2023
ZIP code5733957339 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Fort Thompson.
HealthD−
Fort Thompson stands out in South Dakota and nationally, with more of its adults who say their health is fair or poor
For adults in Fort Thompson, the share who had a checkup this year is 73%. No town among the 36 in South Dakota we compare has a higher share of adults who report frequent physical distress than Fort Thompson. Nearly a quarter of Fort Thompson adults report frequent mental distress, above both South Dakota’s towns (15%) and U.S. towns (17%). In Fort Thompson, a third of adults smoke cigarettes, and 49% have obesity.
1%healthier than U.S. townsD−Health Grade
| Fort Thompson | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 16% | 19% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 14% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 49% | 35% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 10% | 12% |
26 measures vs. South Dakota
1 better6 too close to call19 worse
| What stands out | Fort Thompson | SD |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 5.4% | 9.2% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 30.8% | 12.7% |
Sanford Chamberlain Medical Center
18.6 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
OutdoorsC−
Fort Thompson has set aside nearly a third of its land for conservation
Fort Thompson’s density of trails is 0.1 miles per square mile. 1.0 miles of trail.
38.5%conserved
38.5%
conserved · 3,088 of 8,016 acres
1.0 mi
of trails · 0.1 per sq mi
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade C−
High risk in Fort Thompson, with cold waves at the top
Expected damage from storms and floods is higher here than in 74% of U.S. communities.
74risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Cold wavesInland floodingWildfire
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Climate
Four seasons and hot summers: that is Fort Thompson’s year
July afternoons reach 88°, January nights drop to 8° and about 19 inches of snow falls in a winter.
19″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter11–32°
Spring33–59°
Summer59–85°
Fall36–62°
Oct 5
typical first frost
May 6
typical last frost
+1.1°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Work & commuteJobs & income grade D−
More of Fort Thompson’s residents live below the poverty line than in the typical South Dakota or U.S. town
About one worker in four stays in Fort Thompson for work. Of the 36 South Dakota towns we compare, none has a lower typical household income than Fort Thompson. The average trip to work for Fort Thompson comes to 11 minutes. Jobs based in Fort Thompson grew to 208 in 2023, 20 more than in 2013.
27%work in town
| Fort Thompson | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 42% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 11 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $47,000 | $72,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 27% | 29% | 8% |
Where working residents work
In Fort Thompson27%
Sioux Falls7%
Gann Valley5%
Chamberlain4%
Rapid City3%
12 mi
median commute distance
208
jobs based in Fort Thompson
Balanced
jobs vs. working residents
B−
Walkability grade: more walkable than 52% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Fort Thompson
16pages on Fort Thompson
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Fort Thompson; the nearest are
Dakota Wesleyan UniversityUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Mitchell72.2 mi$33,790 tuitionMitchell Technical CollegeCommunity college · Public · Mitchell73.8 mi$7,524 in-state tuitionSinte Gleska UniversityUniversity or college · Public · Mission80.4 mi$4,714 in-state tuition
About 3 of every 100 Fort Thompson residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across South Dakota.
About Fort Thompson
CDP in South Dakota, United States
Fort Thompson (Lakota/ Dakota: Čhúŋkičakse) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Buffalo County, South Dakota, United States. As of the 2020 census, Fort Thompson had a population of 1,224, making it the largest settlement on the Crow Creek Reservation. Fort Thompson was named in honor of Clark W. Thompson, superintendent of Indian Affairs.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1889
- Area
- 13 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,440 ft
- ZIP code
- 57339
- Area code
- 605
Questions about Fort Thompson
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Fort Thompson, SD expensive?
Not for the area. The typical home is worth about $150,000. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A.