Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 205, settled in 1882.
Martilla-Pettingel and Gorder General Merchandise Store is on the National Register of Historic Places. Frederick has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Census counts: 281 in 1890, a peak of 461 in 1930, 215 in 2020. The archive holds 7 old photos and papers going back to 1883 and 2 maps from 1953 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Frederick, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Frederick.
Frederick has lost 3.8% of its people since 2020, down to 205 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. Only 2 of the 36 South Dakota towns we compare have a higher median age than Frederick. The bachelor’s-degree share among adults 25 and older is 29%, against 32% across South Dakota.
| Frederick | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 39% | 19% | 18% |
| Median age | 52.8 years | 39.5 years | 40.5 years |
Somewhere between 37% and 61% women
The Census survey reached too few of Frederick’s residents to say more: its margin here is ±12 points. Across South Dakota, 49.2% of residents are women.
| Frederick | SD | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 3.8% | 13.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.4% | 11.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 2.5% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 8.8% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 8.1% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 20.6% | 10.7% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 8.1% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 20.6% | 11% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 18.1% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 10.4% | 6.8% | 10.4% |
| High school | 30.4% | 29% | 26% |
| Some college | 15.6% | 19.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 14.8% | 12.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 20% | 21.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 8.9% | 10% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 200, single groups can be off by several points
Two of its 3 schools are shown below, with the reason for each. The public schools here belong to the Frederick Area School District 06-2. Also worth knowing: 3 public schools serve Frederick, with 187 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frederick Area Elementary - 02Largest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 98 | B+ |
| Frederick High School - 01Largest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 59 | B− |
NCES · EDFacts
In July, afternoons reach 83°; in January, nights fall to 2°, and about 44 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The typical journey to work for Frederick comes to 19 minutes. For most workers, Frederick is a place to come home to: only 3% work in town. Employers in Frederick added 34 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 72. The top destinations are Aberdeen (53%), Sioux Falls (6%) and Aberdeen Township (3%).
| Frederick | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 3.4% | 29% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Storm and flood damage is expected to run lower than in 63% of U.S. communities. Frederick has had 4 paid flood insurance claims since 1997. Of the losses FEMA expects here, 38% come from inland flooding and 33% from cold waves. One declared disaster, in 2007, has brought federal aid to Frederick households.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Among adults in Frederick, 15% binge drink. Only 3 of the 36 South Dakota towns we compare have a higher share of adults who have diabetes than Frederick. What’s more, 37% of adults have high blood pressure here, against 31% in South Dakota’s towns and 35% across U.S. towns. Against the South Dakota average, Frederick comes out ahead on 7 CDC measures out of 26, and behind on 3.
| Frederick | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 15% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 30% | 36% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 22% | 23% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 19% | 16% |
| What stands out | Frederick | SD |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.8% | 12.7% |
| Fewer binge drinkers | 15.4% | 18.8% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 12.1% | 9.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Frederick
About 1 of every 100 Frederick residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across South Dakota.
City in South Dakota, United States
Frederick is a town in northwestern Brown County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 215 at the 2020 census. Home to the annual Frederick Finn Fest, the town is part of the Aberdeen Micropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Frederick has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.