Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 449, settled in 1908.
34% of residents live below the poverty line in St. Francis, against 9.5% in South Dakota’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. Of the 36 South Dakota towns we compare, none has a lower median household income than St. Francis. St. Francis Mission is on the National Register of Historic Places. St. Francis has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Where St. Francis beats most towns.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Census counts: 273 in 1940, a peak of 815 in 1990, 469 in 2020. The archive holds 3 old photos and papers going back to 2013 and 2 maps from 1969 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in St. Francis, 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 St. Francis.
About one in 4 of St. At 16 minutes, St. Francis’ average trip to work is where South Dakota’s towns sit at 17 minutes and U.S. towns at 25 minutes. Since 2013, St. Francis has lost 779 jobs, to 442 in 2023.
| St. Francis | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 16 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 26% | 29% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by St. Francis Indian School. The largest public high school is St. Francis Indian School, with 630 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sapa Un Catholic Academy Elementary PrivateLargest elementary schoolGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 39 | – |
| St. Francis Indian SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades K–12 | Grades K–12 | 630 | – |
NCES · EDFacts
Children under 18 are 42% of residents (24% statewide); people 65 and older are 6% of residents (18% statewide). The median age in St. Francis is 24.8 years. St. Francis has lost 4.7% of its people since 2020, down to 449 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| St. Francis | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 24.8 years | 39.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 24% | 33% | 29% |
46% women, 54% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±8.4 points. Across South Dakota, 49.2% of residents are women.
| St. Francis | SD | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 21.4% | 13.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 20.6% | 11.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8.3% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.6% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 20.1% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 7.6% | 10.7% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 5.7% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 4.4% | 11% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 1.3% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 15.6% | 6.8% | 10.4% |
| High school | 31.2% | 29% | 26% |
| Some college | 18.6% | 19.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.2% | 12.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 17.6% | 21.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 6.8% | 10% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 400, single groups can be off by several points
Francis has cold, snowy winters and warm summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 86°, January nights drop to 13° and about 41 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 63% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
43% of St. Francis adults say their health is fair or poor. No town among the 36 in South Dakota we compare has a higher share of adults who report frequent mental distress than St. Francis. 24% of St. Francis adults report frequent physical distress.
| St. Francis | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 16% | 19% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 14% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 52% | 35% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 10% | 12% |
| What stands out | St. Francis | SD |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 4.8% | 9.2% |
| Fewer binge drinkers | 15% | 18.8% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 51.9% | 12.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
None within 15 miles of St. Francis; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 St. Francis residents are enrolled in college, about the same as South Dakota.
Where St. Francis’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
City in South Dakota, United States
St. Francis, also known as Sápauŋ thí (Lakota: Sápauŋ thí; "Catholic House") is a city in the Rosebud Indian Reservation in Todd County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 469 at the 2020 census. St. Francis is named after the St. Francis Indian School, which was named after Francis of Assisi and was operated by the Catholic Franciscan order.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
St. Francis has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.