Bradley First Lutheran Church · National Register of Historic Places
Thorp Township’s story
Thorp Township in pictures
The archive holds 2 maps from 1973 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Thorp TownshipSD
A town of 54.
4 bordering townsMap →
Bradley First Lutheran Church · Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Bp0 assumed (based on copyright claims). · CC0
Is Thorp Township a good place to live?
67% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Thorp Township, above both the South Dakota town median (33%) and the median of U.S. towns (29%). No town among the 36 in South Dakota we compare has a higher average trip to work than Thorp Township. 46% of the land in Thorp Township is conserved, where South Dakota’s towns sit at 3.3% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. Bradley First Lutheran Church is on the National Register of Historic Places. Thorp Township has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Small town
54 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
Cottonwood TownshipMaydell TownshipWoodland TownshipMount Pleasant TownshipThorp Township
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Thorp Township: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Thorp Township, and how to reach them.
PowerNorthWestern Energy13.3¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterClark Rural Water SystemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet2 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Thorp Township’s trash rules yet
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 hereClark County AuditorClark County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jul 2023
ZIP codes57225, 57217, 5723657225 42% · 57217 31% · 57236 28%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 Thorp Township.
Outdoors
Open space protected for good: nearly a third of Thorp Township
Thorp Township’s trail network density comes in at 0.2 miles per square mile.
45.9%conserved
45.9%
conserved · 10,487 of 22,837 acres
7.0 mi
of trails · 0.2 per sq mi
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Climate
Thorp Township: snowy winters and pleasant summers
Only 2 of the 36 South Dakota towns we compare have a lower July high than Thorp Township. July afternoons reach 81°, January nights drop to 3° and about 43 inches of snow falls in a winter.
43″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter6–24°
Spring32–53°
Summer57–79°
Fall35–56°
Oct 5
typical first frost
May 5
typical last frost
+1.0°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Natural hazards
Natural hazards: low risk in Thorp Township, mostly cold waves
Compared with 61% of U.S. communities, expected storm and flood damage in Thorp Township is lower. Of the losses FEMA expects in the town, 42% come from cold waves and 26% from inland flooding.
39risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Cold wavesInland floodingHail
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Health
How healthy Thorp Township is
Just over a fifth of Thorp Township adults have been diagnosed with depression. Among 36 South Dakota towns, just 3 have a higher share of adults who have diabetes than Thorp Township.
| Thorp Township | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 14% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 10% | 12% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 30% | 36% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 12% | 14% |
26 measures vs. South Dakota
0 better24 too close to call2 worse
| What stands out | Thorp Township | SD |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 8.2% | 6.7% |
| More adults with heart disease | 8% | 6.8% |
Sanford Hospital Webster - Cah
23.8 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Thorp Township
16pages on Thorp Township
The big questions
Out and about
Day to day
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Thorp Township; the nearest are
Lake Area Technical CollegeCommunity college · Public · Watertown29.9 mi$6,718 in-state tuitionSisseton Wahpeton CollegeUniversity or college · Public · Sisseton48.6 mi$4,330 in-state tuition
About 0 of every 100 Thorp Township residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across South Dakota.
Questions about Thorp Township
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Thorp Township, SD a good place to live?
Thorp Township has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.