County · code 46079
Lake CountySouth Dakota
Lake County is a county in South Dakota with its seat in Madison.
- Founded1873
- County seatMadison
- Land area563 sq mi + 12 sq mi water
- Population11,059 2020 Census
- Parcels mapped10,265 checked 15 October 2026
Where it is
Lake on the map of South Dakota
South Dakota has 66 counties and county equivalents, each with its own records office. Shapes with a page are links.
History
Formed in 1873 from Brookings County, Hanson County and Minnehaha County
An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.
Lake County was created on January 8, 1873, by Dakota Territory from parts of Brookings, Hanson, and Minnehaha counties. The county became part of the state of South Dakota on November 2, 1889.
- 1873Lake County created Lake created by Dakota Territory in present South Dakota from Brookings, Hanson, and Minnehaha. · Dak. Terr. Laws 1872, 10th sess., ch. 16, sec. 3/p. 31
- 1889Became part of South Dakota Lake became a county in the state of South Dakota. · U.S. Stat., vol. 25, ch. 180[1889]/pp. 676-684; U.S. Stat., vol. 26, no. 5/pp. 1548-1549; Swindler, 9:107-109; Van Zandt, 134
Land and parcels
What the maps cover in Lake
Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.
-
Parcels Good enough
Lot lines and tax-map numbers for 10,265 parcels. Drawn for tax purposes: usually within a few feet of a survey, but not a survey.
checked 15 October 2026 -
Address points Missing
No public address points layer found for Lake County yet.
-
Buildings Reference
Roof outlines traced from aerial imagery from FEMA Response Geospatial Office with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Good for seeing what is on a lot; not accurate enough to set a fence from.
checked 18 October 2026
- Official
- from the office that keeps the record
- Good enough
- a reliable statewide or national copy
- Fallback
- a guide only; check the official record
- Missing
- nothing public found yet
People and land
Lake by the Census
Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Rules and offices
Who to ask before you build, dig or sell
Official county pages only. We link to them; we do not copy them, because they change.
Inside a city or town, permits usually come from that city rather than the county.
Permits
Zoning and code
County government
- County government
The official website of Lake County.
See your own lot on these maps
Open Lake County on Parcel Chart's free map and click your parcel. Save it with a free account; the full record of your place (site map, projects, documents) is Pro, in early access.
Questions
Common questions about Lake County
- When was Lake County founded?
- Lake County was founded in 1873, formed from Brookings County, Hanson County and Minnehaha County.
- What is the county seat of Lake County?
- The county seat of Lake County is Madison.
- Is there an online parcel map for Lake County?
- Yes. A public source publishes a parcel map of 10,265 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
- Has Lake County's boundary or name changed?
- Lake County was created in 1873 from Brookings County, Hanson County and Minnehaha County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 1 later change.
- Who issues building permits in Lake County?
- The county's page on building permits: Pistol Permits. Inside a city or town, ask that city first.
- Is my lot in a flood zone?
- We do not have flood maps for Lake County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.
Nearby