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County · code 46127

Union CountySouth Dakota

Union County is in South Dakota with its county seat at Elk Point. It was created on January 7, 1864, by Dakota Territory from Lincoln County and the extinct Cole County.

  • Founded1864
  • County seatElk Point
  • Named forUnited States
  • Land area461 sq mi + 6.4 sq mi water
  • Population16,811 2020 Census
Open the free map Click any parcel in Union County: acreage, parcel id, address and who publishes the map. No sign-in.

Updated

ClayDixon, NEDakota, NELincolnPlymouth, IASioux, IAWoodbury, IA Elk Point Census outline · seat marked

Where it is

Union 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.

Aurora CountyBeadle CountyBennett CountyBon Homme CountyBrookings CountyBrown CountyBrule CountyBuffalo CountyButte CountyCampbell CountyCharles Mix CountyClark CountyClay CountyCodington CountyCorson CountyCuster CountyDavison CountyDay CountyDeuel CountyDewey CountyDouglas CountyEdmunds CountyFall River CountyFaulk CountyGrant CountyGregory CountyHaakon CountyHamlin CountyHand CountyHanson CountyHarding CountyHughes CountyHutchinson CountyHyde CountyJackson CountyJerauld CountyJones CountyKingsbury CountyLake CountyLawrence CountyLincoln CountyLyman CountyMcCook CountyMcPherson CountyMarshall CountyMeade CountyMellette CountyMiner CountyMinnehaha CountyMoody CountyOglala Lakota CountyPennington CountyPerkins CountyPotter CountyRoberts CountySanborn CountySpink CountyStanley CountySully CountyTodd CountyTripp CountyTurner CountyWalworth CountyYankton CountyZiebach CountyUnion County Union
Counties of South Dakota · Union highlighted

History

Formed in 1864 from Lincoln County and Cole County

An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.

Union County was named after the United States. In 1871, Union lost a small area to Dakota County when the Missouri River changed course, and was eliminated from Nebraska. Union became a county in the state of South Dakota on November 2, 1889. In 1908, Union exchanged land with Nebraska when the main channel of the Missouri River was established as the boundary between South Dakota and Nebraska.

Boundary changes from the Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

  1. 1864
    Union County created Union (South Dakota) created by Dakota Territory from Lincoln (South Dakota) and all of Cole (Dakota Territory, extinct); Cole eliminated. Union (South Dakota) included a small area of present Nebraska along the Missouri River.
    from Lincoln (S.D.)from Cole
    · Dak. Terr. Laws 1863, 3d sess., ch. 14/p. 16
  2. 1871
    Lost territory Union lost small area to the state of Nebraska when the Missouri River changed course. · Neb. Laws 1871, 8th reg. sess., pp. 131-132; U.S. Stat., vol. 16, ch. 64[1870]/p. 93; Van Zandt, 137
  3. 1889
    Became part of South Dakota Union 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
  4. 1908
    Exchanged territory Union exchanged with the state of Nebraska when the main channel of the Missouri River was established as the boundary between South Dakota and Nebraska. · Neb. Laws 1905, 29th sess., ch. 43/p. 286 and ch. 234/p. 792; S. Dak. Laws 1907, 10th sess., ch. 245/p. 484; U.S. Stat., vol. 33, ch. 1295[1905]/p. 820

Land and parcels

What the maps cover in Union

Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.

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

Union by the Census

Population
16,811 2020 Census count
Housing units
7,215 2020 Census count
Land area
461 square miles
Water area
6.4 square miles
People per sq mi
36 population ÷ land area

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

See your own lot on these maps

Open Union 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.

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Questions

Common questions about Union County

When was Union County founded?
Union County was founded in 1864, formed from Lincoln County and Cole County, and named after United States.
What is the county seat of Union County?
The county seat of Union County is Elk Point.
Is there an online parcel map for Union County?
Not that we have found yet. Lot lines and owners of record are kept by the county assessor's office. When a public parcel map appears, it shows here.
Has Union County's boundary or name changed?
Union County was created in 1864 from Lincoln County and Cole County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 3 later changes, most of them small boundary adjustments.
Who issues building permits in Union County?
The county's page on building permits: Concealed Weapon Permits and Fingerprinting. Inside a city or town, ask that city first.
Is my lot in a flood zone?
We do not have flood maps for Union County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

Nearby

Counties next door