Map the Block › Places › South Dakota › Brown County
Brown County, South Dakota in numbers: crime, income, hazards
FBI reports put Brown County at 3.5 violent crimes per 1,000 people a year over 2021-2025, close to the rate for South Dakota (3.5). The median household earns $70,898 and the unemployment rate was 2.0% in August 2026. About 37,877 people live in the county.
Last updated . Crime: FBI 2021-2025. Income and housing: Census ACS 2020-2024. Unemployment: BLS August 2026. Road work: October 11, 2026.
Also on the map: income · hazard risk · Superfund · dams
What is the crime rate in Brown County?
Over 2021-2025, the county's police agencies sent the FBI reports of about 128 violent and 491 property crimes per year. The violent rate, 3.5 per 1,000 people, is close to the South Dakota rate (3.5); nationally it is 3.7. Property crime ran at 13.4 per 1,000, against 15.8 statewide. Most violent crimes here are aggravated assaults (80%).
| Offense (yearly average, 2021-2025) | Brown County | Per 1,000 | South Dakota per 1,000 | U.S. per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crime | 128 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.7 |
| Murder | 0 | 0.00 | 0.04 | 0.06 |
| Rape | 23 | 0.63 | 0.53 | 0.40 |
| Robbery | 3 | 0.08 | 0.21 | 0.62 |
| Aggravated assault | 102 | 2.8 | 2.7 | 2.6 |
| Property crime | 491 | 13.4 | 15.8 | 18.1 |
| Burglary | 92 | 2.5 | 2.2 | 2.4 |
| Larceny-theft | 353 | 9.7 | 11.5 | 13.0 |
| Motor vehicle theft | 46 | 1.2 | 2.1 | 2.6 |
Most crime never reaches the police, so these are reported crimes, a floor rather than the full count. In 2024 about half of violent crimes (48%) and about 3 in 10 property crimes (31%) were reported to police (U.S. Justice Department, National Crime Victimization Survey). Rates also depend on how completely each agency reports to the FBI. County figures add up the city police and sheriff reports in the county (2 agencies; 96% of residents covered).
What is the median household income in Brown County?
Median household income is $70,898, close to the statewide figure ($75,081). The typical owner-occupied home is valued at $221,100 by its owners; renters pay a median $777. 8.8% of households received SNAP benefits in the past year (state: 7.9%). The newest monthly figure from the Bureau of Labor Statistics is 2.0% for August 2026 (preliminary), with 398 people out of work and looking.
| Census ACS 2020-2024 | Brown County | South Dakota | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 37,877 | 907,428 | 334,922,499 |
| Median household income | $70,898 | $75,081 | $80,734 |
| Median home value (owner-occupied) | $221,100 | $250,000+ | $332,700 |
| Median gross rent | $777 | $946 | $1,413 |
| Unemployment rate (2020-2024 average) | 3.3% | 2.9% | 5.2% |
| People below the poverty line | 11.7% | 11.9% | 12.5% |
| Households receiving SNAP (food stamps) | 8.8% | 7.9% | 12.1% |
| Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher | 33.8% | 31.9% | 35.7% |
| Homeowner households | 67.6% | 68.6% | 65.2% |
| Median age | 37.8 | 38.0 | 38.9 |
| Households with broadband internet | 87.5% | 89.6% | 91.0% |
| People without health insurance | 5.7% | 9.0% | 8.4% |
What natural hazards and environmental sites are in Brown County?
Brown County carries a “Relatively Low” overall rating in FEMA's National Risk Index. None of the seven hazards on our map (floods, wildfire, tornadoes, heat, earthquakes, hurricanes) is rated above “Relatively Moderate” here. The index compares counties with each other and also weighs how vulnerable and resilient a community is, so it is a long-run estimate, not a forecast.
Superfund sites
EPA lists no Superfund site in Brown County, active or completed (October 2026).
High-hazard dams
Brown County has 3 dams classed as high hazard in the National Inventory of Dams. 1 is rated Poor or Unsatisfactory in condition, 2 Satisfactory or Fair. Tallest on the list: Richmond (52 ft) and Elm Lake Dam (52 ft). “High hazard” describes what lies downstream (people would probably die if the dam failed), not how likely the dam is to fail.
Industrial chemical releases
6 facilities in the county filed Toxics Release Inventory reports for 2024, together reporting 654,434 pounds of listed chemicals released on site. Reported releases are legal permitted amounts in most cases.
Disasters, air and water
Brown County was covered by 2 federal major disaster declarations from 2016 through 2025 (Flood 2), not counting COVID-19. EPA air monitors logged 4 days in 2024 when the air quality index reached “unhealthy for sensitive groups” or worse. Of 22 community water systems, 1 had an open health-based drinking-water violation in EPA's records (September 2026). EPA puts the county in radon zone 1 (highest). NHTSA counted 3 traffic deaths in the county in 2024.
Is there road construction in Brown County?
South Dakota does not publish an open highway work-zone feed that we can read yet, so road construction in Brown County is not on our map. Check the state's 511 traveler site for current closures.
See today's work zones on the map →
How many schools, nursing homes and parks are in Brown County?
Brown County has 22 public schools (2024-25) and 10 private schools (2023-24) in federal school lists. 5 nursing homes are certified by Medicare or Medicaid here; star ratings for each are on the map and on Medicare's Care Compare. USGS mapping shows 13 fire or EMS stations and 3 police or sheriff stations. 1 state park or recreation area: Richmond Lake Recreation Area.
Gun shops, liquor stores and Planned Parenthood in Brown County
Gun shops
4 gun shops with a public storefront are on the map in Brown County, plus 19 more licensed dealers without a public storefront (not shown). On the ATF list: Dunham's Sports #9193 (Aberdeen), Ken's Super Fair & Shell Express (Aberdeen), Runnings (Aberdeen) and Sodak Sports (Aberdeen).
Liquor stores
No liquor stores are on the map in Brown County. South Dakota has no complete public liquor licence list we can use, so this count also draws on OpenStreetMap and Overture Maps and may miss some stores or include closed ones.
Planned Parenthood
There is no Planned Parenthood health center in Brown County on the map.
See them on the map: gun shops →
Sources: ATF licensee list (Sept 2026); state liquor licence lists, OpenStreetMap and Overture Maps (non-official; partial in some states); HHS Title X directory and CMS NPPES.
Common questions
What is the crime rate in Brown County?
Brown County averaged 128 reported violent crimes a year in 2021-2025, or 3.5 per 1,000 residents, close to the South Dakota rate (3.5). The property-crime rate was 13.4 per 1,000 (FBI Uniform Crime Reporting).
What is the median household income in Brown County?
$70,898 (Census American Community Survey, 2020-2024 average), compared with $75,081 for South Dakota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the unemployment rate in Brown County?
The newest monthly figure from the Bureau of Labor Statistics is 2.0% for August 2026 (preliminary), with 398 people out of work and looking.
What natural hazards affect Brown County?
Brown County carries a “Relatively Low” overall rating in FEMA's National Risk Index. None of the seven hazards on our map (floods, wildfire, tornadoes, heat, earthquakes, hurricanes) is rated above “Relatively Moderate” here.
How many nursing homes are in Brown County?
5 Medicare- or Medicaid-certified nursing homes (CMS provider data, September 2026).
How does Brown County compare with neighboring counties?
| County | Population | Violent crimes per 1,000 (2021-25) | Median household income |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day County | 5,437 | 1.2 | $66,033 |
| Dickey County, ND | 4,935 | 0.19 | $68,654 |
| Edmunds County | 4,048 | 0.69 | $81,630 |
| Faulk County | 2,126 | 0.32 | $57,750 |
| Marshall County | 4,344 | 0.54 | $78,156 |
| McPherson County | 2,145 | 0.44 | $66,906 |
| Sargent County, ND | 3,804 | 0.99 | $77,946 |
| Spink County | 6,219 | 1.5 | $70,139 |
More: South Dakota statewide numbers · Sex-offender registry search (U.S. Justice Department, NSOPW)
Where do these numbers come from?
- Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting 2021-2025 (agency level, Return A), averaged and summed by county by Map the Block; Census population; state and national rates: FBI estimated crimes 2021-2025.
- Income, housing, education: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year, table B19013 (median household income) and related tables.
- Monthly unemployment: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS), county data, not seasonally adjusted. Public domain.
- Hazards: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), county scores; disasters: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries.
- Superfund: U.S. EPA, Superfund site boundaries and NPL status (October 2026). Dams: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, National Inventory of Dams (public map service, October 2026). Chemical releases: U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory, reporting year 2024 (basic data file).
- Air and water: U.S. EPA AirData, annual AQI by county 2024; EPA Air Quality Design Values 2023-2025 (June 2026); U.S. EPA SDWIS via ECHO drinking-water download (September 30, 2026). Traffic deaths: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) 2024; Census population.
- Work zones: State departments of transportation, via the U.S. DOT Work Zone Data Exchange (WZDx) and state 511 feeds; refreshed every morning (snapshot October 11, 2026).
- Schools: National Center for Education Statistics, EDGE public school locations 2024-25; budgets: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances, fiscal year 2024; National Center for Education Statistics, EDGE Private School geocodes (Private School Survey 2023-24). Nursing homes: U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Nursing Home Provider Information and Penalties (September 2026). Stations: U.S. Geological Survey, National Structures Dataset (Fire Stations/EMS Stations), October 2026 pull.
- Parks: USGS Protected Areas Database of the U.S. (PAD-US 4.1); state park agencies' open data (CA, NY, PA, TN, TX, FL, NJ, KY, HI, UT, MT and others); OpenStreetMap contributors for some hours, phones, fees and camping; U.S. National Park Service: unit boundaries (Land Resources Division), Acreage Report (Sept 30, 2026), park pages on nps.gov (hours, fees), Visitor Use Statistics (2025).
Map the Block shows public statistics about places, not people, and does not rate or rank neighborhoods as places to live. Figures are as published by each source; check the source before relying on a number.
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