Agriculture in SD...

[Jammie]

Stotan, I've been trying to think of a good suggestion for you, but alas, there is just no town that sticks out in my mind for suggestions.

Here's something you may consider searching.

South Dakota Smaller Cities, Towns, and Villages (between 1000 and 6000 residents) - Real Estate, Housing, Schools, Residents, Crime, Pollution, Demographics and More

I had also wondered what size town you're searching for so I was glad to see it asked and answered. There is a list of towns on the site and this will give you a bit of info on each town. You may want to stay East River in your search since most of it is ag land rather then ranch land. If you find one that you're interested in, maybe we can help you with a few of your questions.

[stotan88]

Originally Posted by Jammie

Stotan, I've been trying to think of a good suggestion for you, but alas, there is just no town that sticks out in my mind for suggestions.

Here's something you may consider searching.

South Dakota Smaller Cities, Towns, and Villages (between 1000 and 6000 residents) - Real Estate, Housing, Schools, Residents, Crime, Pollution, Demographics and More

I had also wondered what size town you're searching for so I was glad to see it asked and answered. There is a list of towns on the site and this will give you a bit of info on each town. You may want to stay East River in your search since most of it is ag land rather then ranch land. If you find one that you're interested in, maybe we can help you with a few of your questions.

Ah! Thank you for that link. I apologize, I'm quite new to this forum so I haven't figure out all the ins-and-outs yet. But that was very helpful.

After browsing many towns in that list, I figured a place like Miller, SD, or Tyndall, SD could potentially be what I'm looking for. I read in another thread that Tyndall is a fairly attractive, quaint town, but I don't know much about Miller. They both seem to be in a predominantly agricultural area, more so Miller. What are these towns like? Has anyone ever visited them/lived there?

Thanks again!

[ElkHunter]

I was born and raised in Miller.

Back then, 1953, the town was thriving at about 3000 people. They had a hospital with 1 doctor and 2 nurses. They had 5 or 6 gas stations, 3 car dealers, 2 very well stocked grocery stores, a mainstreet that included JC Penny's, Pharmacies, Ben Franklin, etc.

Today, the hospital still stands but they don't do much. If your going to have a baby, they'll send you to Huron (45 minutes East). One of the Grocery stores closed down. The population is a little over 1500. A lot of the big farms around there have consolidated into companies or corp so they can pool their resources.

And yes, everybody knows everybody. When I went down there two years ago, I wanted to find a person. While filling up with gas, I asked the attendant (yes, they still fill your tank there, you don't) where I could find this person. He said, "Go down to this road, turn left, go about 3 blocks and she's in the green house on the corner. She should be home today because she doesn't work on Wednesdays.

[BusySocialWorker]

Ok have to get my bias in I grew up on a farm near De Smet and it was a great experience! My kids love love love to go back and visit grandma and grandpa on the farm and feed the cows, ride in the combines and tracters and explore the farm! What a great gift for my kids now!

[DannyBanany]

This may lead you astray from SD... but my mother's family is from Boyd County Nebraska. She grew up in a small town called Spencer that had about 500 people, 5 churches, and 6 bars! Everybody knew everybody and their dogs. It's a very beautiful area that is actually very hilly and wooded in some parts. The main crop is corn. The Missouri River is nearby too and the SD state line is 9 miles away.

Check it out!

[Jammie]

Originally Posted by BusySocialWorker

Ok have to get my bias in I grew up on a farm near De Smet and it was a great experience! My kids love love love to go back and visit grandma and grandpa on the farm and feed the cows, ride in the combines and tracters and explore the farm! What a great gift for my kids now!

Oh yes~Laura Ingalls Wilder's "Little Town on the Prairie."

[MJ1986]

Stotan, a few places come to mind that weren't listed before... Groton, Platte, Gettysburg, and Clark... DeSmet and Miller would be good too...
Too bad your budget is limited...but visiting the towns would help ya a lot

[debey]

Redfield, pheasent hunting capital, of the world
Forestburg...Melon country
Greg Latza's Editorial and Corporate Photography
perhaps some of the pictures on this sight may help you....
also Greg is a really cool guy...drop him a email, or post in his blog....
I'd bet he'll give you some insight......

[stotan88]

thank you everyone for their input...i think now its a matter of doing the research and finding which of the towns mentioned above would be most ideal. Of course, I can't research every small town in central USA (as much as I wish I could) but if anyone else has info on another town outside of SD that could perhaps work, I'd love to know

once again, thanks to all of you who have helped. It's greatly appreciated!