Geography

Pennington County is located in west central South Dakota, with an area of about 2770 square miles (which is roughly 2.5 times the size of the state of Rhode Island). The eastern two-thirds of the County consist of praire, where ranching and dry farming predominate. The western third is part of the Black Hills, with elevations ranging from around 3000 feet above sea level to 7,242 feet at Harney Peak, the highest point in South Dakota. The Hills are mainly forested. Most of the area is part of the Black Hills National Forest. The County also contains parts of the Badlands National Park, Buffalo Gap National Grasslands, Sage Creek Wilderness Area, and the Black Elk Wilderness Area. Pennington County is the home of Mt. Rushmore National Memorial. Please browse our interactive Pennington County general map for a closer look.

Rapid City, South Dakota is situated on northeastern side of the Black Hills. It is the State's second largest city, with a 2000 census population of 59,573, covering an area of about 43 square miles. Please browse our interactive Rapid City general map for a closer look.

Listed below are the 2000 census population counts for selected places.

For additional demographic information, click on the "American Factfinder" at the U.S. Census Bureau home page. You can also use our interactive census map to get the population and housing totals by census block.

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