DAKOTA'S GROWTH

FIGURES THAT SHOW THE POPULATION AND WEALTH OF THE TERRITORY
Population April 1, 1884
According to the United States census of June, 1880, the population of Dakota, in round numbers, was 135,000. Since then no census has been taken, but a careful estimate prepared in July, 1882, by General Beadle, Territorial Superintendent of Public Instruction, made the population about 211,000. Without an official count, it is of course impossible to give a correct statement of population, but there has been made for the year 1883 an estimate which is at least approximately correct. It has been prepared from reports made by county assessors and school superintendents, and from other sources. While the figures may, possibly, be overstated for a few counties, they are, doubtless, too low for many others. The estimate is as follows:
Counties Counties Aurora 5,000 Kidder 1,000 Barnes 5,000 Kingsbury 6,000 Beadle 8,000 Lake 5,000 Benson 500 La Moure 1,200 Billings 500 Lawrence 12,500 Bon Homme 6,979 Lincoln 6,000 Brookings 7,500 McCook 4,500 Brown 7,500 McLean 500 Brulé 5,000 Mercer 500 Burleigh 6,000 Minnehaha 12,750 Butte 700 Miner 5,000 Cass 26,560 Moody 5,000 Charles Mix 1,500 Morton 3,750 Clark 3,500 Nelson 3,500 Clay 5,500 Pembina 9,000 Codington 5,500 Pennington 2,200 Custer 800 Potter 500 Davison 5,500 Ramsey 4,000 Day 4,000 Ransom 3,920 Deuel 2,905 Richland 8,000 Dickey 3,000 Roberts 2,500 Douglas 2,000 Sanborn 3,000 Emmons 500 Sargent 1,000 Edmunds 3,000 Spink 6,000 Faulk 3,000 Stark 1,450 Fall River 700 Steele 2,500 Foster 1,500 Stutsman 5,000 Grand Forks 16,000 Sully 2,000 Grant 6,000 Traill 11,000 Griggs 3,000 Turner 7,050 Hamlin 2,057 Union 7,500 Hand 5,050 Walsh 8,000 Hanson 3,000 Walworth 1,000 Hughes 5,000 Yankton 9,000 Hutchinson 7,400 Huyde 2,000 Jerauld 1,000 Total 333,621 [334,471 -- JRF]
If to this a fair estimate be added for the unorganized counties, the total population will not fall much short of 350,000.