Brule County, South Dakota Genealogy

United States

South Dakota

Brule County

Guide to Brule County, South Dakota ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

South Dakota Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Chamberlain Organized: January 14, 1875 Parent County(s): Charles Mix Neighboring Counties Aurora  • Buffalo  • Charles Mix  • Gregory  • Jerauld  • Lyman See County Maps Courthouse Location Map Adoption Adopt-a-wiki page This page adopted by: SDGenWeb Project who welcome you to contribute. and its representative Brule Co. SDGenWeb Adopt a page today

County Information

Description

Brule County was named after a Brulé subtribe of Lakota people. It is located in the southern area of the state.

County Courthouse

Brule County Courthouse
300 S Courtland Street
Chamberlain, SD 57325
Phone: 605.734.5443

Register of Deeds has birth and death records from 1905, burial records from 1941 and land records from 1880;
County Treasurer has marriage records from 1882;
County Clerk has divorce records from 1885, probate and naturalization records from 1880 and court records from 1882

Brule County, South Dakota Record Dates

Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.

Known Beginning Dates for Major Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1905	1882	1905	1882	1880	1880	1880
*State birth and death records began in 1905. Compliance for recording births was 1906 and 1932 for deaths.

Record Loss

There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Boundary Changes

Parent County: Brule County was created 14 January 1875 from Charles Mix County. County seat: Chamberlain Interactive Formation Boundary Map of North Dakota - shows boundary changes for South Dakota Counties South Dakota Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library

Populated Places

The following are locations in the county

Cities
Chamberlain	Kimball
Towns
Pukwana
Census-designated places
Bijou Hills	Ola
Townships
America Brule Chamberlain Cleveland Eagle Highland Kimball Lyon	Ola Plainfield Pleasant Grove Plummer Pukwana Red Lake Richland Smith	Torrey Lake Waldro West Point Wilbur Willow Lake Union

Resources

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Brule County, South Dakota online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Findagrave.com SDGenWeb SDGenWeb Archives USGenWeb Tombstone Project SD Gravestones Billion Graves
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	Family History Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Findagrave.com Billion Graves SD Cemetery Search Form
See South Dakota Cemeteries for more information

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1880	238	—
1890	6,737	2730.7%
1900	5,401	−19.8%
1910	6,451	19.4%
1920	7,141	10.7%
1930	7,416	3.9%
1940	6,195	−16.5%
1950	6,076	−1.9%
1960	6,319	4.0%
1970	5,870	−7.1%
1980	5,245	−10.6%
1990	5,485	4.6%
2000	5,364	−2.2%
2010	5,255	−2.0%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

Before South Dakota was a state in 1889, parts of South Dakota were included in the 1836 Iowa Territory census (also known as Wisconsin Territory), 1840 Iowa Territory census, 1850 Minnesota Territory census, and the 1860-1880 Dakota Territory censuses. See links listed below.

Territory and State Census Records

• 1836 - 1836 Wisconsin Territory Census – index only; South Dakota was included in the 1836 Wisconsin Territory Census
• 1840 - United States Census, 1840 at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images; South Dakota was included in the 1840 Iowa Territory Census
• 1850 - United States Census, 1850 at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images; South Dakota was included in the 1850 Minnesota Territory Census
• 1860 - United States Census, 1860 at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images; South Dakota was included in the 1860 Dakota Territory Census
• 1870 - United States Census, 1870 at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images; South Dakota was included in the 1870 Dakota Territory Census
• 1880 - United States Census, 1880 at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images; South Dakota was included in the 1880 Dakota Territory Census
• 1885 - South Dakota, Territorial Census, 1885 at Ancestry — ($); index and images
• 1895 - South Dakota, State Census, 1895 at Ancestry — ($); index and images
• 1905 - South Dakota State Census, 1905 at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images
• 1915 - South Dakota State Census, 1915 at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images
• 1925 - South Dakota State Census, 1925 at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images
• 1935 - South Dakota State Census, 1935 at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images
• 1945 - South Dakota State Census, 1945 at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images

Federal Census Records

Federal Censuses were taken for the state of South Dakota starting in 1890, although only one page survived. The 1900 Census is the next Federal Census available. For links to Federal census indexes, see South Dakota Census.

Church Records

Church records vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. For general information about South Dakota denominations, view the South Dakota Church Records wiki page.

Online Church Records
Lutheran Church

• 1875-1940 - U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Records, 1875-1940 at Ancestry — ($); Index and images; Dates vary for each county
  

Presbyterian Church

• 1701-1970 - U.S., Presbyterian Records, 1701-1970 at Ancestry — ($); Index and images; Dates vary for each county
  

Land and Property Records

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.

See South Dakota Land and Property for additional information about early South Dakota land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse, where records are currently housed.

Online Land Records

• Land Patent Search - index to federal patents and homesteads on the Bureau of Land Management website, some images available
• 1796 - 1907 - U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907 at Ancestry - index, info taken from Bureau of Land Management website
  
• 1863 - 1908 - U.S. Homestead Records 1863-1908 at Ancestry.com - ($), index and images

Local Histories

Local histories are available for Brule County, South Dakota Genealogy. County and town histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see the wiki page section South Dakota Local Histories.

• Of rails and trails, a centennial journey, 1889-1989. 1989. By Barbara Speck. Dallas, Texas : Curtis Media. Online at:; At various libraries (WorldCat).
• A short history of Brule County. 1978. By John H. Bingham. Salt Lake City, Utah : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library; At various libraries (WorldCat).

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Interactive Formation Boundary Map of South Dakota - shows boundary changes for South Dakota Counties
• Historical Maps and Atlases of South Dakota - maps and atlases of South Dakota

Military Records

Online Collections

These collections are unique to South Dakota. You will find nationwide databases for military records on U.S. Military Online Genealogy Records and South Dakota Military Records.

• 1861 - 1941 South Dakota, Grand Army of the Republic Membership Records, 1861-1941 at FamilySearch
• 1940 - 1941 South Dakota, Veteran Graves Registration Records, 1940-1941 at FamilySearch — index and images

Civil War

• 1861 - 1865 Dakota Territory Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch.
• 1885 Civil War Veteran's 1885 Census in South Dakota - Index only, Union and Confederate included
  
• 1890 United States Census of Union Veterans and Widows of the Civil War, 1890 at FamilySearch.

World War I

• South Dakota WWI Honor Roll by SDGenWeb - Alphabetical index; List by County
  

World War II

• WWII Army and Army Air Force Casualties for South Dakota - Index only
  

For further information see South Dakota Military Records.

Naturalization and Citizenship

• 1904 - 1928 South Dakota, Federal Naturalization Records, 1904-1928 at Ancestry — index and images ($)
• 1865 - 1972 South Dakota County Naturalization Records, 1865-1972 at FamilySearch — images
• South Dakota Naturalization Records Index:First Papers — index
• South Dakota Naturalization Records Index:Second Papers — index
• Name Index to Naturalization Records from Dakota Territory and South Dakota at National Archives, Kansas City — index

Newspapers

For more information, see South Dakota Newspapers.

South Dakota Newspapers Online

• GenealogyBank - ($), contains images of South Dakota newspapers
• Newspaper Archive - ($), contains images of South Dakota newspapers
• Chronicling America - contains images of some South Dakota newspapers; searching tips
• Elephind - Free; search engine that retrieves newspaper images from other free newspaper websites

South Dakota Newspaper Catalogs

• U.S. Newspaper Directory, 1690-Present on Chronicling America - contains a list of all known newspapers and the dates they cover; once you locate a newspaper name, contact the local library to see if they have copies of the newspaper.

Probate Records

In most counties in South Dakota, probate records have been kept by the county judge. They include wills, fee books, claim registers, legacy records, inheritance records, probate ticklers, and dockets. The records are available at the county courthouse.

The FamilySearch Catalog lists films of probate records. To find the records for this county, use the Place Search for South Dakota, Brule then click Probate records.

Online Records

• 1800 – 1985 North Dakota and South Dakota Wills and Probate Records 1800-1985 at Ancestry.com — index and images $

School Records

• 1879 - 1970 South Dakota, School Records, 1879-1970 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1879 - 1970 South Dakota, School Records,1879-1970 at Ancestry — images

Tax Records

South Dakota tax records complement land records and can be used to supplement the years between censuses. There may be gaps of several years in the records.

Vital Records

Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. See the CDC Where to Write website for information on acquiring copies of these records.

Birth

• 1843 - 1914 South Dakota, Department of Health, Index to Births 1843-1914 and Marriages 1950-2014 at FamilySearch — index
• 1856 - 1950 South Dakota, Birth Index, 1856-1915 at Ancestry — index ($)
• Birth Record Search Site For South Dakota Birth Records With Birth Dates Over 100 Years

— index

Marriage

• 1950 - 2014 South Dakota, Department of Health, Index to Births 1843-1914 and Marriages 1950-014 — index
• 1905 - 2013 South Dakota, Marriages, 1905-2013 at Ancestry — index and images ($)

Death

• 1879 - 1955 South Dakota, Death Index, 1879-1955 at Ancestry — index($)

Research Facilities

Family History Centers

Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance and free access to premium genealogical websites. In addition, many centers have free how-to genealogy classes.

• For current information about a center near you, go to the Family History Center Map

Societies

Lyman-Brule Genealogical Society
110 E Lawler
Chamberlain, SD 57325
Website

Brule County Historical Society
PO Box 47
Kimball, SD 57355
Website

Websites

• USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
• FamilySearch Catalog