Cottonwood South Dakota Map

About Cottonwood, South Dakota

Cottonwood is a locality in Jackson County, South Dakota, United States. It is a small community with a population of 12. The population density is 5.0 people per km². Cottonwood is located at 43.9669°N, 101.9060°W. It observes the Mountain Time (America/Denver) timezone. Cottonwood is an incorporated locality. ZIP code: 57775.

Cottonwood occupies a stark, expansive reach of the high plains where the sky holds more weight than the earth itself. It lies 58.6 miles east of Box Elder, SD (from Box Elder, SD: bearing 99°T), and is situated 66.3 miles east of Rapid City. Cottonwood Creek carves a narrow, winding path through the sun-bleached grasses, providing a fragile ribbon of moisture that divides the arid soil. To the west, the jagged silhouette of Washburn Ridge breaks the horizon, while the terrain dips into the dry, haunting geometry of Lost Draw. The air here carries a persistent, dry clarity, and as evening descends, the light turns a bruised, metallic gold that illuminates the subtle textures of the prairie. Bordered by the vast expanse of the Buffalo Gap National Grassland, the landscape remains raw and unyielding, indifferent to the passage of travelers.

Agriculture serves as the singular pulse of Cottonwood, defined by the quiet labor of those who work the stubborn, iron-rich soil of the Great Plains. The economy reflects a long history of resilience, rooted in the seasonal rhythms of ranching and the careful management of livestock that graze upon the nearby Buffalo Gap National Grassland. Life in Cottonwood moves with the slow, deliberate pace of the seasons, far removed from the frantic acceleration of modern industry. A sense of solitude defines the experience here, as if the land demands a certain stillness from those who remain. Even the occasional distant tremor of a train serves only to underscore the profound silence that returns once the wind settles against the empty horizon.

About This Cottonwood Map Page

This page provides an embedded street and satellite map of Cottonwood, South Dakota. Coordinates: 43.966934, -101.905983. Live weather conditions are sourced directly from the National Weather Service. Real-time local and world news feeds keep the page current.

Detailed location data for Cottonwood includes the ZIP code (57775), telephone area code (605), county seat of Jackson County (Kadoka), and school district assignment (Haakon School District 27-1).

Location data is drawn from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) and cross-verified against 2020 US Census records by coordinate proximity. Population figures are sourced from the 2020 US Census.