The county is entirely within the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and contains part of Badlands National Park. It is an alcohol prohibition or dry county; taxes on alcohol consumed within the county go to other counties.
Oglala Lakota County is one of two counties in South Dakota that does not have its own county seat (Todd County is the other). Hot Springs in neighboring Fall River County serves as its administrative center. It is also one of five South Dakota counties that are entirely on an Indian reservation. (The others are Corson, Dewey, Todd, and Ziebach.) [Article: Why Does a Reservation County also have a County Government?]
Oglala Lakota County was renamed in May of 2015, originally it had been named Shannon County. Until 1982 Oglala Lakota and Washabaugh County, South Dakota, were the last unorganized counties in the United States. Although it was organized and received a home rule charter that year, Oglala Lakota County, as noted above, contracts with Fall River County for its Auditor, Treasurer, Director of Equalization, State’s Attorney and Registrar of Deeds.
Courthouse Closed – New Years
The Fall River & Oglala Lakota County Courthouse in Hot Springs will be closed on Wednesday, January 1st in observance of New Years Day. Regular hours will resume on Thursday, January 2nd. Happy New Year!
Courthouse Holiday Hours
The Fall River County Courthouse will close at noon on Tuesday, December 24th, and remain closed through Wednesday December 25th in observance of Christmas. Regular hours will resume Thursday, December 26th.
Notice of possible quorum
There will be a possible quorum of County Commissioners attending the SDACO district meeting on Friday, December 6, 2024 located at Prairie Wind Casino Restaurant from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. /S/ Sue Ganje, County Auditor
Late start on Monday, December 2, 2024
Due to a water line break, the Fall River/Oglala Lakota County Courthouse will not open until Noon on Monday, December 2, 2024. We apologize for any inconvenience.