Ideal, South Dakota
8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1955 and the latest in 1990. It stands in Ideal Township. It lies in ZIP code area 57541. The Survey maps it on the Ideal quadrangle. 86 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,886 feet above sea level.
Topographic sheets covering this place
5 surveys from 8 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1955 USGS Mitchell quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1959 USGS Mitchell quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1982 USGS Ideal quadrangle1:24000
- 1986 USGS Chamberlain quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
- 1990 USGS Mitchell quadrangle1:250000
Fires near this place
21 since 1996Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 21 fires within 5 miles of Ideal between 1996 and 2020, burning about 1,200 acres in total. 4 started naturally. 1 was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6 |
| Debris and open burning | 5 |
| Natural | 4 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 3 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 1 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 1 |
| Fireworks | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 August 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2.0 acres | South Dakota Wildland Fire Suppression | OLSON0826 |
| 25 August 2003 | Natural | 5.0 acres | South Dakota Wildland Fire Suppression | not named |
| 24 August 2003 | Natural | 10 acres | South Dakota Wildland Fire Suppression | not named |
| 2 August 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2.0 acres | South Dakota Wildland Fire Suppression | not named |
| 2 August 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 12 acres | South Dakota Wildland Fire Suppression | not named |
| 18 August 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 10 acres | Rosebud Agency | WINNER |
| 27 July 2020 | Equipment and vehicle use | 22 acres | South Dakota Wildland Fire Suppression | NEYENS |
| 2 July 2006 | Fireworks | 4.5 acres | Rosebud Agency | IDEAL |
Storms near this place
48 since 1999Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Ideal in 48 storm reports between 1999 and 2025: 23 hail, 17 thunderstorm wind, 7 flood, 1 flash flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | $2,000 | The roof of the old school house was blown off. |
| July 2015 | Flash Flood | Ideal | $1,000 | A section of US Highway 183 was washed out. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | $1,000 | The strong winds moved an empty stock tank, stripped roofing tin from a building, and broke small branches on trees. |
| August 2025 | Hail | Ideal | - | Public called in a report of mainly small hail was observed, but they noted a few hail stone that were up to ping pong ball in size. |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | Wind gusts were estimated at 60 mph. |
| August 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | Wind gusts were estimated at 60 mph. |
| July 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | The spotter estimated wind gusts at 70 mph. |
| July 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | Wind gusts to 60 mph were reported in the area. |
| September 2015 | Hail | Ideal | - | The storm also had wind gusts to 50 mph. |
| March 2014 | Flood | Ideal | - | Minor flooding occurred along the White River from north of Hamill to the Missouri River. Flooding was confined to agricultural land along the river. |
| February 2011 | Flood | Ideal | - | The White River fluctuated above and below flood stage for several days, causing minor flooding of agricultural land. The river gage southwest of Oacoma along SD Highway 47 crested at 21.4 feet, or 6.4 feet above flood stage. |
| March 2011 | Flood | Ideal | - | Minor flooding of agricultural land occurred along the White River. The river gage southwest of Oacoma along highway 47 crested at 16.9 feet, or 1.9 feet above flood stage. |
| March 2011 | Flood | Ideal | - | Moderate flooding occurred along the White River. Water approached one house. The river gage southwest of Oacoma along SD Highway 47 crested at 23.0 feet, or 8.0 feet above flood stage. |
| June 2011 | Flood | Ideal | - | Heavy rain caused minor flooding of agricultural land along the White River. The river gage southwest of Oacoma crested at 16.9 feet, 1.9 feet above flood stage. |
| July 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | Three inch diameter branches were broken off trees. |
| August 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | Tree branches were blown down. |
| March 2010 | Flood | Ideal | - | Near record flooding occurred along the White River. The river gage southwest of Oacoma along highway 47 crested at 24.4 feet or 9.4 feet above flood stage. One home was threatened due to the flooding. |
| August 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | Wind gusts were estimated at 60 mph. |
| July 2007 | Hail | Ideal | - | Large hail lasted for 30 minutes. |
| May 2023 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| April 2022 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| June 2022 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| August 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| June 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| February 2009 | Flood | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| June 2009 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| August 2009 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| July 2008 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| August 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| June 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| July 2007 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| July 2007 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| April 2006 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| June 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| June 2004 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| August 2004 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| August 2004 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| July 2003 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| August 2002 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| June 2001 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| June 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| June 1999 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| June 1999 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| June 1999 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| August 1999 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
| August 1999 | Hail | Ideal | - | no account filed |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Witten | 11.0 miles | 5 | |
| Winner | 12.0 miles | 8 | |
| Jordan Junction | 12.3 miles | 5 | |
| Hamill | 13.2 miles | 9 | |
| Carter | 18.4 miles | 5 | |
| Colome | 22.4 miles | 8 | |
| Clearfield | 26.5 miles | 5 | |
| Keyapaha | 32.1 miles | 5 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikipedia article on Ideal | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q5987907 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1266832. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.




