How Lemmon, South Dakota Got Its Name (From a Famous Cowman)

Lemmon, South Dakota, is named for G. E. “Ed” Lemmon, a cattleman known for running the largest fenced pasture in the world, who bought the land for the townsite when the railroad came through. It’s spelled with two M’s, like the man, not like the fruit.

Where the name comes from

According to the U.S. Geological Survey’s record, which draws on an older South Dakota reference, the town was settled in 1907 during the homestead boom and “named for G E ‘Ed’ Lemmon, a well known early day cowboy/rancher in western South Dakota.”

South Dakota Magazine fills in how it happened. When Lemmon learned that a new rail line would run along the state border, he bought land for a townsite, and the railroad officials named the town after him. He had hoped the town would become the county seat for both Perkins County in South Dakota and Adams County in North Dakota. It didn’t win either courthouse, the magazine says, but he got his town.

Who was Ed Lemmon?

A big-time cowman. The National Park Service’s nomination of his house to the National Register of Historic Places says he was known for managing the largest fenced pasture in the world, about 865,000 acres.

Sources & further reading

• GNIS feature 1256086 (U.S. Geological Survey). The federal record for Lemmon. Says the town was named for Ed Lemmon and settled in 1907, citing an older South Dakota reference; gives 1908 for incorporation.
• National Park Service, G. E. Lemmon House nomination. The giant pasture.
• South Dakota Magazine, “Lemmon: The Cowboy Capital.” How Lemmon bought the townsite and how the railroad named the town for him.