Some of the major records sources that can be used for genealogy research in South Dakota include:
- Birth, marriage, and death records were kept by some towns as early as 1800s
- Birth, marriage, and death records have been recorded by the state government from 1905 to the present
- Federal census records were recorded every 10 years starting in 1860
- State, territorial, and colonial censuses were recorded from 1860 to 1890
- Land records were kept by the towns and counties from the time they were settled
- Probate records were kept by the local courts from 1800s to the present
- Churches kept records of the christenings, marriages, deaths, or other information about their members
- Newspapers were written in many areas and time periods that contain information such as notices of marriages, notices of death, and obituaries
- Military records
- Town and county histories about the settlers and their families
- Naturalization and citizenship records were recorded by the courts since 1889
- Ship passenger lists, tax lists, and town records were recorded for many areas