RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of South Dakota >> Pennington County >> WastaIndex...

Welcome to Wasta ...

The town of Wasta is located in Pennington County<1>.

The pronunciation of Wasta: WAHS-tuh<2>

While we don't have a date for the founding of Wasta, you might consider that their post office opened in 1907.

From the  Census Estimates for 2019, Wasta has a population of 82 people<3> (see below for details).

Wasta is 2,310 feet [704 m] above sea level.<4> In other words, the altitude of Wasta is about ½ mile above sea level.

Time Zone: Wasta lies in the Mountain Time Zone (MST/MDT) and observes daylight saving time

Area Code for Wasta: 605

The ZIP code for Wasta: 57791<5>

Population Details ...

Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Wasta had an population of 82 people. This is an increase of 2.5% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 9.33% since the 2000 Census).

At the time of the 2010 Census, Wasta had a population of 80 people. This makes Wasta the county's 12th most populous community.

With a 2010 count of 80 people, the population of Wasta increased 6.67% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 75 people).

More information can be found on the Census Page for Wasta.

Communities near Wasta ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Wasta.

  • Wall
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Wall is located in Pennington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wall
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 885 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wall <6>
  • New Underwood
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
  • Quinn
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Quinn is located in Pennington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quinn
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 62 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Quinn <6>
  • Owanka
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Elm Springs
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
  • Wicksville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Wicksville is located in Pennington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wicksville
  • Creston ‑ Historic
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Creston is located in Pennington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creston
  • Creighton
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Scenic
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
  • Viewfield
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Viewfield is located in Meade County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Viewfield
    • Estimated population in 2014: 44 people

To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.

We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Wasta. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Wasta.

Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Wasta. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Wasta.

We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Wasta. See our Newspapers Page for Wasta.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Wasta ...

Looking for more information about Wasta? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.

In addition to the Tourism page for Wasta, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Wasta.

Adding Wasta to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of Wasta in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.

From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found (so far) for Wasta was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<7>

From that list, the Wasta post office opened in 1907.

For more details, see References and Mentions for Wasta.

Footnotes ...

<1>If you're interested in how the shape of South Dakota's counties, including Pennington, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
<2>The pronunciation we've provided is our attempt to give a phonetic pronunciation for Wasta. While it might not be exactly right, hopefully it will be close. If we have it wrong or there's a better way to pronounce the name, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
<3>Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Wasta.
<4>The elevation is an estimate for the area around Wasta - it will be higher in some places and lower in others.
<5>ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a town (such as Wasta). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Wasta or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS).
<6>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<7>A copy of the Blevins & Helbock Post Office list with background information can be found at:

      https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/