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Shaw

Ghost town · Clay County, South Dakota

Irene quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1970, 1:24,000)
Irene quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1970, 1:24,000) · U.S. Geological Survey, Historical Topographic Map Collection · Public domain

Shaw is a ghost town in Clay County, South Dakota. It is one of 8 former communities in Clay County on the federal names register. That ranks the county 4th among the 26 South Dakota counties with a vanished settlement on record.

The U.S. Geological Survey lists Shaw as a historical populated place on the Irene topographic quadrangle: the name is no longer in official use for a community, whether the settlement was abandoned, absorbed into a neighbouring town or renamed. The recorded location is 43.0792° N, 97.1587° W.

Key facts

USGS quadrangleIrene
Elevation1,366 ft
Nearest living townIrene, SD
Distance to it0.3 miles
GNIS feature ID1264508
Coordinates43.07916, -97.15866

Open the location on a map

What's there now

Shaw is no longer a community in its own right. The nearest living town is Irene, SD (population 521), about 0.3 miles away in a straight line, and the site sits at roughly 1,366 feet above sea level. Much of the land around former townsites is private; check access before you visit.

Nearby places

Questions

Where is Shaw?

Shaw is in Clay County, South Dakota, at 43.0792, -97.1587.

How many ghost towns are in Clay County?

Clay County, South Dakota has 8 ghost towns on record at Wayfarrow.

Sources and licences

Facts marked "approximately" carry an uncertain date in the source. Text on this page is generated from the sources above; no encyclopedia prose is copied. Last updated 2026-11-05.