1961 Map of Cottonwood

About this map

Cottonwood serves as the central hub of this western South Dakota landscape, situated along the Chicago and North Western railroad line. The settlement's infrastructure includes a Landing Field and the Cottonwood Cem, providing critical points of reference for genealogists and local historians. The terrain is defined by dramatic drainage patterns, notably Lost Draw and Jackrabbit Draw, which feed into Cottonwood Creek as it meanders through the prairie. South of the town and railroad, the landscape opens into the Buffalo Gap National Grassland, where the topography becomes more pronounced with features such as Hinton-Coleman Hill and Ackerman Hill. This 1961 survey, updated in 1980, captures the area's transition from high plains ranching to protected federal grasslands, while preserving the location of several Gravel Pits that supported local road development.