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1955 Map of Signal Hill

Name: 1955 Topographic Map of Signal Hill
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1979
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1979

About this map

Black Hills National Forest land dominates this mid-century survey, revealing a landscape defined by ranching and resource extraction along the border of Pennington and Custer counties. The distribution of family-named holdings like Doll Ranch and Sturm Ranch indicates a settlement pattern tied to the limited water sources of the high plains, such as Alkali Spring and Bull Spring.

Evidence of shifting rural life is visible at the Alkali Sch (Abandoned), which once served the local ranching families near Sourdough Draw. Monitoring this high-altitude terrain is the Signal Hill Lookout Tower, situated atop a prominent peak. From the steep drainages of Hell Canyon to the ridges of Antelope Ridge, the map documents a transition in land use, where the United States Atomic Energy Commission's interests coincided with traditional grazing and the early timber management of the national forest.