Loading map...

1951 Map of Vale NE

Name: 1951 Topographic Map of Vale NE
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1957
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1957

About this map

The Belle Fourche River snakes through the southern portion of this landscape, its path defined by the complex irrigation infrastructure of the Missouri River Basin project in the early 1950s. The settlement of Vale serves as the focal point near the river, surrounded by a network of engineered waterways such as the North Spoil Bank Canal, Antelope Lateral, and Richards Lateral. These features reflect a period of intensive agricultural development and land reclamation, evidenced by the numerous spoil banks and laterals throughout the quadrangle.

Rural education centers including Fairview Sch, Webb Sch, and Plainview Sch are scattered across the terrain, marking the community hubs for local families during this era. Evidence of shifting water management is visible in the Willow Creek Lateral (Abandoned), while natural drainage continues through Horse Creek and Willow Creek. This survey captures a specific moment in the engineering of the South Dakota plains, documenting both the planned Town Site and the extensive lateral systems that transformed the local economy.