Belle Fourche

Center of the Nation Monument

Belle Fourche, city, seat (1894) of Butte county, western South Dakota, U.S. It lies at the confluence of the Redwater and Belle Fourche rivers, near the Wyoming border, about 60 miles (100 km) northwest of Rapid City. The geographic centre of the United States (including Alaska and Hawaii) is some 20 miles (30 km) north of the city and is marked by a stone monument.

The area was a fur-trading centre until the mid-19th century, and in the 1870s farmers and ranchers began to settle there. The community was laid out in 1891 when landowners offered free land to the Fremont, Elkhorn, and Missouri Valley Railroad for a cattle-shipping terminal. Its name is derived from the French term for the area and means “Beautiful Fork.” The city quickly became an important market and shipping centre for livestock; it remains a major livestock market, particularly for cattle, horses, and sheep, and it is one of the largest wool markets in the United States. It is a trade centre for a large surrounding agricultural region producing corn (maize), wheat, barley, hay, and oats. Other industries include bentonite mining and processing and lumbering. The Belle Fourche (Orman) Dam impounds a reservoir used for irrigation and recreation. Annual events include the Black Hills Roundup rodeo (July) and a car rally (June). Tri-State Memorial Museum houses regional artifacts. The city is less than 15 miles (24 km) north of the Black Hills National Forest. Inc. 1903. Pop. (2000) 4,565; (2010) 5,594.