The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1902-07-18
IN
SOUTH DAKOTA
Area Reclaimed and Value Of Cropr /, Very Lar.o
Number Of Irrigators Increasing and
Systems Extended.

Tho area irrigated from streams In
South Dakota is confined largely to the
.o-r;torv known as the Black Hills coun-
trv. in the western parts Of the state, and
.omprises the following countless: Butte,
Custer. Fall River, Lawrence, Meade
and Bennington.
This region lies in a roughly shaped
.r;.nyle. with the -South-Da-
vota line as the base and the north and
south forks of the Cheyenne rives as the
sides.
Tho cheyenne, like all the rivers Of the
,,o;ns is subject to sudden rises during
storms or local ~cloudbursts, and at such
+;ues carries great volumes of water, lit
tie of which can be utilized. 1t receives
M mountain drainage in Wyoming and
Tho flow is irregular and uncertain. so
that very little land is irrigated from it.
Tho average midsummer flow of the
south fork where it enters South Dakota
"a only ten to fifteen feet. Two large
canals have been constructed near Edge
mont in Fall River county, ~appropriatlng
all the water in the river and also that
Of some of the tributary streams. These
systems were quite expensive, but the
acreage irrigated by them in 1893 was
comparatively small.
All Supplied From Cheyenne.
Practically all the area irrigated from
streams in South Dakota is supplied
from the tributaries Of the Cheyenne.
which head among the slopes of the
Black Hills and afford a small but GER
tain water supply because OF the tim
bered character Of the country which
they drain.
Important among these are the follow
ing tributaries of the south fork: RAPID,
Spring and BoxeIder creeks in Custer
and Pennington counties, and Beaver
creek and Fall river in Fall River
county.
The first three mentioned furnish water
to more thar One-half Of the area lrri-
gated by canals and bitches in the state.
The water supply is not sufficient for the
land under ditch, but the shortage could
be remedied by the construction of res
ervoirs in which to store the floods. This
would permit the extension of bitches
and the reclamation Of a much larger
area of land.
The first important tributary Of the
north fork is Bear Butte creek, which
supplies the water for nearly all the irri-
gated area in Meade county, it's full flow
being utilized.
In Lawrence county the principal
source of water supply is Speartsh
creek. which is fully appropriated, al
though by the practice Of economy in the
use of water a larger area could be
brought under cultivation.
The most valuable irrigated land in the
state is located on this stream, the prices
ranging from sos to $50 per acre. with
best alfalfa land worth as high as $50
per acre.
Artesian Basin Well Developed.
The great artesian basin of the eastern
portion of the state has been extensively
developed. Preliminary investigations
made by the geological survey indicate
that almost the entire state is under
laid by the Dakota sandstone, which,
throughout it's extent, is more or less
completely saturated with water.
Several of these wells flow from 1000
to 1850 gallons a minute, with pressures
in some instances over $50 pounds per
square inch.
The pressure of the large wells is
often used directly for power to run
large Touring mills, electric light plants,
sewage pumps and other machinery.
The principal use of the water. how
ever, is for irrigation and domestic pur-
poses, and the acreage irrigated has in
creased largely in ten years.
Examination of the numerous reports
received from irrigators from wells indi-
Gates a great difference of opinion as to
the relative value Of artesian water tor
irrigation,
This may be accounted for partly by
the fact that all these waters do not pos
sess the same qualities. some being quite
salty or very strongly ~impregnated with
other mineral matter injurious to plant
life.
Lack Of knowledge as to the proper use
or water on growing crops and the best
time to apply it is responsible for many
failures. Generally, however, irrigation
from the wells has resulted in augment
ing the yields Of vegetables and garden
produce and in insuring large crops OF
various cereals.
There were operated in 1899 in South
Dakota 1873 irrigation systems receiving
water from streams by gravity diversion.
lbe total cost of construction of these
was F~os,sfO,o u al 81"
$6.lS per acre irrigated.
The number Of irrigators increased
during the ten years ending with the
twelfth census year from 189 to 696, or
Izo.6 per cent, and the number of acres
irrigated from SIT to 43.676, or 177.9
per cent.
vi the total number Of acres irrigated
oo'4o3 were watered from streams by
means OF gravity diversion bitches and
o'223 acres from wells.
The total irrigated area in crops In
loS9 was 1891 acres, and the value OF
the irrigated products was $2OS,O65, or
an average of $3.50 per acre. The acre
age in hay and forage was 74.3 per cent
of the total.
District Fair.
A district fair, to be held on tho
grOupdS ~ <bo Coptro1 South DakOta