Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1908-12-19
Topographic Work In South Dakota.


in making a topographic map of the
} United States, and systematic examina-
, tions of the geology and waters of South
Dakota have been begun and are being
extended under Fedora! appropriations
The purpose of these seinvestigations is to
promote knowledge of the State and
TO aid in the development of its resour-
ces.
| A topographic map is essential as q
basis for the representation Of the na-
turs and resources Of the State, and is
almost essential to the development of
the country. ~
South Dakota has thousands of acres
of arid land, nSw bearing crops of sage
brush, that only need water to trans
form them into productive agricultural
lands it also has thousands of acres of
timber lands that need intelligent ad-
ministration to protect them for future
generations, but in order to accomplish
these ends topographic maps are abso-
lutely necessary to show the location of
such areas.
For the development of the mining
interests of state it is essential to have
good maps of the mountain regions on
which the prospector may locate his
claim and learn the distance of same
from railroads, and where power may
be developed for the treatment of the
ore.
The question of the storage Of the wa
ter supply of South Dakota is becoming
more important one every year, and
in order to study this problem to the
best advantage topographic maps of
large areas should be made in order to
determine the fall of streams, show
where reservoirs may be constructed
and to indicate points where power may
be developed and their distance from
points of utilization.
In this connection, for the develop
ment of power, as we'll as for irrigation
purposes, it is essential that all streams
be gagged In order to find out the amount
of water that can be depended upon,
and to secure reliable data if it is neces-
sary that these gagings be extended over
series of years. This part of the work
is in charge of the Water Resources
Branch of the U. S. Geological Survey,
and is being prosecuted as rapidly as
small appropriations will permit.
A topographic map also shows, with
out the necessity Of preliminary sur
veys, the most feasible grades and routes
for projecting new railroads. New roads
may be laid out accurately with a small
amount of work. The travelling man
and automobilist are glad to have these
maps, as they show the most direct and
safest routes from town to town without
inquiry.
In fact, today the first essential of any
enterprise is Topographic map, wheth-
er it be the construction of railroads, the
irrigation of arid lands, the building Of
highways, the storage of water, lumber
ing or mining.
In order to make clear the scope of
the topographic map of the U. S. Geolo-
gical Survey the various items that en-
ter into their composition are enumer-
ated. They are printed in three colors. |
In black is shown the culture, which |
includes buildings, roads, trails, rail-
roads, county and state boundaries, Sec
ton and township lines where they ex-
ist, bench marks, triangulation stations
and mines, as well as all lettering. In
blue are shown the drainage features,
such as streams, lakes, rivers, canals
and glaciers. The hill and mountain
features, or elevations, are shown by
means of contour lines in brown. The
contour interval varies with the scale of
the map and the relief of the country
where they are close together the coun-
try is steep; where further apart, gent
ly sloping, etc. (; where none exist the
country is practically fat
The areas selected for survey are de-
fined by lines of latitude and longitude
and are called quadrangles, which are
named after the most prominent city or
natural feature on the same.
AS permanent monuments copper
bolts, or brass tablets, marking the ex-
act geodetic positions of primary trian-
gulation points, are left at the most
conspicuous points throughout the State
where surveys are in progress. These
monuments serve as base for all gov
ernment, private and cadastral surveys.
There are also established permanent
bench marks, bearing on them In fg-
ures the elevation above mean sea lev
el. These serve as a datum for future
spirit level work, for engineering inves-
LEGATIONS and for such public works as
canals, railroads and other public or pri-
vate surveys.
The making of a complete topographic
map of South Dakota was begun by the
U. S. Geological Survey in 1891, and
since that time about 1854 square
miles have been surveyed, or approxi-
mately % per cent of the area Of the
State which is 1850 square miles. The
quadrangles covering this area, which
have been or are in course of publica-
ton are the Glendale, Columbia, North
vile, Aberdeen, Rsd6sld, Byron, Hur-
on, DeSmet, Mitchell, Alexandria, Oliv-
ct, Parker, Canton, Elk Point, Belle
Fourche, Redwater, st. onae, Willow
Creek, Vale, Deadwood, spearfsh, stur.
gis, Rapid, Harney Peak, Hermoss,
| Edoep,opt and nel elrichs