BELLE FOURCHE

city, seat (1883) of Butte county, western South Dakota, U.S., at the confluence of Red Water Creek and Belle Fourche River, near the Wyoming border. The site was selected by the Fremont, Elkhorn, and Missouri Valley Railroad; it was settled in 1878 and was named for the Belle Fourche (French: "beautiful fork") River. Since its early days the city has been an important market and shipping centre for livestock. Industries include beet-sugar refining, bentonite mining and processing, lumbering, and brick manufacturing. The Belle Fourche (Orman) Dam impounds a reservoir (10 mi long and 2 mi wide) used for irrigation and recreation. The city is at the northern entrance to the Black Hills National Forest, and holds the Black Hills Roundup, an annual July rodeo. Inc. 1903. Pop. (1990) 4,335.