Belle Fourche, South Dakota Belle Fourche, South Dakota Business District of Belle Fourche Business District of Belle Fourche Location in Butte County (top) and South Dakota (bottom) Location in Butte County (top) and South Dakota (bottom) Belle Fourche, South Dakota is positioned in the US Belle Fourche, South Dakota - Belle Fourche, South Dakota State South Dakota Belle Fourche (/b l fu /; bel-foosh) is a town/city in and the governmental center of county of Butte County, South Dakota, United States. The populace was 5,594 at the 2010 census.

Belle Fourche (French for "beautiful fork") was titled by French explorers coming from New France, referring to the confluence of what is now known as the Belle Fourche and Redwater Rivers and the Hay Creek.

Beaver trappers worked these rivers until the mid-19th century, and Belle Fourche became a well known fur trading rendezvous point.

In 1884, the Marquis de Mores, a French nobleman and intact of Theodore Roosevelt, established a stagecoach line between Medora, North Dakota, and Deadwood, South Dakota.

The Belle Fourche way station encompassed a stage barn and a saloon.

Knowing the cattle barons and the barns would need a point at which to load the herds of cattle onto freight cars for shipment to the packing plants in the Midwest, Seth Bullock provided a solution and became the parent, in effect, of Belle Fourche, the city.

During the next 14 years, Bullock acquired territory as homesteaders along the Belle Fourche River "proved up" and sold out.

Seth offered the barns no-charge right-of-way and offered to build the terminal if the barns would locate it at a point on his land, near where the present Belle Fourche Livestock Exchange exists.

By 1895, Belle Fourche was shipping 2,500 carloads of cattle per month in the peak season, making it the world's biggest livestock-shipping point.

This was the start of the agriculture center of the Tri-State region for which Belle Fourche would turn into known.

After winning a competition with Minnesela over the barns which now goes through Belle Fourche, Bullock's town went on to win the governmental center of county in the election of 1894.

Belle Fourche today serves a large trade region of ranches and farms.

The wool, cattle, and bentonite industries have been meaningful to the expansion of Belle Fourche.

According to the United States Enumeration Bureau, the town/city has a total region of 8.60 square miles (22.27 km2), of which, 8.53 square miles (22.09 km2) is territory and 0.07 square miles (0.18 km2) is water. Coast and Geodetic Survey officially designated a point 20 miles north of Belle Fourche as the geographic center of the United States.

It is the center of the country because the admission of Alaska and Hawaii to the United States moved the locale of the official center of the nation.

Climate data for Belle Fourche, South Dakota As of the census of 2010, there were 5,594 citizens , 2,322 homeholds, and 1,461 families residing in the city.

There were 2,511 housing units at an average density of 294.4 per square mile (113.7/km2).

There were 2,322 homeholds of which 32.8% had kids under the age of 18 living with them, 46.0% were married couples living together, 12.0% had a female homeholder with no husband present, 5.0% had a male homeholder with no wife present, and 37.1% were non-families.

The median age in the town/city was 36.1 years.

26.2% of inhabitants were under the age of 18; 9.2% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.6% were from 25 to 44; 25.6% were from 45 to 64; and 15.6% were 65 years of age or older.

Johnny Spauling Cabin in Belle Fourche As of the census of 2000, there were 4,565 citizens , 1,854 homeholds, and 1,186 families residing in the city.

There were 2,122 housing units at an average density of 672.6 per square mile (259.3/km ).

There were 1,854 homeholds out of which 32.4% had kids under the age of 18 living with them, 50.2% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female homeholder with no husband present, and 36.0% were non-families.

In the city, the populace was spread out with 27.2% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 17.3% who were 65 years of age or older.

As of 2000 the median income for a homehold in the town/city was $26,875, and the median income for a family was $35,506.

About 9.0% of families and 12.6% of the populace were below the poverty line, including 19.8% of those under age 18 and 7.7% of those age 65 or over.

In the movie The Cowboys (1972) starring John Wayne, the final destination of the cattle drive was Belle Fourche.

Jason Kubel, born in Belle Fourche, retired Major League Baseball player for the Minnesota Twins (2004, 2006 - 2011, 2014), Arizona Diamondbacks (2012 - 2013), & Cleveland Indians (2013) Lem Overpeck, born in Belle Fourche, 29th Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota Bill Pearson, born in Belle Fourche, comics artist John Strohmayer, born in Belle Fourche, former baseball pitcher for the Oakland Athletics, Montreal Expos, and New York Mets Geographic centers of the United States South Dakota State Historical Society.

"Broadcast Pronunciation Guide and South Dakota Pronunciations".

Information was taken from the Belle Fourche America's Hometown Booklet (1998) "Climate Statistics for Belle Fourche, SD".

"Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2015".

United States Enumeration Bureau.

City of Belle Fourche Belle Fourche Chamber of Commerce Belle Fourche Post & Bee, small-town journal Belle Fourche School District Belle Fourche Municipalities and communities of Butte County, South Dakota, United States State of South Dakota

Categories:
Cities in South Dakota - Cities in Butte County, South Dakota - County seats in South Dakota - Black Hills