Bridger, South Dakota
6 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1986. It stands in the South Ziebach unorganized territory. It lies in ZIP code area 57748. The Survey maps it on the Bridger quadrangle. 48 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,903 feet above sea level.
Topographic sheets covering this place
4 surveys from 6 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1954 USGS Pierre quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1955 USGS Bridger quadrangle1:24000
- 1958 USGS Pierre quadrangle1:250000
- 1986 USGS Cherry Creek quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
36 since 1993Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 36 fires within 5 miles of Bridger between 1993 and 2020, burning about 3,003 acres in total. 10 started naturally. 1 was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Natural | 10 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 6 |
| Debris and open burning | 6 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5 |
| Smoking | 3 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 2 |
| Fireworks | 2 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 1 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 September 2014 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Cheyenne River Agency | BAD ROAD |
| 5 September 2000 | Natural | 817 acres | Cheyenne River Agency | BULLCREEK |
| 27 September 2016 | Equipment and vehicle use | 15 acres | Cheyenne River Agency | CLAYTON DRAW |
| 27 September 2016 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Cheyenne River Agency | DUKES |
| 14 September 1995 | Natural | under an acre | Cheyenne River Agency | BRIDGER |
| 5 August 2006 | Smoking | 50 acres | South Dakota Wildland Fire Suppression | not named |
| 31 August 2005 | Natural | under an acre | Cheyenne River Agency | BRIDGER |
| 27 August 2002 | Natural | 10 acres | Cheyenne River Agency | CLEMENTINE |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Storms near this place
49 since 2001Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Bridger in 49 storm reports between 2001 and 2026: 31 thunderstorm wind, 12 flood, 6 hail. The reports record 2 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | 2 hurt | A trailer house was blown over by thunderstorm winds, injuring two people inside. |
| April 2026 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | SDOT submitted wind gust report. |
| July 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | SD Mesonet recorded wind gust. |
| September 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | SD Mesonet Station recorded the wind gust. |
| September 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | SD Mesonet Station recorded the wind gust. |
| September 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | SD Mesonet Station recorded the wind gust. |
| August 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | The spotter estimated wind gusts around 60 mph. |
| August 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | A tractor-trailer was blown over at the SD Highway 34 bridge over the Cheyenne River. |
| June 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | The spotter estimated wind gusts at 60 mph. |
| March 2019 | Flood | Bridger | - | The peak gage height at the Cheyenne River at Plainview reached a preliminary height of 18.98 feet on March 22. The peak flow of just over 10,000 cfs occurred after the ice was gone. |
| May 2019 | Flood | Bridger | - | Releases from Angostura Dam, combined with runoff from heavy rain, caused moderate flooding of agricultural land along the Cheyenne River. The river crested over flood stage (14 feet) at 19.86 feet on May 30, with a peak flow around 34,100 cfs. |
| June 2018 | Flood | Bridger | - | Minor flooding of agricultural land occurred along the Cheyenne River. The river gauge near Bridger along SD Highway 34 crested at 17.8 feet or 1.8 feet above flood stage. |
| July 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | Wind gusts were estimated near 80 mph. |
| July 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | Severe wind gusts lasted 20 minutes, reaching a peak gust of 68 mph. |
| July 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | Strong wind gusts broke tree branches. |
| May 2015 | Flood | Bridger | - | Minor flooding of agricultural land occurred along the Cheyenne River. |
| June 2015 | Flood | Bridger | - | Minor to moderate flooding of agricultural land occurred along the Cheyenne River. |
| June 2015 | Flood | Bridger | - | Minor to moderate flooding of agricultural land occurred along the Cheyenne River. |
| June 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | Wind gusts were estimated at 60 mph. |
| October 2013 | Flood | Bridger | - | Moderate flooding occurred on agricultural land along the Cheyenne River. The river gauge at SD Highway 34/73 near Bridger reached a height of 18.4 feet, which is 2.4 feet above flood stage. |
| October 2013 | Flood | Bridger | - | Minor flooding of agricultural land occurred along the Cheyenne River. The river gauge at SD Highway 34/73 near Bridger reached a height of 17.8 feet, which is 1.8 feet above flood stage. |
| May 2011 | Flood | Bridger | - | Flooding occurred along the Cheyenne River. The river gage on the Highway 34/73 bridge crested at 19.6 feet, which is 3.6 feet above flood stage. |
| March 2011 | Flood | Bridger | - | Moderate flooding occurred along the Cheyenne River. The river gage at the SD Highway 34/73 bridge southeast of Plainview crested at 18.5 feet, or 2.5 feet above flood stage. |
| May 2010 | Flood | Bridger | - | Minor flooding occurred along the Cheyenne River. |
| June 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | Also received half inch diameter hail. |
| July 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| June 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| July 2021 | Hail | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| August 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| June 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| May 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| June 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| June 2018 | Hail | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| June 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| June 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| July 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| June 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| July 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| July 2016 | Hail | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| July 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| June 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| June 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| July 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| August 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| June 2014 | Hail | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| July 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Flood | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| July 2005 | Hail | Bridger | - | no account filed |
| July 2001 | Hail | Bridger | - | no account filed |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Scaffold | 15.7 miles | 6 | |
| Cherry Creek | 22.2 miles | 8 | |
| Chase | 31.1 miles | 6 | |
| Red Elm | 35.8 miles | 7 | |
| Dupree | 38.3 miles | 7 | |
| Iron Lightning | 43.9 miles | 7 | |
| Allison Crossing | 45.1 miles | 7 | |
| Thunder Butte | 47.8 miles | 8 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikipedia article on Bridger | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q108809415 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1254058. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.



