Pactola, South Dakota
18 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1893 and the latest in 1957. It stands in the Mount Rushmore unorganized territory. It lies in ZIP code area 57702. It lies near McCurdy Gulch. The Survey maps it on the Pactola Dam quadrangle. The federal gazetteer marks this settlement historical: it is no longer a populated place, though the surveys that recorded it still are.
Topographic sheets covering this place
6 surveys from 18 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.
- 1893 USGS Rapid quadrangle1:125000, 2 printings
- 1898 USGS Rapid quadrangle1:125000, 2 printings
- 1903 USGS Rapid quadrangle1:125000, 4 printings
- 1953 USGS Rapid City quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1954 USGS Pactola Dam quadrangle1:24000, 6 printings
- 1957 USGS Rapid City quadrangle1:250000
Fires near this place
270 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 270 fires within 5 miles of Pactola (historical) between 1992 and 2020, burning about 6,946 acres in total. 96 started naturally. 6 were 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 | 96 |
| Debris and open burning | 53 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 49 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 34 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 13 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 11 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 6 |
| Fireworks | 4 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 2 |
| Smoking | 1 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 September 2015 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | under an acre | Black Hills National Forest | LABOR DAY |
| 6 September 1993 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Black Hills National Forest | BEAR GULCH |
| 5 September 2016 | Natural | under an acre | Black Hills National Forest | BOARDING |
| 5 September 2000 | Natural | under an acre | Black Hills National Forest | HILLTOP |
| 5 September 1998 | Misuse of fire by a minor | under an acre | South Dakota Wildland Fire Suppression | WOODLAND CT |
| 5 September 1994 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Black Hills National Forest | EMPRESS |
| 4 September 2002 | Natural | under an acre | Black Hills National Forest | HORSE CREEK |
| 4 September 2002 | Natural | under an acre | Black Hills National Forest | PACTOLA |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
10 of 20 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 20 workings within 5 miles of Pactola (historical): 8 prospects, 6 occurrences, 5 past producers, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Gold, Gold, Silver, Antimony, Gold, Lead, Silver, Lead, Silver. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashley and Nyswanger | Gold, Copper, Silver | Prospect | ||
| Copper Glance | Copper, Gold, Uranium | Past Producer | Malachite, Pyrite | |
| Dakota Lime and Brick Co. | Limestone, General | Producer | Limestone | |
| Dexter Claim | Copper, Gold, Silver, Lead | Occurrence | Replacement | |
| Diana Mine | Gold, Silver, Antimony, Lead | Past Producer | Jamesonite, Pyrite, Pyrrhotite | |
| Duggans Shaft | Lead, Silver, Gold, Antimony | Prospect | ||
| Jenny Gulch Mine | Gold, Silver, Copper | Occurrence | Replacement | |
| Jenny Gulch Mine | Gold, Silver, Copper | Past Producer | ||
| Poisoned Ox Group | Uranium | Prospect | ||
| Dianna Group | Silver, Lead, Gold, Antimony | Prospect |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johnson Siding | 2.5 miles | 18 | |
| Thunderbird Homes Addition | 3.4 miles | 18 | |
| Big Bend | 3.7 miles | 18 | |
| Silver City | 4.3 miles | 15 | |
| Hisega | 4.6 miles | 18 | |
| McGee | 5.8 miles | 18 | |
| Ridgeland Heights | 6.4 miles | 16 | |
| Merritt | 6.5 miles | 17 |
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 Pactola (historical) | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q3360305 | 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 1267038. 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.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.





