A geohydrologic overview for the Pecora Symposium field trip, June 1979

The settlement and development of South Dakota has been closely related to both its mineral and water resources In 1874 the discovery of gold in the Black Hills led to the opening and development of the area west of the Missouri River. Towns and farms both here and east of the Missouri were located near dependable water supplies which the settlers learned were not as plentiful as in the more humid areas in the east. Although there is still much dry-land farming and cattle raising throughout the State, the expansion of agriculture has depended heavily on the development of controlled water supplies. Water from flowing artesian wells was extremely important to early settlers and developers. Today, thousands of these wells still supply an important part of the water on which South Dakota's agricultural, tourist, and industrial economy thrive.