Belle Fourche River

A view of the upper course of the Belle Fourche River in Devils Tower National Monument
Course and watershed of the Belle Fourche River

The Belle Fourche River (pronounced bel FOOSH; Lakota: Šahíyela Wakpá[1]) is a tributary of the Cheyenne River, approximately 290 miles (470 km) long, in the U.S. states of Wyoming and South Dakota.[2] It is part of the Mississippi River watershed via the Cheyenne and Missouri rivers. In the latter part of the 19th century, the Belle Fourche River was known as the North Fork of the Cheyenne River.[3] Belle Fourche is a name derived from French meaning "beautiful fork".[4]

  1. ^ Ullrich, Jan, ed. (2011). New Lakota Dictionary (2nd ed.). Bloomington, IN: Lakota Language Consortium. p. 861. ISBN 978-0-9761082-9-0. LCCN 2008922508.
  2. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Belle Fourche River
  3. ^ Nebraska, and the territories of Dakota, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming (Map). 1:3,000,000. Atlas of the United States. Cartography by H.F. Walling, O.W. Gray, and H.H. Lloyd & Co. Cincinnati: Stedman, Brown & Lyon. 1872.
  4. ^ Federal Writers' Project (1940). South Dakota place-names, v.3. American guide series. University of South Dakota. p. 4.