Minnesela, South Dakota
| Minnesela | |
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| Township | |
Minnesela in 1890.
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 Minnesela
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| Coordinates: 44°38′30″N 103°51′32″W / 44.6416511°N 103.8588148°WCoordinates: 44°38′30″N 103°51′32″W / 44.6416511°N 103.8588148°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | South Dakota |
| County | Butte |
| First settled | 1876 |
| Founded | 1882 |
| Disbanded | 1901 |
| Named for | Lakota: "red waters" |
| Elevation | 3,173 ft (967 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 0 |
| Demonym(s) | Minneselans |
| Time zone | MST (UTC-7) |
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| GNIS feature ID | 1173792 |
Minnesela (Lakota: mni šeyéla; "red water") was the first settlement in and county seat of Butte County, South Dakota, United States. Minnesela was founded in 1882 and was located three miles southeast of present-day Belle Fourche. The railroad's decision to bypass Minnesela and to continue on to Belle Fourche in 1890 caused the town to be abandoned by 1901.
In 1876, American pioneer John T. "Buckskin Johnny" Spaulding and his brother-in-law Thomas J. Davis built the first home, a two-story log cabin, two and a half miles southeast of present-day Belle Fourche. It was constructed from logs felled in the Black Hills between Crook City and Deadwood; the logs were then hauled to the site. The house was made up of a living room, parlor, kitchen, children's room, and a main bedroom. This cabin housed Spaulding; Davis; Davis's wife, Lucinda; and the Davis' children. During the next five years, homesteaders gradually settled the area. After Spaulding left, his cabin was used by many settlers in the area until the late 1930s. Minnesela was plotted in 1881 by D. T. Harrison and Azby Chouteau. In early 1882, after the population of the area reached 100, the community decided to build the town on the east bank of Redwater River, at a location one-half mile south of Spaulding's cabin.
In 1882, Minnesela became the county seat of Butte County. The town flourished, and by 1883, its residents had built a post office, two saloons, about six stores, Commercial Club, school, Methodist church, bank, hotel, and flour mill. The school was built from the Minnesela jail. Minnesela had two newspapers, one of which was known as the Butte County Star. The cemetery, which has 102 interments, was created in 1887 to the north of the town. Because it was then the only town on the prairies just north of the Black Hills, Minnesela was an ideal place for a trade center. Minneselans called their town "the future metropolis of the Black Hills and the midland city of the United States" and the "coming Chicago of the Midwest."
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Wikipedia