Show DAM TO ERASE OLD TOWN OF BOOM DAYS pioneer south dakota settlement Is doomed SHERIDAN S D sixty one years ago judge granville G bennett tossed his saddlebags on the floor of a log cabin here peered around the room and told the assembled frontiersmen that the first district court in the hack black hills was convened next year though judge bennetts courtroom will be under 20 feet of water and so will the rest of sheridan once it was the county seat of 0 pennington county once it was the location of the united states land office once it was the headquarters for south dakota miners and once it was the town where men came simply to spend money it was a true boom town but now the rapid city hill city izaak walton league and the harney national forest have made all necessary arrangements and sheridan is going to be flooded A dam site to flood the entire valley has been located in the national I 1 forest the forest service will build the dam arrangements are being made to buy the land which will be flooded and more than acres have already been purchased options have been obtained on the majority of the land the lake created by the dam will fill the entire valley covering nearly acres to an average depth of 60 feet it will be filled by spring creek horse creek and other small streams draining a territory of square miles the izaak walton league plans to develop a resort around the lake present plans call for construction of a lodge leasing summer home sites and installing facilities tor for all kinds of water sports |