Dakota Prairie Grasslands

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OUR HISTORY

Today the Dakota Prairie Grasslands present a scene of quiet beauty. They give little hint of human misery or of parched earth churned into dust by burning winds. But these lands have known strife, poverty, and dust; they are part of the story of the Grasslands -- a story that is a lesson for the future.

The story turns on a recent date, June 20, 1960, when the Secretary of Agriculture designated 3,800,000 acres of Land Utilization Projects as the Grasslands, giving permanent status to these public lands, and climaxing more than two decades of rehabilitation and conservation.

Establishment of the Grasslands opened the way to a hopeful, productive future. The Forest Service now administers the Grasslands as a permanent part of the National Forest System to promote stable grassland agriculture, a stronger economy, and the wise use of many resources.

Two main factors led to establishment of the Dakota Prairie Grasslands -- the way nature made the land, and the way people used it. Nature decreed the geography and climate in which grass dominates the pattern of life. This is particularly true where Grasslands are located. Early settlers took the land and used it in ways not always best for himself or the land. Attempts to correct mistakes led to land use adjustments, and these led to the Dakota Prairie Grasslands.

Geological forces made this a land of grass. They raised the western plains to their present altitudes, usually 2,500 feet or more above sea level. Mountain ranges were thrust even higher. High mountains receive most of the rain and snow, so that less than 20 inches of rain normally falls on the western plains each year. Wind blows relentlessly -- harder and longer than in any other part of the United States. Grass survives well on these high, windy plains; other plants must struggle to live.

Grass country's story includes some dramatic chapters in our history. Within the relatively short span of a hundred years the plains changed from a wild, native land to a country of farms, ranches, railroads, and towns. That century witnessed great explorations, the Oregon Trail, gold rushes, cattle drives, the days of open range, Indian wars, homestead settlement, and the closing of the American frontier. In short, those were the days when this part of the country was called the Wild West.

The people of the 19th century and what they did are part of the National Grasslands story. How they used the land set the stage for later developments. The early cattlemen used the land as it was, but without thought of management. Finally the farmers came into grass country; they used the land and managed it -- but in some areas for purposes for which the land was not well suited.

In the Dakota Prairie Grasslands areas, farmers began with trouble and kept it as long as they tried to farm grass country. Few could make a good living on 160 acres in the the high plains, but 160 acres were all a man could homestead under the law. Most new settlers eked out a bare subsistence on their little farms. For the most part their land was poor and unsuited for intensive cultivation, but the farmers' hopes were in cash crops, not grass.

By the early 1930's the farmers' situation was critical. Depressed crop prices and drought ruined marginal farms. Many people were supported by relief. Lands were abandoned or became tax delinquent. Debts mounted and mortgages were foreclosed.

There was less and less grass in grass country. Continual cultivation, recurrent dry years, excessive grazing, and relentless wind changed sod to dust. Farmlands were blowing away. Lands still in sod were severely damaged by dust blown from neighboring lands.

The hardships of those years are hard to imagine today, and overburdened the resources of communities, counties, and States. Many people left the land. Others were stranded by poverty, debt, and lack of opportunity.

In 1934 a Federal land purchase program, adequate farm credit, and other measures brought much-needed relief. U.S. Department of Agriculture specialists worked with State agricultural colleges and State and county officials to determine the major problem areas. In these areas the Resettlement Administration purchased thousands of uneconomic farms, retired them from intensive cultivation, and helped farm families find new opportunity in other areas.

The land purchase program brought about a basic change in land use. Men began to manage their lands in ways better suited to these dry, windy plains. Farms and ranches that remained were generally larger and better able to operate economically. The areas purchased were slowly rehabilitated and became summer pastures. Sheep and cattle now became the chief agricultural product in grass country.

Land Utilization Projects, as these areas were called, helped to bring grassland agriculture to the western plains. Grass resumed its rightful place as the dominant resource. Under leadership of the Soil Conservation Service, grazing associations and Soil Conservation Districts were organized. They leased the new public ranges under controls guaranteeing range improvement and conservation. Land Utilization Project managers led the way in demonstrating conservation techniques and practices. Project managers, ranchers, and grazing associations worked together to improve the range in every respect. The work went forward and still goes forward, moving to the ultimate goal of a fully restored range.

Now, the Land Utilization Projects on the plains have become the Dakota Prairie Grasslands, and a part of the National Forest System. They are important units of a permanent system dedicated to principles of land conservation and use.

From a high vantage point in the Dakota Prairie Grasslands, you will see at a glance all these elements of conservation and proper land use. In that panorama of sky and grass are the fences, the ponds or wells, and cattle or sheep grazing nearby. You might glimpse antelope disappearing into the distance, or be startled as a blur of feathers -- a grouse or a pheasant -- erupts from the grass before you. Down on a pond the ducks, plover, curlew, and the song of frogs tell how wildlife prospers.

Far away in another direction you see a cluster of buildings and trees; it is one of the ranches located within the Dakota Prairie Grassland. The rancher owns a spread and rounds out his operations using the public range, for which he holds a permit and pays a fee.

He belongs to a grazing association, through which he cooperates for the improvement and best use of all of the range, whether State, Federal, or privately owned. The association helps the rancher to coordinate his own range management with that of the adjacent lands. He and his neighboring ranchers, through their association, bear a percentage of the cost of many range improvements, for they know the value of good grass in grass country.

Beyond the ranch a road leads to town, and the town also is part of the Dakota Prairie Grasslands portrait. Local business depends heavily on stable ranch operations in or near the Dakota Prairie Grasslands. Outdoor recreation opportunities on the public land enrich the lives of the people. Part of the Dakota Prairie Grassland's grazing fees and other receipts are paid to the county for support of its schools and maintenance of its roads.

The Dakota Prairie Grasslands will continue to yield their many resources -- grass, water, outdoor recreation, and wildlife, but only under wise use. In this land of grass, all these resources are linked together in the blend that is multiple use and today's abundance must remain for generations of the future.