Pactola Ghost Town

Pennington County, South Dakota44.0736, -103.4838

Can you visit?

Public land, open access

Black Hills National Forest · Open to visitors

Nearest town
9.2 miBlackhawk, SD
Mild months
May–Oct6 of 12
Next ghost town
4.1 miSilver City
Illustration of a plains landscape
Illustration of the landscape type, not a picture of Pactola. No free-licensed photo yet.

Pactola is an abandoned town in Pennington County, South Dakota.

On the map

20 mi40 miRapid CityBox ElderSturgisLeadSummersetBlackhawkPactola
  • BLM
  • National Forest
  • State
  • Private or unlisted

Star: Pactola. Dots: other ghost towns within 40 miles, colored by land manager. Squares: towns over 1,000 people. Rings are straight-line distance. Live map: © OpenFreeMap, OpenMapTiles, OpenStreetMap contributors.

The closest town with more than 1,000 people is Blackhawk, SD, about 9.2 miles northeast in a straight line. The nearest city over 50,000 is Rapid City, SD, 13 miles away.

Ghost towns nearby

  1. Silver City4.1 mi west
  2. Merritt6.3 mi northwest
  3. Sheridan6.7 mi south
  4. Mystic7.8 mi west
  5. Teddy Bear8.5 mi south
  6. Rockerville10 mi southeast
  7. Tigerville10 mi southwest
  8. Novak10 mi north

Distances are straight lines. Roads to ruins are often dirt, and a 20-mile hop can take an hour.

Who owns the land

National Forest: Black Hills National Forest

PAD-US places this spot on Black Hills National Forest, land managed by the U.S. Forest Service. PAD-US marks it as open to the public. Park rules, fees and seasonal closures can still apply. Another parcel starts within a quarter mile: Pactola Reservoir. Ruins often spread across more than one owner.

The point is the town location from Wikidata, and the land record is from PAD-US 3.0 (USGS). Ruins can spread past that point, and land changes hands faster than the database. How we read PAD-US.

Weather by month

0°20°40°60°80°100°3611Jan3611Feb4419Mar5026Apr6036May7145Jun7851Jul7849Aug6940Sep5529Oct4520Nov3713DecJan: 0.3 inFeb: 0.6 inMar: 1.1 inApr: 2.3 inMay: 4.3 inJun: 3.5 inJul: 3.1 inAug: 2.4 inSep: 1.6 inOct: 1.6 inNov: 0.5 inDec: 0.4 inrain
Mild month (average high 55–88°F, low above 28°F) 32°F, freezing Rain and snow water, inches

Mild months here run May to October, judging by NOAA normals from Pactola Dam. Snow is normal from October to May.

NOAA 1991–2020 normals from the Pactola Dam station (USC00396427), 0.8 miles away. About 21.7 inches of precipitation a year.

Facts

LocationPennington County, South Dakota
Coordinates44.07360, -103.48380
Also known asCamp Crook, Pactola, SD
SourcesWikidata Q3360305 · Wikipedia article

Questions

Where is Pactola ghost town?

In Pennington County, South Dakota, at 44.0736, -103.4838. The closest town with more than 1,000 people is Blackhawk, SD, about 9.2 miles northeast in a straight line. The nearest city over 50,000 is Rapid City, SD, 13 miles away.

Can you visit Pactola?

Public land, open access. PAD-US places this spot on Black Hills National Forest, land managed by the U.S. Forest Service. PAD-US marks it as open to the public. Park rules, fees and seasonal closures can still apply. Another parcel starts within a quarter mile: Pactola Reservoir. Ruins often spread across more than one owner.

When is the best time to visit Pactola?

Mild months here run May to October, judging by NOAA normals from Pactola Dam. Snow is normal from October to May.

Are there other ghost towns near Pactola?

Yes. Silver City (4.1 mi), Merritt (6.3 mi), Sheridan (6.7 mi), Mystic (7.8 mi).

More ghost towns in South Dakota

All 70 ghost towns in South Dakota · Ghost towns near Rapid City