Greenwood, Lawrence County, South Dakota

Greenwood (Dakota: čha-phežŋ;[2] "wood [of] grass"), also known as Laflin, (c. 1885-after 1912), is a ghost town in Lawrence County, South Dakota, United States.[1] According to the book “Deadwood Saints and Sinners” by Jerry L. Bryant and Barbara Fifer, Robert Flormann died of pneumonia in Nome, Alaska, on July 4, 1900 and is buried in Seattle, page 168.

Greenwood, South Dakota Laflin čha-phežŋ
Town
Greenwood Location of Greenwood in South Dakota
Coordinates: 44.2202633°N 103.5615803°W[1]
Country	United States
State	South Dakota
County	Lawrence
Founded	c. 1885
Elevation [1]	4,941 ft (1,506 m)
Time zone	UTC-7 (MST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-6 (MDT)

History

Greenwood was founded circa 1885 and was known for its mine. The town took its name from the green trees in the area. It included a store, school, stage barn, smithy, post office, livery stable, and boarding house. The mine was known for its gold production, though apparently, the mine turned no profit and only covered the cost of operations. Robert Flormann helped to promote the mine and became very wealthy. In 1912, the mine caught fire, and Flormann fell to his death while trying to rescue a survivor. In 1971, the last standing house in Greenwood was torn down. The foundations and the mine are all that remain.[3]

Geography

Greenwood is located in the Black Hills in Lawrence County, South Dakota, United States at the coordinates 44.2202633°N 103.5615803°W.[1] It is southwest of Boxelder Creek and the Black Hills & Fort Pierre Railroad.[3]

References

1. "Greenwood". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. 1980-02-13. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
2. Bright, William (2004). Native American Placenames of the United States. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press. p. 157.
3. Parker, Watson, and Hugh K. Lambert. Black Hills Ghost Towns. First ed. Vol. 1. Chicago, IL: The Swallow Press Incorporated, 1974. 104. 1 vols. Print.