This study evaluates the effectiveness of the Lower Atmospheric Stability Index, more commonly known as the Haines Index for 42 wildfires in excess of 100 acres which occurred in the Black Hills National Forest. A majority of the fires occurred on days with dry and unstable lower atmospheric conditions, just the type of conditions the Haines Index was designed to highlight. Performance of the high elevation variant of the Haines Index on these fire days was lackluster, as the average index was just over 4, or somewhere between a "low" and "moderate" potential for large fire growth. The mid elevation variant of the Haines Index was found to be unsuitable for the Black Hills since a large percentage of the Black Hills themselves lie above 850 mb.