Post on 29-Aug-2018
Between the U.S. and the Oglala, Miniconjou, and Brule Lakota, Yanktonai Dakota, and Arapaho people
Signed at Fort Laramie April 29, 1868
Guaranteed Black Hills to the Lakota as well as hunting rights in the area – Powder River Country was off limits to whites
Ended Red Cloud’s War over Powder River Country and Bozeman Trail - ~300 dead
People were living in the Deadwood area by the early 1870s disputing the treaty
1874: George Armstrong Custer led an expedition out of Ft. Lincoln into the Black Hills
Custer reported gold at French Creek (near Custer, SD)
All small quantities until November, 1875 – found gravels with larger amounts in Whitewood and Deadwood Creeks
Deadwood turned from a few illegals to a camp of 5,000 people
By 1876, a wagon train was bringing people and supplies
1877 - the Black Hills were seized
French Creek
Several earlier reports of gold, but nothing official
Last Testament of Ezra Kind found in 1887 documented his trip in 1833 where they “got all of the gold we could carry” – he was killed by Indians shortly after
1860s, Father De Smet reported seeing Sioux carrying gold they said came from the Black Hills – he did not pursue further
More rumors of gold existed throughout the region from the early 1800s on
The discovery quickly turned into a full Gold Rush
Claims expanded from French Creek up into the rest of the Black Hills
Charlie and Steve Utter’s wagon train brought in miners, businessmen, gamblers, and prostitutes 30 wagons from Georgetown, CO to Deadwood, SD
They also created an express delivery to Cheyenne - 25¢ a letter
September 26, 1879 a fire broke out around Main St.
Destroyed more than 300 buildings including some people’s entire belongings
The fire combined with declining placer deposits led many to leave
Most businesses rebuilt better than before
Deadwood after rebuilding
Seth Bullock – Originally came to Deadwood to open a
hardware store, eventually became Sheriff and civilized the
camp
Sol Star – Opened a hardware store with Bullock in 1876, after it burned they built a
luxury hotel, Bullock Hotel, which still stands – served as
both postmaster and later mayor
Al Swearengen – Infamous and brutal
owner of the Gem Theater, he lured and
often beat women into prostitution
Poker Alice – Cigar smoker and prolific gambler, men came from all over just to
challenge her
Potato Creek Johnny – 4’ 3” prospector who
found the largest gold nugget ever in the Black
Hills
Wild Bill came to Deadwood via Utters’ wagon train in July, 1876
August 2, 1876 Hickok was playing poker at Nuttal & Mann’s Saloon
He normally sat with his back to the wall, but he joined to game late and despite his pleas with Charles Rich to change seats, he sat with his back to the door
Jack McCall, a former buffalo hunter, pointed a gun at Hickok’s head and yelled “Damn you, take that!”
The bullet hit Hickok in the back of the head killing him instantly
McCall was tried twice due to the legality of Deadwood and he was hanged March 1, 1877
Came to Deadwood in 1877 and opened a grocery with his brother Adams Brothers Banner Grocery
In the fire of 1879, it burned to the ground, but they rebuilt better than ever
They made a fortune and W.E. became one of the most prominent citizens of Deadwood
He bequeathed his very large house to Deadwood and now it is a museum
Women were at first in high demand
Sarah Campbell was one of the first non-native women in Deadwood Daughter of a slave On Custer’s 1874 expedition as a cook She stayed and prospected, and later co-
founded the Custer Park Mining Company
The wagon train brought in over 180 prostitutes, including Madam Mustache, Dirty Emma, and Dora DuFran who owned the most successful brothel in Deadwood
Madam Mustache Dora DuFran
Martha Bullock Wife of Seth Bullock Worked to educate and civilize
Deadwood Opened the Deadwood library in
1895
Calamity Jane Frontierswoman who wore men’s
clothes Worked as a scout for the Army Joined Utters’ wagon train and
befriended them and Wild Bill Hickok
During the gold rush, ~500 Chinese resided in Deadwood – mostly bachelor laborers
1883 flood destroyed much of Main St. and they rebuilt on the preexisting rock walls – created a series of underground tunnels
The Chinese liked the tunnels to move their goods due to an ordinance that the Chinese could not be out past dark
Tunnels also home to several opium dens
Two of Deadwood’s haunted buildings – The Bullock Hotel (1894)
and the Franklin Hotel (1903)
The Bullock is reportedly haunted by Seth Bullock himself as well as other various apparitions and
ghostly orbs
Black Hills mining began from purely placer deposits
1874 – Custer reported gold near French Creek
1875 – John B. Pearson found gold in Deadwood Gulch
By 1876, miners had claimed all land around creeks in the Black Hills 1,000s of people still flocked to the area
Over 7,000 miners came through and around $1.5 M of gold extracted during the rush
Treasure Wagons like this one would carry as much as $250,000-$350,000 worth of gold in one shipment to Cheyenne – Heavily armed, they were still a target for
bandits…heavy gold bricks were at least a deterrent - $350,000 = 1,000 lbs
1888 – J.K.P. Miller founded Deadwood Central Railroad
New railroad replaced previous methods of bringing supplies, people, and gold in and out of the Black Hills
While most were looking for the easy placer gold, some went looking for the source – the Mother Lode
By 1880, the rush had died down and mining turned almost entirely to hard rock
Once the transient placer miners left, Deadwood became a more respectable town
Discovered by Fred and Moses Manuel, Alex Engh, and Hank Harney in April 1876
George Hearst and other investors bought the mine for $70,000 in 1877
October, 1877 Hearst took over the property and began hauling in equipment
Moses Manuel
George Hearst
1878 – an 80-stamp mill was erected and began crushing ore
1879 – Homestake went public, one of longest lived stocks on the New York Stock Exchange
Hearst began buying up all claims around the mine - one of his employees supposedly killed a man not wanting to sell
While most of the other mines closed in early 1900s, Homestake kept on going Due to size of deposit despite relatively low grade
During the Great Depression, Roosevelt raised the price of gold to $35/oz to help the economy – Homestake had a boom
During World War II, government classified gold mining as nonessential and Homestake closed
Homestake Mine- 1900
Typical Ore
After the war Homestake reopened but struggled due to the price of gold
Nixon removed government control from gold and the price skyrocketed – Homestake had another boom in the 1980s
Since then the price of gold fell and Homestake ceased operations in 2001
Black Hills were off limits, but we went in anyway
Custer found gold and set off a gold rush that led the government to seize the land Gold rush led to lawless atmosphere
Placer mining during the initial rush led to more sophisticated hard rock mining, which also led to the civilization of Deadwood
Homestake Mine, the largest of Black Hills mines, was also the largest and deepest gold mine in America when it closed
Almost 50 million ounces of gold extracted from the Black Hills with almost 40 million from Homestake alone