Though we are parked 25 miles northwest of Rapid City near Sturgis, South Dakota, Rapid City provides a good reference point for seeing how far we’ve on this portion of our journey through some of the western states.
Total mileage from Kaibab on the North Rim to Mt. Rushmore near Rapid City is about 1,275 miles. That boils down to covering about 100 miles a day. That’s a fast pace for the 1860’s but a slow one by today’s standards. For vacationing in a motorhome it’s fast enough.
Have you ever heard the saying, “Thar’s varmits in them thar hills”? Well, it’s a true statement out here, plenty of wildlife — especially rattlesnakes. Beware when hiking, a good pair of sturdy boots and a big stick would be wise when getting off a wide path. That has been the message we’ve received from Billings, Montana to Rapid City: “Stay on the trail and keep your eyes and ears open.” We stay on the main trail and haven’t seen anything like that yet. Thank goodness!
Deadwood and Lead
Today we struck out for Deadwood and Lead (Leed), South Dakota. Deadwood was a lively gold-rush boomtown in the late 1800s built along the floor of Deadwood Gulch. Deadwood is best known for its legendary figures such as Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane. There was one less known personality, but familiar to Byron, and that was Poker Alice. Poker Alice was an Ivers (Byron’s mother’s maiden name) and a cousin to Byron’s great-grandfather. In Southern Missouri she was not married while building a reputation as a “wild woman”. She had quite a reputation as a Faro (card game) dealer and brothel owner. She followed her clientele during the Black Hills Gold Rush to Deadwood and married a guy with the last name of Tubbs.
Deadwood has gradually been restored due to a percentage of the gaming receipts being allotted to restoring the town’s buildings to their original condition. Tourism is big business in the Black Hills and the Deadwood town leaders have made use of that lure. Gaming establishments abound on this it’s solitary main street but there is a lot of other interesting history as well.
Our first stop was the restored train depot and then a visit to the Adams Museum, both of which were quite interesting. We learned that the though Deadwood had a reputation of being rough that it also had quite a cultured society. It was also home to several Chinese immigrants at one point being second only to San Francisco 125 years ago.
This small locomotive, which ran on rails less than two feet apart, was used by the Homestake Mining Company hauling ore from the mine hauling up to 700 tons in a 24-hour period.
Except for the Holiday Inn Express and Hampton Inn, the buildings on Main Street in Deadwood have all been restored. Their next project is to restore the back sides of the buildings and bury the utility lines.
We then made the short drive to Lead (pronounced as Leed), which was founded during the gold rush of 1876. Lead was known for having one of the richest gold veins unearthed. It was here that George Hearst, father of William Randolph Hearst, amassed his fortune through an investment in the Homestake Mining Co. The mine was in operation until 2001 and goes 8,000 feet into the earth.
Our one stop here was the Black Hills - Fort Pierre Railroad Roundhouse to view a 35-minute multimedia presentation showcasing the history of the Black Hills Gold Rush through video, music and a 3-D map. It was quite an interesting presentation.
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