Adams House Museum was built in Deadwood

Deadwood, South Dakota

Deadwood is a city in South Dakota, United States, and the county seat of Lawrence County. It is named for the dead trees found in its gulch. The population was 1,270 according to a 2010 census...

, South Dakota

South Dakota

South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...

, United States, in 1930 by Deadwood businessman and former mayor W.E. Adams as a tribute to the Black Hills

Black Hills

The Black Hills are a small, isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, USA. Set off from the main body of the Rocky Mountains, the region is something of a geological anomaly—accurately described as an "island of...

 pioneers and in remembrance of his deceased first wife and two daughters. The museum was a gift to the city of Deadwood and it remains city property to this day. Deadwood's Adams Museum is considered the Black Hills' oldest history museum. Artifacts on display from Deadwood's past reflect the legends of Wild Bill

Wild Bill Hickok

James Butler Hickok , better known as Wild Bill Hickok, was a folk hero of the American Old West. His skills as a gunfighter and scout, along with his reputation as a lawman, provided the basis for his fame, although some of his exploits are fictionalized.Hickok came to the West as a stagecoach...

, Calamity Jane

Calamity Jane

Martha Jane Cannary Burke , better known as Calamity Jane, was an American frontierswoman, and professional scout best known for her claim of being an acquaintance of Wild Bill Hickok, but also for having gained fame fighting Native Americans...

, and Deadwood Dick

Deadwood Dick

Deadwood Dick is a fictional character who appears in a series of stories, or "dime novels", published between 1877 and 1897 by Edward Lytton Wheeler...

. The museum is open year-round and features changing exhibits and special programs. The Adam's Bros. Bookstore is located on the first floor. All floors are wheelchair accessible. Adams Museum houses JB Haggin train, Thoen Stone, Potato Creek Johnny's gold nugget. Adams House Museum is completely furnished with original Adams Family furniture and restored interiors. The Adams House was built in 1892 by Deadwood pioneers Harris and Anna Franklin. The museum was ranked number 3 among True West Magazine's 2009 Top 10 Western Museums. The Adams Museum and House won the Organizational Award of 2001. The same year it also won the Governor's Award for History display at the Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre, South Dakota

Pierre, South Dakota

Pierre is the capital of the U.S. state of South Dakota and the county seat of Hughes County. The population was 13,646 at the 2010 census, making it the second least populous state capital after Montpelier, Vermont...

. In 2005, it won the American Association for State and Local History(AASLH).