Black Hills Gold Rush
Encyclopedia
The Black Hills Gold Rush took place in Dakota Territory
in the United States
. It began in 1874 following the Custer Expedition
and reached a peak in 1876-77.
Rumors and poorly documented reports of gold in the Black Hills go back to the early 19th century. In the 1860s, Roman Catholic missionary Father De Smet is reported to have seen Sioux
Indians carrying gold which they told him came from the Black Hills
.
Prior to the Gold Rush
, the Black Hills
were used by Native Americans (primarily bands of Sioux but others also ranged through the area). The United States government recognized the Black Hills as belonging to the Sioux by the Treaty of Laramie in 1868. Despite being within Indian territory, and therefore off-limits, white Americans were increasingly interested in the gold-mining possibilities of the Black Hills.
Prospectors found gold in 1874 near present-day Custer, South Dakota
, but the deposit turned out to be small. The large placer
gold deposits of Deadwood Gulch were discovered in November 1875, and in 1876, thousands of gold-seekers flocked to the new town of Deadwood
, although it was still within Indian land.
The tale of first gold discovery in the Black Hills was thrown into question in 1887 by the discovery of what has become known as the Thoen Stone. Discovered by Louis Thoen on the slopes of Lookout Mountain, the stone purports to be the last testament of Ezra Kind who, along with six others, entered the Black Hills in 1833 (at a time when whites were forbidden by law and treaty from entering the area), "got all the gold we could carry" in June 1834, and were subsequently "killed by Indians
beyond the high hill." While it may seem unlikely that someone who has "lost my gun and nothing to eat and Indians hunting me" would take the time to carve his story in sandstone, there is corroborating historical evidence for the Ezra Kind party.
Many of the miners came up the Missouri River
from Kansas
and eventually returned there.
The Black Hills Gold Rush began in 1874. The first arrivals were a force of one thousand men led by George Armstrong Custer
to investigate reports that the area contained gold, even though the land was owned by the Sioux
. They found small amounts of gold in present day Custer, South Dakota
, and looked for better paying locations. They moved north, establishing the towns of Hill City, Sheridan, and Pactola.
At each spot they found flakes of gold, but not the bonanza they sought. Things changed when the miners stumbled across Deadwood and Whitewood Creeks in the northern Black Hills
. For the initial discoverors, each spade of earth revealed a veritable fortune in gold.
By 1876, miners had claimed all the land around the creeks. Although all the land was claimed thousands more flocked in, hoping to find a missed spot. The gold the miners found was placer gold, loose gold pieces that were mixed in with the rocks and dirt around streams.
Most good prospectors knew that this placer gold was eroded from hard rock deposits. So while many still flocked to Deadwood
, others looked for the hard rocks deposits that were the source of the placer gold. On April 9, 1876 Fred and Moses Manuel, Hank Harney and Alex Engh discovered a gold outcropping near Lead, South Dakota
; they claimed their find and named it the Homestake
. They had located the area from which the placer gold in Deadwood Creek had eroded. It was here that men would produce ten percent of the world’s gold supply over the next one hundred and twenty five years. Many more prospectors hoped to find another “Homestake” so they continued to look, but the Homestake mine was unique.
The workers crushed the rock to release the gold, concentrated the gold by gravity methods, and then exposed the concentrate to mercury
that would amalgamate with the gold. Miners call this kind of gold ore free milling. Gold existed elsewhere in the Black Hills, but it was not in the free milling state. In these conditions, gold was chemically bound to the rock, and very difficult to remove. It was called refractory gold ore. For many years, the Homestake operated as the only major gold mine in the Black Hills. Chlorization and smelting were seen as two methods that could remove gold from the refractory ore in the 1890s. More rock mining regions opened up around Lead and Deadwood because of this discovery.
During the gold rush, “Treasure Coaches” transporting large quantities of the precious metal worth up to $300,000 on each haul to Cheyenne, Wyoming
became a favorite target for road agent
s. The last recorded hold-up occurred around 3:00 p.m. on September 26, 1878, at the Canyon Springs station, about 35 miles south of Deadwood. The robbers bound and gagged the stableman and lined the stable wall with their guns through cracks between the logs. As the coach approached the station, the desperadoes opened fire. One guard was killed, and two guards were wounded. The chief guard took cover behind a large pine tree, exchanged a few shots with the bandits, and got them to agree to let him go if he would leave the coach with them. After he left, the outlaws tied the driver to one of the coach’s wheels, opened the safe with a sledge hammer and chisels, divided the loot, and rode off in different directions. Aroused citizens in the area organized manhunts, and the stage company offered a $2,500 reward. Several suspects were lynched, others were convicted at trial on various counts, and more than half of the gold was eventually recovered.
Dakota Territory
The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of North and South Dakota.The Dakota Territory consisted of...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It began in 1874 following the Custer Expedition
Custer's 1874 Black Hills Expedition
The Black Hills Expedition was a United States Army expedition in 1874 led by Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer that set out on July 2, 1874 from modern day Bismarck, North Dakota, which was then Fort Abraham Lincoln in the Dakota Territory, with orders to travel to the previously...
and reached a peak in 1876-77.
Rumors and poorly documented reports of gold in the Black Hills go back to the early 19th century. In the 1860s, Roman Catholic missionary Father De Smet is reported to have seen Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
Indians carrying gold which they told him came from 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...
.
Prior to the Gold Rush
Gold rush
A gold rush is a period of feverish migration of workers to an area that has had a dramatic discovery of gold. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, Brazil, Canada, South Africa, and the United States, while smaller gold rushes took place elsewhere.In the 19th and early...
, 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...
were used by Native Americans (primarily bands of Sioux but others also ranged through the area). The United States government recognized the Black Hills as belonging to the Sioux by the Treaty of Laramie in 1868. Despite being within Indian territory, and therefore off-limits, white Americans were increasingly interested in the gold-mining possibilities of the Black Hills.
Prospectors found gold in 1874 near present-day Custer, South Dakota
Custer, South Dakota
Custer is a city in Custer County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 2,067 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Custer County.-History:...
, but the deposit turned out to be small. The large placer
Placer
Placer may refer to one of the following:*Placer deposit*Placer sheep*Placer mining*Placer, rugby league football role.Geographical names:* Placer, Masbate, Philippines* Placer, Surigao del Norte, Philippines...
gold deposits of Deadwood Gulch were discovered in November 1875, and in 1876, thousands of gold-seekers flocked to the new town of 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...
, although it was still within Indian land.
The tale of first gold discovery in the Black Hills was thrown into question in 1887 by the discovery of what has become known as the Thoen Stone. Discovered by Louis Thoen on the slopes of Lookout Mountain, the stone purports to be the last testament of Ezra Kind who, along with six others, entered the Black Hills in 1833 (at a time when whites were forbidden by law and treaty from entering the area), "got all the gold we could carry" in June 1834, and were subsequently "killed by Indians
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
beyond the high hill." While it may seem unlikely that someone who has "lost my gun and nothing to eat and Indians hunting me" would take the time to carve his story in sandstone, there is corroborating historical evidence for the Ezra Kind party.
Many of the miners came up the Missouri River
Missouri River
The Missouri River flows through the central United States, and is a tributary of the Mississippi River. It is the longest river in North America and drains the third largest area, though only the thirteenth largest by discharge. The Missouri's watershed encompasses most of the American Great...
from Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
and eventually returned there.
History
George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...
to investigate reports that the area contained gold, even though the land was owned by the Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
. They found small amounts of gold in present day Custer, South Dakota
Custer, South Dakota
Custer is a city in Custer County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 2,067 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Custer County.-History:...
, and looked for better paying locations. They moved north, establishing the towns of Hill City, Sheridan, and Pactola.
At each spot they found flakes of gold, but not the bonanza they sought. Things changed when the miners stumbled across Deadwood and Whitewood Creeks in the northern 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...
. For the initial discoverors, each spade of earth revealed a veritable fortune in gold.
By 1876, miners had claimed all the land around the creeks. Although all the land was claimed thousands more flocked in, hoping to find a missed spot. The gold the miners found was placer gold, loose gold pieces that were mixed in with the rocks and dirt around streams.
Most good prospectors knew that this placer gold was eroded from hard rock deposits. So while many still flocked to 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...
, others looked for the hard rocks deposits that were the source of the placer gold. On April 9, 1876 Fred and Moses Manuel, Hank Harney and Alex Engh discovered a gold outcropping near Lead, South Dakota
Lead, South Dakota
Lead is a city in Lawrence County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 3,124 at the 2010 census. Lead is located in western South Dakota, in the Black Hills near the Wyoming state line.-History:...
; they claimed their find and named it the Homestake
Homestake Mine (South Dakota)
The Homestake Mine was a deep underground gold mine located in Lead, South Dakota. Until it closed in 2002 it was the largest and deepest gold mine in North America, producing more than 40 million ounces of gold. The Homestake Mine is famous in scientific circles for being the site at which the...
. They had located the area from which the placer gold in Deadwood Creek had eroded. It was here that men would produce ten percent of the world’s gold supply over the next one hundred and twenty five years. Many more prospectors hoped to find another “Homestake” so they continued to look, but the Homestake mine was unique.
The workers crushed the rock to release the gold, concentrated the gold by gravity methods, and then exposed the concentrate to mercury
Mercury (element)
Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum...
that would amalgamate with the gold. Miners call this kind of gold ore free milling. Gold existed elsewhere in the Black Hills, but it was not in the free milling state. In these conditions, gold was chemically bound to the rock, and very difficult to remove. It was called refractory gold ore. For many years, the Homestake operated as the only major gold mine in the Black Hills. Chlorization and smelting were seen as two methods that could remove gold from the refractory ore in the 1890s. More rock mining regions opened up around Lead and Deadwood because of this discovery.
During the gold rush, “Treasure Coaches” transporting large quantities of the precious metal worth up to $300,000 on each haul to Cheyenne, Wyoming
Cheyenne, Wyoming
Cheyenne is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming and the county seat of Laramie County. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne, Wyoming, Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Laramie County. The population is 59,466 at the 2010 census. Cheyenne is the...
became a favorite target for road agent
Road agent
A road agent can mean:* Another name for highwayman, a criminal engaged in stagecoach robbery in the mid to late 19th century American West. * Road Agent , a professional wrestling liaison between the wrestlers and management...
s. The last recorded hold-up occurred around 3:00 p.m. on September 26, 1878, at the Canyon Springs station, about 35 miles south of Deadwood. The robbers bound and gagged the stableman and lined the stable wall with their guns through cracks between the logs. As the coach approached the station, the desperadoes opened fire. One guard was killed, and two guards were wounded. The chief guard took cover behind a large pine tree, exchanged a few shots with the bandits, and got them to agree to let him go if he would leave the coach with them. After he left, the outlaws tied the driver to one of the coach’s wheels, opened the safe with a sledge hammer and chisels, divided the loot, and rode off in different directions. Aroused citizens in the area organized manhunts, and the stage company offered a $2,500 reward. Several suspects were lynched, others were convicted at trial on various counts, and more than half of the gold was eventually recovered.