Deadwood, SD

Sep 17     Wall - Deadwood, SD     108 miles  2 1/2 hours

We drove out to Deadwood today and staying at the Steelwheel Campround. Very busy this weekend but they had 1 site left. Passport America rate for 1 night only $19.00, the other 2 nights at $38.00 each. The campground is located a few miles from Deadwood, it's nice here but a lot of ATV's around. There's a popular trail right behind the campground. There's the Deadwood Jam this weekend. Music all weekend in downtown Deadwood. Should be fun.

Our site for the next 3 nights

 This afternoon we took a walk around Deadwood, lots of history....
Though many gold rush towns died almost as soon as they started, Deadwood was different. The nearby mines went through boom and busts, but the gold kept coming. Generations of miners toiled underground, and when their shifts were over, they came to Deadwood saloons, brothels, and gambling halls to unwind and relax. It didn't matter that this was all mostly illegal; Deadwood had always been a town on the edge of the law, and the people who came for a good time didn't mind bending a rule or two.

Downtown Deadwood

Things changed in 1989. After more than a century of gambling on the down-low, Deadwood became the third place in the US to allow legal gambling. The card tables and slot machines came out from the back rooms, and the town boomed. Fueled by the new tax revenue, the town began an ambitious historic preservation effort that continues today.

Brothels....see the ladies in the windows

What's on your head

Sep 18  Deadwood

It's real cold and rainy today. We stayed in most of the day. Last night dropped to 38 degrees. Today the high was about 58 degrees. We bundled up and headed to town late in the afternoon. Walked around, gambled a little, won a little, and had some dinner. When we got back at 9pm the temperature was 35 degrees. We're making good use of our electric blanket!

Saw these babies in someone's yard

Sep 19  Deadwood

Boot Hill Tour Bus

The weather was very nice today. When we got up this morning it was 30 degrees but sunny. It warmed up pretty quickly and the high was around 75. We went on the Historic Boot Hill Tours. A one hour narrated tour of Boot Hill (Mt Moriah), city landmarks plus visited the graves of infamous outlaws Wild Bill & Calamity Jane.

Grave of Wild Bill Hickok

Although Wild Bill Hickok is Deadwood's most famous resident, he was in town less than a month before he was shot down by Jack McCall on August 2, 1876. The former gunfighter and lawman was famous long before Deadwood. He arrived by wagon train from Cheyenne in the company of Charlie Utter and Calamity Jane. Despite talk of prospecting for gold, Wild Bill didn't stray from the Badlands, a section of Main Street known for its bars, brothels, and gambling houses. He was playing poker in Saloon No. 10 when McCall walked in and shot Wild Bill in the back of the head. Jack was first tried by a miner's court in Deadwood and found not guilty. He was later tried and executed in Yankton, the territorial capital, and buried with the noose still around his neck.

Calamity Jane's headstone 

There were so many stories about Calamity Jane that were exaggerated or downright false -- especially the ones Jane herself told -- that it's hard to get a true picture of the legendary character. Martha Jane Canary was born in Missouri in 1852, the oldest of six children. By 1867, both parents were dead, and 15-year old Jane, living in Wyoming, supported her younger siblings as a dishwasher, cook, nurse, ox team driver, dance hall girl, occasional lady of the night and later Army scout. In 1876 she joined Wild Bill Hickok and Charlie Utter traveling by wagon train to Deadwood.She was a wild, hard-drinking woman who dressed like a man and swore better than most. But she had her compassionate side, tending the sick. Calamity Jane died in the nearby town of Terry in 1903, and was buried at Mount Moriah next to Wild Bill.

In the afternoon we took a drive on the Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway. Very nice drive along a creek that winds thru the canyon. Fall is definitely here....the leaves are changing, my favorite season.

Bridal Veil Falls