Deadwood, South Dakota

Saturday, we ventured over to Deadwood, South Dakota to see a few things since we're leaving in the next day or two.

The first place we went to was Kevin Costner's Tatanka: Story of the Bison just outside of town.  This was a very compelling site on learning this history of the 30-60 million bison who once roamed North America and it's unfortunate downfall.  Only 1,000 survived their slaughter.  Kevin Coster said at the dedication of the facility, "I believe today that this place is bigger than the dream I had for it.  What it means to anyone that comes here will be up to them.  Tatanka was not designed as the white man's version of the Native American.  Rather it stands as a centerpiece for two cultures, one whose very lives depended on the buffalo and one who saw it as a means to an end.  It recognized and accept that this is our mutual history.  It can also represent the chance to move forward".

Tatanka contains an Educational Interpretive Center, Gift Shop, Snack Bar, and you can view the Dances with Wolves movie costumes.  I always loved that movie!  It was pretty cool to see the actual costumes!  I could take all but two pretty well but the two that aren't detailed is because the sun was shining on the glass. 

It had a beautifully done arrangement of Native American and bison artifacts and how the two lived together on the Great Plains.

These next couple photos explains hunting by the Native American and how the Anglo-European came and decimated the bison herds over fur.

And a few more photos of the Native American culture and the uses bison provided the tribes to live.  I appreciate the fact that nothing was wasted when bison were killed by the Native American unlike the buffalo hunters who killed for only a few things.

Lastly, a few more photos of the demise of the bison.

At Tatanka, we loved the bronze sculptures outside featuring 14 bison pursued by 3 Native American riders.  The bronze was commissioned by Costner in 1994 and completed by Peggy Detmers.  The 5/4 scale bronzed each weighing between 2,500 and 8,000 pounds were cast at Eagle Bronze Foundry in Lander, Wyoming.  Originally, Kevin Coster wanted to open a hotel called "The Dunbar" in Deadwood and have it geared toward Native American cultures but it was opposed and he didn't get his permit despite many court battles.  Finally, he saw the piece of land that the exhibit now stands on that was once a junk yard of old rusted out cars, bought the land, had the junk removed and turned it back into beautiful land where these bronze now reside.  The process was intriguing to watch on the 20-minute video we viewed.  These bronze statues are beautifully set up on a hill that overlooks all of the plains.  You could almost imagine yourself in the hunt and made the vision of yesteryear that much realer.  I also enjoyed reading about the site on the website and enjoyed the FAQ's page.

Scott enjoying the gorgeous view!

A beautiful setting

The following bronze statuaries represent the buffalo being forced over a cliff so that others at the bottom could begin the process of dismember the sacred animal for their survival.

Wide angle of the entire exhibit

Also outside is a Native American village.  I think they have live people out there in the summer months, but no one what there today.  They are currently getting things ready for the summer now.

Things you should know before you go there:  Hours are 9-5 in the summer; Admission is $10 per adult (13-59), $8.50 over 60, military, veteran, AAA), $5 free and groups of 15 or more is $8.50.  They also have season passes.  There is also no smoking on the premises, and no purses over 6x6x2".  No pets are allowed excepted carded and vested service dogs and there is no filming or recording at the site.  Still, personal photos are OK.  RV parking is available and there is a turn around in the parking lot, so just drive on in.

At the Visitor's Center, I loved all the great things for sale from leather shoes, moccasins, shirts, mugs, etc. but they also had authentic Native American items for sale and Native American Tea.  I bought 9 herbal teas and can't wait to try them when the weather gets cooler.  I also saw two bison pillows and fell in love. I actually bought the one on the left (the lighter colored one).  I loved the coloring in the black to brown one, but it wasn't as thick and full as the lighter one.  Billy, a Lakota was there and I asked him which one he preferred and he said the darker one but when I showed him that the fur wasn't as full as the lighter one, he changed his mind and said that one was a nicer pillow.  The furrier coat came from near the chest and neck while the less fur came from the sides.  When I turned the pillow over, the darker pillow's leather was nice but the lighter pillow had gashes, a tear sewn small gash and two places where you could see where the animal healed after being injured.  I loved the character of the lighter pillow and so I bought it.  Now, it sits on our bed.  It looks wonderful!

I purchased the pillow on the left.
It was a bit larger, plusher and had distinctive characteristics.

Once we left Tatanka, we crossed the main street and drove three miles up the hill to Mt. Roosevelt Friendship Tower.  The first 1.5 miles was paved and the last 1.5 miles was gravel.  One can park at the Mount Roosevelt Picnic Area lot where about 10-12 can can park.  Big Rigs and Motorhomes can also access this location.  Just pull around by the pit toilet and park on the side of the toilet, back into one section by the trees or near the road.  There's a large area to maneuver there.  

Once you arrive, there is about a half-mile mile hike up the mountain to reach the site.  Picnic areas are below and up top if you want to enjoy lunch after the hike.  The USDA also has a 14 minute video about the Friendship Tower.  The hike was very beautiful amidst Ponderosa Pine and Cottonwood trees with beautiful views of the valley below.

Mt. Roosevelt is a location where the 31-foot Friendship Tower is located.  Seth Bullock, a famous Deadwood Sheriff, was friends with Theodore Roosevelt and the tower was built in 1919 with the aid of the Black Hills Pioneers as a dedication to Roosevelt's life and a place where people could view wide open spaces that both men had become fond of during their lives.  In 1966 the Tower was then donated to the US Forest Service where a park now stands.  Roosevelt even has a park named after him in North Dakota that we will be touring the coming August.  Seth Bullock not only was Sheriff but also an early Forest Supervisor in the Black Hills, appointed by President Roosevelt.  Bullock would help establish Wind Cave National Park, Devils Towers National Monument and the D.C. Booth National Fish Hatchery.  President Roosevelt was known as the "Conservationist President" because of his vision to protect America's lands, wildlife and natural resources and so over the years Bullock and Roosevelt because close friends in these endeavors.

The Friendship Tower itself is only 31 feet high, but I have to say that those stone steps leading to the top of the tower were SO STEEP!  Each step was nearly to my knee and a bit cumbersome to climb but the views from the tower were stunning!  If you don't want to conquer the stairs, there is a viewing deck northwest of the tower.  It was a really windy day, Saturday and the view from the tower atop of the 5,690-foot summit of Mt. Roosevelt accentuated how windy it was.

After we finished our little hike at the Friendship Tower, we drove into Deadwood to walk the streets.  I love being here in late May - early June because there aren't too many tourists yet and walking the streets was enjoyable.

We parked at the Visitor's Center where there is free parking.  Parking is even available there for the big rigs.  We enjoyed viewing their Visitors Center and then started on our walk.

One of the first things we came to was Saloon #10.  This is the location of where Wild Bill Hickok was shot in the back by Jack McCall while he was playing poker in the lower portion of Nuttall & Mann's Saloon with his back to the door on August 2, 1876.

The room beyond the green is where Wild Bill was.
It costs $10 to see it.

A few doors down another sign was hung that read: Site of Capture of the assassin Jack McCall who shot "Wild Bill" Hickok Aug 2, 1876.

There's quite a few things to do in Deadwood.  Many of the things to do include: Historic Main Street, George S. Mickelson Trail, Adams House and Museum, Broken Boot Gold Mine, Days of 76 Museum, and Mount Moriah Cemetery.  Deadwood had three shootouts per day on the streets at 2 p.m., 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. along with the trial of Jack McCall during the evening by Deadwood Alive.  These are costumed actors who peruse the streets of Deadwood.  Here's a link to all the hourly activities that are held daily on the streets of Deadwood.  The Deadwood Alive actors also play with the kids and "teach" them to play poker and also have fun playing music with them.

Deadwood reminded me a lot of Park City except that the streets are a little longer and wider.

We went into a few fun shops and one shop in particular really caught my eye with the photography of Karen Mahoney, a South Dakota native and wildlife photographer, especially bison portraiture.  Here photos are AMAZING!  Take a look at her site.  These are my favorite two pieces!  I wish I had a wall.  I would have bought them both!

After we perused the shops of Deadwood, we drove up to Mount Moriah Cemetery to walk the graves and find Wild Bill and Calamity Jane's graves, but when we got up there, you had to pay a $2 per person entrance fee for a cemetery and there were so many cars, there was no where to park so we didn't stop.  And, we were so pooped from all the walking (I had 11,000 steps already) and the cemetery is on a steep hill.  But here's a photo from the web.  Next visit to Deadwood and we'll do this.

Web Photo: Mapio

We wanted to tour the 1892 Adams House, but the next tour was too late in the day, so we just photographed the outside of the house.  It's said this house was the largest mansion west of the Mississippi.  It's a Queen Anne home and has oak interiors, hand painted canvas wall coverings and stained glass windows.  After W. E. Adam's death his second wife kept the house exactly as it was with sheet music on the piano, cookies in the jar, medicines in the bathroom, etc. and the house sat vacant for more than 50 years until the Deadwood Historical Society purchased it in 1992 and restored it as a museum house in 2000.  We'll visit this also on our next trip to Deadwood.

If you plan on a visit to Deadwood, schedule yourself an entire day and start very early.  It's a fun place to be and lots of things to do with many restaurants.  And, you just may see Wild Bill Hickock, yourself!