Gold Discovery in the Great Sioux Reservation
Gold sparkled in the prospector’s pan – the first discovery of the mineral in Deadwood Gulch. Exactly who the prospector was -- or the date and place of the discovery – is open to question. It is generally agreed that the Frank Bryant party found the gold in August 1875 on Whitewood Creek, probably 100 yards downstream from this spot. Word of the discovery spread quickly, and within months miners crowded into the gulch along Whitewood and Deadwood Creeks.
The Deadwood miners were part of the Black Hills gold rush which Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer triggered in 1874. His military expedition on the Sioux reservation had confirmed earlier rumors of gold. Prospectors swarmed to the Black Hills, in spite of government attempts to keep them out of the Indian territory. Early prospectors kept their activities secret, which contributes to the mystery surrounding the Deadwood Gulch discovery. The miner’s presence remained illegal until the Sioux treaty was ratified in February 1877.
[Photo credit:] South Dakota State Historical Society
Marker is at the intersection of Pine Street and Siever Street on Pine Street.
Courtesy hmdb.org
