Top |
Arts |
Business |
Computers |
Games |
Health |
Kids |
News |
Recreation |
Reference |
Regional |
Science |
Shopping |
Society |
Sports |
World |
Regional |
Languages |
News |
Blogs
Plunge forward!
Deadwood
From Wikitravel
North America : United States of America : Great Plains : South Dakota : Badlands and Black Hills : Deadwood
Jump to: navigation, search
Contents
Deadwood [1] is a town in the Black Hills of South Dakota. It is rivaled only by Tombstone, Arizona as America's most storied town from the wild frontier days.
[edit] Understand
Dead man's hand
In 1876 "Wild Bill" Hickok, a legendary gunfighter, was shot in the back of his head while he was playing poker. Legend has it that Hickok was unable to find a seat in the parlor where his back would be against a wall, thus preventing any sneak attacks from behind. As a result he sat with his back to the door and was later killed by Jack McCall. Legend has it that Wild Bill's hand when he was murdered was a pair of aces and eights, a hand that has become known as the Dead man's hand due to Hickok's unfortunate luck. The fifth card is a matter of debate, with some people claiming that it had not been dealt or that it was possibly a five or nine of diamonds.
In 1874, famed Army commander George Custer led an expedition into the area and announced that he and his men had discovered gold nearby, in what is today Custer, South Dakota. Two years later brothers Charlie and Steve Utter led a wagon train into Deadwood containing essential business supplies - prostitutes and cards - which led to a boost in industries such as booze, gambling parlors, and brothels. During this time notorious gunfighter "Wild Bill" Hickok helped the Utter brothers by scouting out any troubles the train might encounter. That same year "Wild Bill" was shot in the head while playing poker at the Saloon No. 10. His killer, "the coward Jack McCall", was captured, tried by a group of miners, freed, re-captured, re-tried by a court, and hanged. Legal proceedings have, thankfully, grown somewhat more standardized in the years since that famous crime.
  Historical marker, Deadwood
Another legendary event was the Horsemeat March of 1876 where General Cook led an expedition pursuing a band of Sioux natives fleeing the site of Custer's last stand, the Battle of Little Big Horn. General Cook and his men set off in pursuit with reduced rations in order to give a quicker chase, but they did not predict that the Sioux would burn the grass behind them. As a result, both the horses and the men had no food and the men eventually were forced to shoot their own horses for food.
Two major fires struck the town in the late 19th century. In 1879, nearly the entire town burned to the ground, including the popular brothel known as the Gem Theater. The owner, Al Swearengen, rebuilt the Gem bigger and more extravagantly than its predecessor. The town lost many of its residents, itinerant miners whose only possessions were destroyed in the fire, but Deadwood eventually recovered. Swearengen's command of vice led him into conflict with Sheriff Seth Bullock, a stern Western lawman and another of the town's earliest residents. The town began to flourish again, but was devastated once more by fire in 1894. Sheriff Seth Bullock and some of the other residents stayed and rebuilt even stronger than before, but this time, Swearengen left town. He was last seen as a penniless drunk, killed while trying to catch a train to Colorado.
The town's storied history was the inspiration for the HBO hit TV series Deadwood, which centered around Bullock, Swearengen, and the struggles of Deadwood to rise from a lawless miners' camp to a community and a civilization. The show incorporates many of the town's early residents and events including the depiction of a man who survived for half-an-hour after being shot in the head by a prostitute.
In 1989, Deadwood legalized gambling, making it the third place in the United States to legalize gambling after Atlantic City and the state of Nevada, albeit at more limited stakes than its predecessors.
[edit] Get in
Deadwood lies 42 miles northwest of Rapid City on US Route 14A. If you're driving from Rapid City you'll need to follow I-90 to Sturgis and merge onto US Route 14A West and drive for 12 miles before arriving in Deadwood.
Deadwood and the Black Hills area are best traveled by car (or horse), but Airport Express (605-399-9999), Discovery Tours (1-888-524-5655) and Dakota Taxi (605-920-2020) can provide transportation from the Rapid City airport.
[edit] Get around
Most of the restaurants, hotels, shops and sights are located on Main Street, within easy reach of each other on foot (save for snowstorms). Free parking is available in the lot on Sherman Street, but there is metered parking as well. A trolley service runs Sunday-Thursday 7:00 a.m. to 1:30 a.m. and Friday & Saturday 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. for most of the year, but Sunday-Thursday hours are reduced to 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 midnight during the winter.
The Visitors Bureau (767 Main Street, 1-800-999-1876) has maps and the usual array of tour brochures. They're also available at the History and Information Center on Sherman Street.
Adams Museum, 54 Sherman Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-1714, [2]. Summer (May 1 - September 30): Daily: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Winter hours (October 1 - April 30): Tuesday through Saturday: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. During the winter the museum is closed Sundays, Mondays and winter holidays.. Free admission, however a $3 per adult, $2 per child is encouraged.
Mount Moriah Cemetery, ☎ +1-(605)-578-2600. Overlooking the town from a steep hill to the north, Mount Moriah offers remarkable views of the area and the entire town, as well as the graves of Wild Bill, Calamity Jane and a few lesser-known luminaries from the Old West. (Seth Bullock's grave lies on a hill above the rest, a quiet ten minute climb away.) It is a well-kept cemetery with a beautiful cover of trees. Mount Moriah can be reached on foot from the town, although it's a steep climb. Maps are available at the gate.
Nelson's Garage Car Museum, 629 Main Street (Located in the Celebrity Hotel & Casino), ☎ +1-(605)-578-1909, [3]. This museum has collected some of the world's most recognized automobiles such as the jeep from TV's M*A*S*H, Magnum P.I.'s Ferrari and James Bond's Aston Martin. Free admission.
David Young's Bronze Sculpture Gallery, 608 Main Street (Located in Wild West Winner's Club), ☎ +1-(605)-578-3990.
Tatanka: Story of the Bison, Highway 85 (One mile north of Deadwood), ☎ +1-(605)-584-5678 (tatankadebp@rapidnet.com, fax: +1-(605)-578-2070), [4]. Hours: May 15th - September 30th 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.. Tatanka explores the history of the North American buffalo, which at one time had a population in excess of 30 million, but by the close of the 19th century the bison population was estimated at only 1,000. Admission: Daily Passes: Senior (65+): $6.50; Adult (12+ years): $7.50; Child (6-11 years): $5.50; Children (5 years and under): Free.
[edit] Gambling
Many of the hotels, bars and restaurants also offer gambling, although that may range from a row of slot machines to private poker and blackjack rooms, depending on the quality of the establishment.
Midnight Star, 677 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-1555. One of Deadwood's casinos, but this one is notable for being owned by Kevin Costner, whose film memorabilia line the walls.
Old Style Saloon No. 10's The Utter Place, 657 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-3346, [5]. Daily: 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 a.m.. The establishment where Wild Bill was murdered. It's one block south of its original location, however, leaving an opening for the newcomer in the original location to make the same claim.
Deadwood Gift Shoppe, 666 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-722-4975 (deadwoodgifts@rushmore.com), [8]. Sells clothing, jewelry, souveniors and other goods made in South Dakota.
Black, 11810 Gilt Edge Road, ☎ +1-(605)-578-1553 (rhanna@iw.net), [9]. Sells outdoor decor, statues, and statuettes.
Chubby Chipmunk Hand Dipped Chocolates, 420 Cliff Street, ☎ +1-(605)-722-2447, [10]. Handmade chocolates by Mary "Chip" Tautkus.
B.B. Cody's, 681 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-555-5555.
Best Western Hickok House, 137 Charles Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-1611, [11].
Bourbon Street Casino, 669-671 Main Street & 29 Lee Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-1297.
Cadillac Jack's Restaurant, 360 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-1500, [12].
Deadwood Gulch Resort, Highway 85 South, ☎ +1-(605)-578-1294, [13].
Deadwood Social Club - Old Style Saloon #10, 657 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-3346, [14].
Diamond Lil's, 677 Main Street.
Four Aces Restaurant, 531 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-2323, [16].
Jakes: Fine Dining, 677 Main Street.
Miss Kitty's, 649 Main Street.
Chinatown Cafe, 649 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-7778.
Consuelos, 649 Main Street.
Mustang Sally's, 634 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-2025.
Oyster Bay Restaurant, 626 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-2205.
Pizza Hut, 11 Charles Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-2443, [18]. Part of the nation-wide pizzeria chain.
Schnitzelz, 649 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-2828, [19].
Silverado Grand Buffet, 709 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-3670, [20].
Taco Johns, 90 Charles Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-3975.
Tin Lizzie Casino and Restaurant, 555 Main Street, ☎ 1-800-643-4490 (fax: +1-(605)-578-3168), [21].
Wild Bill Steakhouse, 608 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-2177.
 Mannequins above the Wild Bill Bar
[edit] Budget
First Gold Hotel, 270 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-9777 (gold1876@firstgold.com, fax: +1-(605)-578-3979), [23]. Check in: 4PM; Check out: Noon. $49 - $129 per night depending on day and time of the year.
Black Hills Inn & Suites, 206 Mountain Shadow Lane (Highway 385 South), ☎ +1-(605)-578-7791, [24]. $39.95 - $109.95 per night depending on time of the year.
[edit] Mid-range
Bullock Hotel, 633 Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-1745 (reservations@historicbullock.com), [25]. This sandstone giant was built in 1895. Legend has it the ghost of Deadwood's legendary sheriff haunts the hotel, possibly annoyed at the rooms of slot machines on the first floor. $110 per night.
Cole's Cabin, 21357 US 385 (Located five miles south of Deadwood on Highway 385), ☎ +1-(513)-578-2800, [26]. One bedroom cabin: $125.00 per night + tax. Two bedroom cabin: $165.00 per night + tax.
[edit] Splurge
Martin & Mason Hotel, 33 Deadwood St. (Located above the Wooden Nickel Casino), ☎ 605-722-3456 (info@martinmasonhotel.com, fax: 605-578-3250), [27]. Regular Pricing $180-$375 per night.
Mineral Palace, 601 Historic Main Street, ☎ +1-(605)-578-2036 (amber@mineralpalace.com), [28]. May, October - December: $89 - $209 per night. June- September: $ 139 - $259 per night.
[edit] Get out
This is a usable article. It has information for getting in as well as some complete entries for restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please plunge forward and help it grow!
|
