October 10 Deadwood

Hello Everyone,

In its early history, Deadwood, South Dakota was viewed in the same vein as Tombstone, Arizona and Dodge City, Kansas. It was a rough and tumble place where it was difficult to tell the difference between a tall tale and reality. Now it’s a small town, revived in 1989 by gambling casinos, where dining, lodging, and attractions beckon to visitors. Among these are the Adams Museum, Days of ‘76 Museum, the Adams House, and Deadwood Original Tours.

A LITTLE HISTORY

The 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie granted the ownership of the Black Hills, of which the Deadwood area was part, to the Lakotas. When General George Armstrong Custer found gold in 1874 in French Creek near present-day Custer of the Black Hills, the gold rush was on and prospectors illegally streamed in. At first the Army tried to stop the flow but proved unable to do so. The Native Americans were moved to lands like the Pine Ridge Reservation.

It wasn’t until 1875 that gold was discovered in Deadwood named after the dead trees found in the gulch. The town’s rush was between 1876 and 1879 when miners poured into the area. The town filled with dance halls, 54 saloons, 35 brothels, gambling, and murders for which justice wasn’t always fair and impartial. It became known for such larger-than-life characters as Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane, Potato Creek Johnny, Al Swearingen and Seth Bullock.

When the Homestake Mine in nearby Lead was established in October 1877, the economy changed from gold panning to deep mining. Individual miners went elsewhere and began to work in other fields. This allowed Deadwood to slowly emerge into a prosperous Victorian town while losing a lot of its rough atmosphere when the Gold Rush ended.

Homestake did not cease until 2002. It became the longest continuously operating gold mine in the United States and now is involved in scientific purposes under Sanford Underground Research Facility in nearby Lead. It produced more than 40 million troy ounces of gold.

The September 26, 1879 fire, which started in the downtown Empire Bakery, destroyed more than 300 buildings and the belongings of many inhabitants. It caused the departure of many of these people to seek new lives elsewhere. That same year, Edison demonstrated the incandescent light in New Jersey. Deadwood had electricity less than four years later.

The railroad came to Deadwood in 1890 when the Freemont, Elkhorn, & Missouri Valley came from the east. The Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy arrived from the south in 1891. In 1897, a depot was constructed that was used as a station for 50 years. It now houses the Deadwood Chamber and Visitors Bureau.

As with many of the gold rushes, Deadwood’s attracted many Chinese immigrants. Their population peaked at 250. They primarily worked in service industries. The Chinese quarter included African Americans and European Americans who also lived in other areas of Deadwood.

Another major fire occurred in September 1959 which almost destroyed the entire town again. The resulting property losses led to a major regional economic downturn.

In 1961, the entire town of Deadwood was designated a National Historic Landmark for its collection of late 19th century frontier buildings, most of which pre dated 1900. With Interstate 90 bypassing Deadwood in 1964; a raid shutting down the final brothel, Pam’s Purple Door, in 1980; and another fire in December 1987, the town had a major decline.

Town management decided to bring in gambling as a way to stimulate growth. At that time, only Las Vegas and Atlantic City legally offered it. In 1989, the South Dakota legislature authorized gambling in Deadwood. Gambling started with slot machines, blackjack, and poker and has since added Keno, craps, and roulette. Tourism has become the watchword for maintaining and further developing Deadwood with its current population of 1,270.

Hard times hit the town after gambling arrived. The Grizzly Gulch fire in 2002 destroyed 15 structures including seven homes. The town was evacuated for three days.

SOME CHARACTERS CONNECTED WITH DEADWOOD

WILD BILL HICKOK

James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok, born in 1827 on a farm in northern Illinois, had a myriad of careers as he worked his way across the frontier. He was a fugitive from justice at age 18 and, worked at first as a stagecoach driver. He later served as a lawman in the Kansas and Nebraska territories and was a spy for the Union Army during the Civil War. He was also employed as a scout, a marksman, an actor with Buffalo Bill Cody, and a professional gambler.

He came to Deadwood to gamble and was in town for three weeks. On August 2, 1876, at Lewis, Nuttal & Mann’s Saloon Number 10, he was shot by Jack McCall, an unsuccessful gambler. The motive was never clear.

McCall had lost all his money in the game the night before so Hickok treated him to dinner and then to breakfast the next morning. Usually he sat with his back to the wall so he could see the entrance. However, the next morning, the only seat available for poker was one facing away from the door. He asked Charles Rich twice to change seats but Rich refused.

McCall entered the saloon, drew his Colt 45-caliber revolver, and shouted “Damn you! Take that!” before shooting Hickok directly into the back of his head. Hickok died instantly. He is buried at Mount Moriah Cemetery.

McCall was captured, tried by an informal jury of miners and businessmen, found innocent, and let loose. McCall later bragged about killing Hickok. He was given a new trial in Yankton, the Capitol of the Dakota territory; found guilty and hanged March 1, 1877. He was buried with the rope still around his neck.

During the summer, you can observe Hickok artifacts while having a beer or sarsparilla at Saloon No. 10 at 657 Main Street, which was across the street from the shooting. There are so many historic photos and artifacts hanging from the walls that the saloon bills itself as “the only museum in the world with a bar.” Supposedly you can see Hickok’s chair, but it is more likely it was destroyed in the 1879 fire. You can visit the original location of the shooting at the Wild Bill Bar at 624 Main Street.

The saloon reenacts the events of Wild Bill’s final card game at 1:00, 3:00, 5:00, and 7:00 p.m. On summer evenings, the trial of Jack McCall is held in the Masonic Lodge (715 Main Street) at 7:30 p.m. The shooting of Hickok is free, but admission to the trial is $6 for adults and $3 for children.

CALAMITY JANE

Calamity Jane was born in Mercer County, Missouri as Martha Jane Canary on May 1, 1852. She moved with her family to Virginia City, Montana at age thirteen. At age 14, when she became an orphan, she took charge of her five younger siblings and moved them to Piedmont, Wyoming. In Piedmont, she had numerous jobs to support her family: dishwasher, cook, waitress, dance hall girl, nurse, and ox team driver. In 1874, she worked as a scout for Fort Russell and later as a prostitute from time to time at Fort Laramie.

It is unsure how she got her nickname. Some say it was because there was a calamity everywhere she went. She was a frontier woman and professional scout known for her rough side - dressing in men’s clothes, swearing, alcoholism, and prostitution. However, she also had a soft side. When Deadwood had an epidemic of smallpox beginning August 12, 1876, she took care of the many who were ill.

Calamity arrived on the same wagon train from Fort Laramie to Deadwood with Hickok in 1876. She claimed to be in love with Wild Bill, but they were just casual friends and her feelings were never returned. She became friends with Dora DuFran, the Black Hills’ leading madam, and was occasionally employed by her. In her autobiography, she claimed that at one time, she saved passengers in a stagecoach by diverting several Plains Indians who were pursuing the vehicle. When the stagecoach driver was wounded, she said she took over the reins and took the stagecoach to Deadwood.

Later in her life, she appeared in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show as a storyteller and at the 1901 Pan American Exposition. After returning to the Black Hills in 1903, she cooked and did the laundry for DuFran’s brothel girls in Belle Fourche, South Dakota. She died in Terry, South Dakota at age 51 from inflammation of the bowels and pneumonia. She is buried next to Hickok at Mount Moriah Cemetery.

SETH BULLOCK

Seth Bullock was born in Ontario, Canada. He became a resident of Helena, Montana in 1867. He befriended Sol Star with both entering politics. Star served as territorial auditor and personal secretary to the Governor of Montana. Bullock was elected to the Territorial Senate at age 21. In that office, he introduced the resolution to make Yellowstone a national park. He was also the sheriff of Lewis and Clark County.

The two decided to go to Deadwood and establish a hardware store. They arrived on August 3, 1876. The store was very successful with items ranging from chamber pots to dynamite, axes, ropes, boots, and picks. When his and Star’s hardware store burned down in 1884, they built the Bullock Hotel, which is still standing on the site.

Star served for 14 years as mayor of Deadwood and almost 20 years as clerk of courts when Lawrence County was legally organized. In 1877, Bullock was appointed the first sheriff of the newly formed county by South Dakota Governor Pennington. He served in that capacity for one term but in law enforcement for several years.

Wyatt Earp was attracted to Deadwood since it was a booming gold boomtown. He had thoughts of becoming a sheriff. However, Bullock already had that job. Walter Kovacs in Keeping the Peace: Tales from the Old West said “According to Ken Kellar, Seth Bullock’s grandson, Wyatt Earp and his grandfather had a “show down” where Earp was convinced his services were not needed to enforce the law in Deadwood.”

Bullock is credited with bringing alfalfa farming to South Dakota in 1881. He, Star, and Harris Franklin, who was the first owner of the Adams House, invested in the Deadwood Flouring Mill. Bullock was also involved with mining and expanded his business interests with Star to Spearfish, Sturgis, and Custer. He was instrumental in forming the town of Belle Fourche.

There is confusion about how Teddy Roosevelt met Seth Bullock. Here is what the Theodore Roosevelt Center at Dickinson University says. “According to a letter Roosevelt wrote to his son Kermit, he first met Bullock in 1892 while traveling from Medora, North Dakota to Deadwood. Both men also told a story about arresting a horse thief during Roosevelt’s time as a deputy sheriff of Billings County which would place their first meeting in the mid-1880s before Bullock’s move to Deadwood.”

Bullock became a member of the Rough Riders during the Spanish American War. When Roosevelt was vice president, he appointed Bullock as the first forest supervisor of the Black Hills Reserve. As president, Roosevelt appointed Bullock to be U.S. Marshall for South Dakota from 1905 to 1914.

Bullock died of colon cancer in Deadwood on September 23, 1919. He is buried in Mount Moriah Cemetery. His ghost is known to still roam the Bullock Hotel. A ghost tour is given nightly during the summer at the hotel at 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. The one hour tour costs $10. Call (605) 578-1745 for reservations.

DEADWOOD DICK

Nat Love was born in 1854 as a slave on the Robert Love plantation in Davidson County, Tennessee. His father was a foreman while his mother worked in the kitchen. After taking various jobs on plantations, he discovered he had great skill in breaking horses.

Because of his various ranch jobs, his cowboy’s skills developed as did his shooting skills with a .45 caliber revolver. He spent three years with the Duval Ranch in Dodge City, Kansas before joining the Gallinger Ranch located along the Gila River in Arizona in 1872. There he fought off Indians and rustlers; met such famous men as Pat Garrett, Bat Masterson, and Billy the Kid; and was known as Red River Dick.

The Gallingers in the spring of 1876 were sent to deliver a herd of 3,000 steers to Deadwood, South Dakota during a 4th of July celebration. One organized event was a “cowboy” contest with contests in roping, bridling, saddling, and shooting. Nat won all of the events, the $200 prize, and the nickname “Deadwood Dick.”

He worked as a cowboy for the next 15 years in the southwest before becoming a Pullman porter for the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad. He lived in several western states before settling down in California as a guard and courier for a Los Angeles security firm. He died in 1921.

POTATO CREEK JOHNNY

Born in Wales, in 1883, John Perrett, a.k.a. Potato Creek Johnny, quickly made his way to Deadwood. He was a small man, only 4'3" tall, who in 1929 found one of the area’s largest gold nuggets. Some claim the leg-shaped nugget was a melted mass of gold that he had stolen from a neighboring miner. The claim of it being a stolen mass has never been verified. It weighed in at 7.75 troy ounces and was sold to W. E. Adams for the Adams Museum where it is still on display.

In the 1930s and 1940s, visitors came to his cabin to hear his prospecting tales while they watched him pan for gold. He promoted Deadwood until he died in February 1943 at the age of 77 and is buried at Mount Moriah Cemetery near Hickok and Calamity.

AL SWEARINGEN

The town of Deadwood’s own web site describes Ellis Albert “Al” Swearingen as one of Deadwood’s “most infamous and brutal residents.” He opened the Gem Theater in 1877, one of the town’s earliest “entertainment” venues. He was a pimp who attracted young girls and forced them to become prostitutes. His alliances and financial payoffs kept him insulated from the general drive to clean up the town.

His section of Deadwood was called the Badlands. It earned its reputation through its saloons, brothels, theaters, gambling halls, and opium houses. According to Legends of America, Bullock and Swearingen drew an imaginary line on Main Street. Swearingen controlled the Badlands, the lower end of Main Street, while Sheriff Bullock maintained upper Main Street.

The theater, despite having to be rebuilt twice from fires, existed for 22 years. Someone stole all the fire hydrant wrenches just before it burned a third time to the ground in 1899 causing Swearingen to leave town and head for Denver. His body was found along a streetcar track - cause of death unknown. Today the theater’s site is home to Mineral Palace Hotel and Gaming at 601 Main Street. You can see photographs of the Gem in the Adams Museum.

ATTRACTIONS TO VISIT

ORIGINAL DEADWOOD TOURS

Though there are several trolley and bus tours that explore Deadwood, the oldest is Kevin Costner’s Original Deadwood Tours. Costner's movie Dances with Wolves was filmed in the Black Hills. It’s an hour tour on a school bus. My difficulty with it was climbing on and off the very high steps to enter and exit the bus. It also holds 45 passengers so it was a little crowded. I found our guide, Dave, an excellent speaker who knew just when to throw in some comedic statements. He really knew Deadwood's story.

You will learn the history of this town and its characters and make two stops. You’ll pass where Wild Bill was actually killed, the Franklin and Bullock Hotels, depot, courthouse, and a bust of Hickok sculpted by Korczak Zielkowski of Crazy Horse Memorial fame. The Chinese and Badland sections of town will be pointed out as will the Yates shaft of the Homestake Mine.

One stop is at the Mount Moriah Cemetery where you can get off and explore the graves of Hickok, Calamity Jane, and Potato Creek Johnny. Be advised it is a half mile walk back to the graves with 29 steps. Your driver will educate you about this famous “Boot Hill” such as that there are Chinese, Jewish, Civil War, and children’s sections and a pauper’s field. Though it wasn’t the town’s first cemetery, approximately 3,600 people are buried there. The second stop is a 300-foot high overlook of Deadwood from the cemetery.

The tour starts in front of the Midnight Star Casino at 677 Main Street. Ticket prices are $15 for adults (ages 13 and up) and $6 for children ages 6-12. A $1.00 discount exists for seniors, AAA, and military/veterans if asked for. This is a daily summer attraction from May to the end of September. It is run at 10:30 a.m., 12:15 p.m., 1:30 p.m., and 3:30 p.m. Call for reservations at (605) 578-2091. A 48-hour notice to cancel is required for a full refund.

ADAMS MUSEUM
W. E. Adams, a prominent Deadwood businessman, founded the Adams Museum in 1930. Shortly after its completion, Adams gave it to the city. This oldest museum of the Black Hills has been affectionately called “Deadwood’s Attic” as it displays the treasures of the town’s history.

You can find Potato Creek Johnny’s huge nugget and the mysterious Thoen Stone. It’s a sandstone slab dated 1834 found by Louis Thoen in 1887. Writing on it, recorded by Ezra Kind and his party, stated gold may have been discovered in the Black Hills 40 years before the Custer Expedition of 1874.

You’ll see the first locomotive to roam the Black Hills. It is dated 1879 and was owned by the Homestake Mining Company. Powered by wood, it went from mine to mine to the processing plant. It was a Baldwin and ran on a narrow gauge track.

Immigrants aren’t forgotten. Check out artifacts from those who inhabited Deadwood.

Living with Legends allows you to become acquainted with Deadwood’s unique personalities. You’ll see the studio portraits and/or personal belongings of such people as Seth Bullock, Deadwood Dick, and Calamity Jane.

For example, you can see the cards that were possibly in Hickok’s hand when he was killed. Called the Dead Man’s Hand, it consisted of two eights, two aces, and the Queen of Hearts. They have his razor blades, the gun he was carrying, and his lucky pocket rock. Look for the vandalized sculpture of Hickok from Mount Moriah cemetery, and N. C. Wyeth’s 1905-1907 pencil sketch of him.

The Risky Business exhibit deals with crime, prostitution, and gambling. You’ll see the door with multiple locks and a peephole from Pam’s Purple Door brothel, the hat and coat of one of its last madams, Pam Holliday, and high heels of another prostitute. It’s easy to spot the old slot machine representing Deadwood’s gambling.

Part of the Black Hills’ Believe it or Not exhibit is a 97-piece nudist colony of hand carved figures by Robert Poe. He was a disabled miner who spent his time whittling naked people dancing, playing volleyball, and shooting arrows. Of the pieces, the only man is said to be Poe.

Besides that folk art, look for the John Soggy collection of nine hand carved replicas of carriages. This Spearfish wood carver chose to include horses and their human drivers. All are carved with much attention to detail. Every bolt, piece of harness, and accessory can be seen. The ones here include a military wagon and a chuck wagon. More can be seen at the Days of ‘76 museum.

The Native American collection exhibits everything from porcupine quill moccasins to beaded moccasins as well as such trade items as mirrors and combs.

The museum has oddities also: two stuffed dogs and a two-headed calf. The puppies belonged to John Grey, who came in on the same wagon train as Hickok and Calamity Jane. It’s possible that one of the pups may have even licked Hickok’s boots.

On the lower level, you will find displays focusing on the Black Hills’ natural history. This includes cases of rocks and minerals including petrified wood. One of the museum’s signature pieces is a unique fossil of a plesiosaur ( a marine reptile). Dating from 95 million years ago, it was found in a pasture in 1934 by Charles Haas and his son Arthur. Almost 70 years later, scientists discovered the fossil was a new species. It was named Pahasapasaurus Hasai honoring the Black Hills and the family.

The year round facility is located at 54 Sherman Street in Deadwood. The telephone number is (605) 578-1714. From May through September, the hours are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily. From October through April, the hours are 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Suggested donation is $5 for adults and $2 for children.

DAYS OF ‘76 MUSEUM

Influenced strongly by Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show, Deadwood decided as of 1924 to put on a festival now encompassing a parade, PRCA Rodeo, and many events. It was to honor the city’s founding pioneers. In 2020, it will occur from Tuesday July 21 through Saturday July 26. Rodeo performances are Wednesday through Saturday nights and Saturday afternoon. Parades occur on Friday and Saturday at Deadwood’s Main Street.

Originally a museum was constructed to serve as a repository for everything generated by the Celebration from horse drawn wagons to clothing, memorabilia, and archives. The new building, consisting of 32,000 square feet, provides more room for its collections, photos, and artwork.

The exhibit Deadwood: A story of Movement and Change deserves much attention. It consists of more than 50 carriages, buggies, and wagons. It’s the largest animal-powered vehicle exhibit in the state. By walking around in a circle of wagons, a visual representation of historic Main Street buildings rings the center while scenes of the Black Hills are on the walls. Read the signs to learn much more about Deadwood history. The exhibit includes the original Deadwood stagecoach. It ran between Fort Pierre and Deadwood in 32 hours.

Start with a utility wagon and a freight wagon. Proceed to the band wagon used in many of the parades and the chuck wagon used to feed cowboys. Look for the two Phaetons. One is a Studebaker. A buyer could choose not only the manufacturer but also the style and model of these he preferred. The Continental Elite Brougham had rubber tires. It was for those of lavish lifestyles requiring a driver and a footman. The Rockaway was an expensive carriage made for affluent buyers. The driver was on the same level as the passenger. Landaus, with their leather seats, carried the families of the deceased in a funeral procession as far back as 1908.

People are invited to touch the vehicles. Many are used in the Days of ‘76 parade.

In 1990, the museum added the Don Clowser collection of Old West pioneer and American Indian artifacts. He was a local historian who exhibited these artifacts on the walls of his trading post. It includes a massive collection of 20 handguns and nearly 100 long arms such as rifles dating from the 1600's to World War II. Potato Creek Johnny’s Maynard rifle with its interchangeable parts, Seth Bullock’s gun, and Calamity Jane’s Winchester rifle are exhibited.

Check out the display on Buffalo Bill Cody. He was a strong promoter of Deadwood giving the city worldwide fame in his Wild West show. You’ll see such artifacts as his rifle, gun, gloves, and pens. The museum also has costumes from the show and a 1866 Winchester .44 given by Cody to Mike Russell who provided a loan to the Wild West show.

Note exhibits on the parades and rodeo events, tools of rodeo contestants and information on rodeo clowns. You can look at historic parade programs and watch footage of parades from 1946 to 1976. Take time to view photographs of the various parades over the years. In the early years, it seems like Native Americans and horse drawn vehicles dominated. Now you see floats and bands.

The Deadwood rodeo has consistently won awards. This includes the Best Mid-size Outdoor Rodeo annually since the award was created in 2003; a 13-time winner of the Badlands Circuit Rodeo of the Year Award; and the induction of the Days of ‘76 Committee into the Colorado Springs’ Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame July 2011.

Visit the section on Native Americans. You’ll find Hopi, Lakota, Cheyenne, and Apache artifacts. It includes a breast plate made of cartridges from the 1973 Wounded Knee occupation and information about buffaloes.

It is located at 18 76th Drive and the telephone number is (605) 578-1657. Hours are the same as the Adams Museum. Admission is Adults $8, Children 6-12 $3, Children 5 & under free.

ADAMS HOUSE

Those who like to explore old homes will have a great time at this one. Located at 22 Van Buren Street, this Queen Anne-style home was owned by three founding families of Deadwood. Its furnishings, hand-painted canvas wall coverings, and stained-glass windows lay almost undisturbed for 50 years. The house had indoor plumbing, electricity, and a telephone. It still contains the housewares and furnishings of W.E. and Mary Adams including the books in the library, patent medicines in the bathroom, sheet music on the piano, and fine china in the pantry.

Harris Franklin, the first owner, was involved with the wholesale liquor trade in Laramie and Cheyenne, Wyoming. He visited Deadwood because of the Gold Rush for the first time in August 1877 establishing a liquor store on Main Street. Just before the town’s major fire left him penniless, he brought his wife and son, Nathan, to Deadwood in August of 1879. He rebounded and built a two-story business.

In 1883, he formed a liquor business with his chief competitor Benjamin Baer. They also formed the Franklin Cattle Company which at one time had a herd of 45,000 cattle. Franklin invested in the Golden Reward Mining Company. When the company closed in 1919, it was considered second only to the Homestake Mining Company in terms of gold production. He was also President of the American National Bank and offered to match dollar for dollar any contribution made to what would be called the Franklin Hotel. In June 1903, the four-story brick and stone hotel opened. It still stands today.

His wife, Anna, was involved in several charitable causes - notably orphanages. They held lavish parties at their home and were considered the high society of Deadwood. When Anna died in 1902, Nathan, his wife, and his daughter moved into the home. Nathan bought it from his father in October 1905 for a dollar.

Nathan, like his father, was an important businessman and community leader. He became president when the First National Bank of Deadwood merged with the American National Bank. He was also vice president of the Consolidated Power & Light Company and served as Deadwood’s mayor in 1914. As a strong advocate against prohibition, he ran against W. E. Adams for a second term in 1916. In a bitter fight, Edward L. Senn, the editor of the Daily Telegram, an avid prohibitionist, threw his support to Adams. Franklin won.

After completing his second term in 1918, the Nathan Franklins moved from Deadwood. They sold their home to W. E. Adams and his wife Alice for $8,500 in June 1920. When Adams arrived with his older brother James in 1877, they established the Banner Grocery Store. It did a booming business until the fire of 1879. They then constructed a new store at 629 Main Street. When James moved to California in 1889, he sold his interest to his brother. In 1894, Adams moved to Sherman Street where he expanded the business over the next 15 years to become Adams Block. By 1901, he had created one of the largest wholesale houses in the state. He served six terms as mayor from 1906 to 1914 and 1920 to 1924.

Adams faced multiple tragedies in 1925 - the deaths of his wife, daughter, and granddaughter. While riding on a train from California to South Dakota a year later, he met who would become his second wife, Mary. In 1927, they decided to build a museum in Deadwood, the Adams Museum, for the purpose of documents and artifacts reflecting Deadwood’s history. It would also be a memorial to his family members who had died. Adams wrote a check for $50,000 to get the building started. When he died in 1934, he left Mary the house.

She closed up the home and stayed at the Franklin Hotel after W.E.’s death doing little to alter it. Mary later moved to California and never lived in the house again.

The home was turned into a bed and breakfast by Bruce and Rebecca Crosswait from 1988 until 1992. They discarded very little and carefully documented any changes they made. In 1992, due to the Crosswait’s personal challenges, the City of Deadwood purchased the home and contents for $225,000. The city operated it as a bed and breakfast for three years. A malfunction of the heating system forced the house to close its doors in 1995.

In 1996, the Deadwood Historic Preservation Committee discussed options for the home’s future. A very careful and complete restoration was completed. On June 23, 2000, the 77th anniversary of Mary and W.E.’s wedding, the home was officially dedicated as the Historic Adams House.

The Historic Adams House is located at 22 Van Buren Street and has a telephone number of (605) 578-3724. It is open daily May through September from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. In October and April, it is open from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. from Tuesday through Saturday. It is closed November through March. Admission is Adults $10, and Children 6-12 $5. Youngsters ages 5 & under have free admission. They do offer combination tickets. It is $16 per person for the Days of ’76 Museum and Historic Adams House; $20 for Adams Museum, Days of '76 Museum, and Historic Adams House.