Rising out of the prairie, the Black Hills of South Dakota and Wyoming had long been rumored to have promising quantities of gold. Sacred to the Lakota, the Black Hills was part of the land reserved for them in the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868. However, the tide of prospectors seeking their fortune in the Black Hills was difficult to stem. Members of the 1874 Custer expedition, lead by Gen. George Armstrong Custer, found gold. In 1875, scientists Henry Newton and Walter Jenney conducted an expedition and confirmed the rumors. By 1876, the trickle of prospectors and settlers coming to the Black...

Rimmed by Crow Peak and Lookout and Spearfish Mountains, like jewels in a crown, Spearfish, the Queen City, reigns over an area of scenic beauty. Originating from the Black Hills gold rush era, Spearfish has prospered from the days of the open range, its rich agricultural valley, the surrounding mining communities, and eventually tourism. Over 200 vintage photographs document its historical past. Scenic Spearfish Canyon and the Black Hills Passion Play attract thousands of tourists annually. Spearfish is the home of Black Hills State University, which began as a normal school and now has an...