Anderson Homestead tour caps another successful season!

About 60 people braved threatening skies Tuesday evening (5/1/12) to enjoy a tour of one of the most historic ranch sites in the northern Black Hills -- the James Anderson Homestead just northwest of Whitewood.  The historic ranch is an alluring and familiar site to area residents that trek up and down I-90 between Spearfish and Sturgis.

Hank Frawley hosted the group of Spearfish Area Historical Society members, giving them a first hand look at the barn, springhouse, and restored home that was occupied by his great grandparents, James and Catherine Anderson, more than a century ago.  James Anderson developed a lucrative dairy business, capitalizing upon reliably constant 40-degree spring water to cool his products before hauling them to Deadwood for sale.  It was an enterprise that resulted in construction of several sandstone buildings that were a showpiece in their day -- and which have been restored to update the buildings with plumbing and electricity, while preserving the original exterior and the ambience of 19th century architecture in the Black Hills.

"It's a wonderful story about Danish immigrants who came to this country with probably nothing but the clothes on their backs, came here to homestead, and made good," said Frawley, who lives just down the road in another historic structure known as the "Frawley Middle Ranch."

After a short examination of the Anderson barn, which still has much restoration to be done, the group hiked across the barnyard to a key location for the operation:  the springhouse.  It's where the spring water was captured and channeled through a storage area before flowing to a stock tank adjacent to the building.

The jewel in the crown of the Anderson Homestead is the two-story home that sits above the springhouse, bunkhouse and barn.  With two-foot thick walls and a beautiful bay window on the front of the home, it is not a particularly large structure, but it was the center of life for the Andersons and their dairy operations.  The structure is replete with quality period woodwork, lighting and plumbing fixtures that hearken to an earlier era, and beautifully restored windows and floors.

"The Anderson's had no electricity or water in the house," said Frawley.  "Basically, we gutted the interior in order to accommodate needed modernization, but we made every effort to preserve the overall historical appearance of the structure and retain an early 20th century feel."

Also known as the "Frawley East Ranch," the James Anderson Homestead restoration project was initiated by Frawley Ranches, Inc. and Elkhorn Ridge Development.  Additional assistance for restoration of the Frawley Ranch properties have come from the Deadwood Historic Preservation Trust. 

As the Tuesday tour was ending, a fast-moving thunderstorm unleashed heavy rains on the Anderson Ranch.  Check out our Anderson Homestead Gallery of photos taken during the tour.  

Frawley later joined the annual meeting of the Spearfish Area HIstorical Society (SAHS) for its 7:30 p.m. gathering at the Spearfish Senior Citizen's Center.  There, following a 20-minute video that featured Frawley recounting historical highlights of the Anderson Ranch, he shared additional insight into the restoration project and spent time answering questions from a very inquisitive audience.  Frawley later indicated that there's been considerable interest in the video.  Persons who'd like to obtain a copy of the James Anderson Homestead program should send an e-mail to Larry Miller.

In a brief SAHS business session, Treasurer Dorothy Honadel provided the good news that membership for the organization has reached about 140, and that about half of those members are Lifetime Members.  

SAHS president Larry Miller  presented the Nominating Committee report, which recommended the following slate of board members for the society:

Three-Year Terms: Callie Houghton, Leo Orme, Don Simons

Two-Year Terms: Laurie Hayes, Dorothy Honadel, Lonny Jenkins, John Ladson

One-Year Term: Tom Huffman, Alyce Schavone, Linda Wiley, Rand Williams

This slate of board members was elected unanimously by those in attendance.

Miller thanked current board members and officers for their service to the society during the past year; these included Laurie Hayes, Mary Selbe (Secretary), Cheryl Miller, Dorothy Honadel (Treasurer), Rand Williams (Vice-President), and Callie Houghton.  He also acknowledged the good efforts of Norma Landsberger in coordinating refreshments for all of the society meetings, and for the many other persons who have volunteered their time and talent in a wide range of activities -- from revising the bylaws and conducting inventories to  making phone calls to remind members of meetings.

Following the meeting, members and guests enjoyed treats provided by Debbie Siemonsma and Gale & David Ramberg.  The society will take hiatus for the summer but will resume meetings next September.  Check out our schedule of tentative 2012-13 Programs.

Have a great summer!

Wolff tells of 1870's violence in the Black Hills

The Black Hills certainly had its share of violence during the gold rush years in the later 1870’s, but there’s little evidence that would support the number of killings that some people have claimed occurred.

Black Hills State University history professor David Wolff challenged what he called the “myths” promoted by “Deadwood” HBO series producer David Milch and others that there were “one or two” deaths every day.

Wolff has done considerable research on violence in Deadwood and the Black Hills region, and he shared the results of that research -- Dying in Deadwood -- with the Spearfish Area Historical society last week (4/10/12) during their April meeting at the Spearfish Senior Citizen’s Center.

Much of the violence in those early days took place during what Wolff called the “Early Encounters of whites and Native Americans.

In 1875, there wasn’t much violence in the Black Hills.  That might well have been because – while there were lots of Indians living in the region – there were few white men.  In fact, it was a responsibility of the U.S. Army to keep settlers out.  And those who were already in the Black Hills exercised caution.

When  W. L. Kuykendall --  famous for trying the Jack McCall murder case in Deadwood and as a stockholder in the company that founded Spearfish. – made a trek from Cheyenne to Custer, he reported seeing more than a thousand Indians along the way with no violent encounters.

Things changed markedly in November of that year with President Grant started pulling troops out of the region.  White folks started rushing in to the hills by the spring of 1876 and with them came a spike in violence.  By that time, Indians were required to report to the reservation agencies.

There were a few routes used by whites that became particularly dangerous, where Indians would use the terrain to their advantage.  Such was the case with both the Sioux Trail and Red Canyon.

Sioux Trail was a 40-mile strip running to the northwest from the Spotted Tail and Red Cloud agencies, while Red Canyon was located not far from Custer.  It was near Red Canyon that the Metz family was killed in the spring of 1876.  Metz and his wife had settled near that area but then decided to return to Colorado.  Warned that they should not make the trip alone, they ignored that advice.  Metz, his wife, an African-American cook and a wagon driver were all killed by Indians.

“Where there certainly was Indian violence, there were also guys like Persimmon Bill, who was the quintessential bad guy.  Bill liked to hang out with the natives, and it’s believed that he was part of the party that attacked the Metz family,” said Wolff.  Persimmon Bill was himself probably killed by Indians.  There’s a sign near Red Canyon Road in the southern Black Hills that marks a spot where the Metz family met their demise, although the sign – says Wolff – is in the wrong spot and is a year off on the date that the event actually took place.

Wolff noted that while there was violence on the trail from Cheyenne, the trail coming from Sidney, Nebraska was considerably less violent.  Largely, that was due to military posts – like the one at Fort Robinson.  Nonetheless, there was what Wolff called a “mini-version” of Red Canyon in the vicinity of Buffalo Gap.  On the route up the trail toward Custer, Indians would hide in the cliffs and surprise whites coming across the trail.

The violent incidents in the Custer vicinity gave rise to the establishing of a local militia called the Custer Minutemen.  However, said Wolff, the group became something of a joke, and it was sometimes said that they were called the Minutemen because that was often all the longer they would be on the trail looking for Indians before returning to Custer.

Stage coaches in the region were not immune to the violence either.  In April 1876, stage lines opened three stage stations between Fort Laramie and the Black Hills; however, after just a couple of runs, the stations were destroyed by Indians, interrupting that transportation route until later in the year.

Interestingly, trail violence died out by the end of June 1876, and according to Wolff, “Everybody was reporting ‘no trouble on the trail.’” Hindsight allows us to better understand that the Native American men who wanted to leave the agencies had already departed the region and were in the Little Big Horn area of Montana. 

It was on June 25, 1876, that General George Armstrong Custer and his troopers were, as Wolff put it, “rubbed out.”  Once the battle ended. many Indians began returning to the agencies, largely following a route across the northern Black Hills.  And while violence increased, it was at a level well below what the region had experienced previously.

Dr. Wolff did share information about one case of violence that “stands out in the annals of the southern Black Hills.”  It occurred on War Bonnet Creek, where some 800 Cheyenne Indians were on their way to join compatriots at the Little Big Horn in June of 1876.  The U.S. Army learned of their mobilization and dispatched some 330 men to stop them.  They lined up along the hills and awaited the migrating Cheyenne Indians. 

“And who was there scouting for the Army?  Buffalo Bill Cody, who exchanged gunfire with a couple of the Indians, one of whom ironically was named “Yellow Hair.”  Cody shot the Indian and promptly jumped off his horse and collected a scalp, waving it in the air and announcing that this was “the first scalp for Custer.”  It was a proclamation that Cody would repeat often during his many Wild West Shows in the years to come. 

Wolff noted that following the incident at War Bonnet Creek, violence in the southern Black Hills diminished greatly.

In the northern Hills, it was residents in Rapid City and Spearfish who would incur violence the most in the weeks following the battle at the Little Big Horn.  As they returned from Montana, Indians would camp around the Belle Fourche River and raid settlements in search of horses.  Among the most infamous incidents was in the so-called “Montana herd” in Centennial valley on the route between Spearfish and Deadwood.   This was where a group of men tended horses for the miners working up in Deadwood.  On August 20, natives “swept in and stole horses.”

Miners from Deadwood helped pursue the natives, and a gun battle ensued.  Wolff believes that -- among the three white victims in the incident – Preacher Smith was killed.  However, he died not near the roadside marker that now abuts U.S. 85 on a hill outside of Deadwood, but well below that site on the trail to Crook City.

“Some contend that he was killed by white men.  I used to think that, too, but the more I study the events of August 20, 1876, I’m convinced the Indians got him,” said Wolff.

A couple of days after that incident, there was an assault on the new settlement of Rapid City.  And two men were killed on the road to Deadwood.  “People were terrorized.”  Soon, there were raids on Spearfish as well.

In September 1876, Spearfish residents built a stockade between Fifth and Sixth Streets on Hudson for their protection.  And even though documents designed to help quell violence were signed on February 28, 1877, it didn’t subside.  Many thought that once the Sioux were removed from the Black Hills, the violence would be over.

“It wasn’t over,” said Wolff.  “The Sioux weren’t ready to give it up.”

So native raids continued through 1877.  That summer, four men trying to ranch were killed, and a survey party working along the Dakota Territory-Wyoming border were attacked.  The Army sent troops from Fort Robinson in Nebraska to help calm things down, “but that didn’t happen” said Wolff.  It would not be until the spring of 1878 that outbreaks of violence in the northern Black Hills would really disapper.

Dr. Wolff noted that the other sources of violence in the Black Hills involved “Highwaymen” and rowdy customers who made their way to Deadwood.

Robberies and attempted robberies by trail robbers called “highwaymen” occurred predominately along the trails from Cheyenne into Custer and Deadwood.  Those dastardly deeds didn’t really start until the Indians were gone from the trails, “so you really didn’t see highwaymen until the summer of 1877.”  An early major incident was close to Deadwood near the old Puma School along the route where U.S. 385 is located.  That’s where stage driver Johnny Slaughter was killed.  When confronted by five highwaymen, Slaughter tried to stop the stage, but his actions were apparently deemed too slow by one of the varmits who then “blew him off his horse with a shotgun.”  The horses bolted and ran on in to Deadwood.  Local citizens tried to catch the highwaymen but were unsuccessful.

The highwaymen operated in many of the same locales that had been favorite places of ambush used earlier by the Indians. 

“The highwaymen didn’t kill a lot of people, though, because they knew it was bad for business.  But they did scare the hell of them and certainly threatened violence.”


The next meeting of the Spearfish Area Historical Society will be at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, May 1st.  Hank Frawley will give a presentation on the James Anderson Homestead.  Not only will it be the final meeting of the year, it will also be the official Annual Meeting for the organization.  

Telling the story with historic images

by Larry Miller

We have always been intrigued by historic photographs that help tell the story of our past. 

That’s why some months ago, we created the gallery labeled “Spearfish Yesteryear” containing numerous early-day images of Spearfish and the surrounding area.  If you’ve not visited the gallery, we invite you to take a few minutes and browse through the photos.  You'll find the perpetual link to that gallery in the right-hand column of this page.  We’ve added a few from time to time and would like to expand it even more.  If you have any historic photos tucked away in an album or old trunk, sharing them here is a good way to help preserve the images electronically – and to share with family and friends who can visit this site anytime – anywhere!

A reminder, too, that some of the photos in the gallery are unidentified.  So if you’re able to put a name with a face – or even help us date the photo or determine exactly where it might have been taken – you’ll be providing a valuable service for all you visit the site now and in the future.

This brings us to another gallery that we’ve just added.  It, too, is populated by historic photographs.  However, all of these were the handiwork of  a single professional photographer named John C.H. Grabill.

We don’t yet know a lot about Grabill, where he came from or where he finally ended up.  However, his work can be found in numerous places, including the Library of Congress.  His photographs were usually well labeled, but his business domicile seemed to bounce around from what’s believed to be its 1886 beginning in Sturgis, to Hot Springs, Lead, Deadwood, and by 1894, Chicago, Illinois.

Although not fully documented, we understand he may have been the “official” photographer at one time for both the Black Hills-Fort Pierre Railroad and the Homestake Mining Company.  While this may be true, Carolyn Weber with the Homestake Adams Research and Cultural Center (HARCC) tells us that she’s seen no evidence that Grabill ever served in such a capacity with Homestake Mine.  Much of the early records from Homestake are archived at the HARCC in Deadwood.

Grabill is perhaps best known for his powerful imagery from the 1891 massacre at Wounded Knee, South Dakota.

So, we invite you to saunter on in to our Grabill Gallery and see a fascinating variety of images that help capture the old west – from mining and ranching to cowboys and Indians – and a fair share of military photographs, too.  Enjoy! 

Follette dispels "geological misconceptions"

Geology may seem complicated and irrelevant to many folks, but retired Black Hills State University professor Everett Follette brought the subject to life this week (3/6/12) for the Spearfish Area Historical Society March meeting.

About 75 folks showed up at the Senior Citizen's Center for some excellent information about the geology of the Black Hills, including many misconceptions that seem to linger on -- despite evidence to the contrary.

Follette has more than a passing knowledge of area geology, having been born in Belle Fourche and raised in Lead and Sturgis.  In 1955 he earned a Bachelor's degree in Physical Science at what was known as Black Hills Teacher's College in Spearfish, later picking up a Master's degree in Science Education at Iowa State Teacher's College in Cedar Falls before capping that with an Education doctorate in Geology and Science Education. After eight years of teaching in middle and high schools at Custer and Sturgis, he started a 30-year-career teaching Earth Science and Elementary Science at Black Hills State University.

True to the style of a classroom teacher, Follette opened his presentation with a "pop quiz."  Fortunately, the exercise was an ungraded event!

One of the questions offered a multiple choice regarding the Bad Lands of South Dakota. Do paleontologists consider the Bad Lands to be a premier site for finding (a) mammals, (b) dinosaurs, or (c) fish and other sea life?

The answer surprises many folks -- "mammals."

In fact, its one of the misconceptions he heard perpetuated by a talk show host on South Dakota Public Radio, who boasted that the South Dakota Bad Lands were better than the North Dakota Bad Lands because "ours had dinosaur fossils in them."

Follette noted that it's true that a sabre toothed cat was found in the Bad Lands -- along with a host of other mammalian fossils -- "but the rock formations that comprise the Bad Lands and contain the mammalian fossils are too young to have any dinosaur fossils."

The Black Hills does contain some of the oldest rocks found in North America -- second only to the rocks found in the Canadian shield.

"These oldest Black Hills rocks are approximately 2.5 billion years old," said Follette, adding that they're part of the crystalline core of the hills, including the granites of Mount Rushmore and the metamorphic rocks that were "changed by the heat and pressure associated with the injection of the molten rock that produced Harney Peak and the other igneous rocks of the hills."

Follette talked a bit about rare minerals and disucssed the Etta mine, located just a mile southwest of Keystone in the vicinity of the Keystone cemetery road.  The surface mine contained a spodumene crystal that measure 57 feet long.  Spodumene is mined for its lithium content.

He also shared photos of the boulder fields near Piedmont, which many folks -- including a younger Everett Follette -- had thought were evidence of glaciation in the Black Hills.  While enrolled in a geology course at the School of Mines, he discovere from one of his professors that the Piedmont rocks had been carried by stream and mud flows associated with floods in earlier times.

Long-time Spearfish residents will recall a massive snowstorm around Mother's Day in 1965 that was followed by a downpour of rain.  Follette recalled the storm.

"The subsequent flood and destruction in lower Spearfish Canyon and within Spearfish itself -- along with the great piles of debris and boulders of two and three feet or more in diameter -- helped us to realize the great power that water and its attendant debris has."

With charts and graphs, professor Follette provided an excellent discussion about artesian aquifers, which are confined aquifers containing groundwater that is under positive pressure.  In our area, the rock layers that are the primary artesian aquifers are called the Minneslusa and the Paha Sapa (or Madison).  And the limestone plateau in the Black Hills provides the major recharge area for these formations.  Follette also noted that all of the commercial caves in the Black Hills are found in the Paha Sapa limestone formation, and he highlighted the fact that there are many small caves that can be observed in the walls of Spearfish Canyon and little Spearfish Canyon.

Again resurrecting the not-too-distant past, Everett Follette recalled the flood in the spring of 1964 and noted that had it not been for the efforts of city employees and other heavy equipment operators, "Spearfish Creek would have abandoned its bed near the city park and would have established a new course down Third Street."  He recalled watching the flowing water "cut an eight-foot channel" through the cement block walls of a home just below the park as the water proceeded to wash both the blocks and rocks down its new course on Third Street.

Follette capped his talk with references to the white mineral we know as gypsum, citing just how problematic it is for builders, because foundations placed over gypsum tend to collapse when gypsum dissolves, which it does readily in water.  One of the more well-known locations where gypsum had a significant impact is the buffalo jump near Beulah, just across the Wyoming state line.  

"Geologically, the structure is called a 'sink hole.'  It is believed that water from the artesian aquifers moved up through the overlying gypsum layers causing the overlying Spearfish formation to collapse," Follette noted.  And that's the same phenomenon that's believed to have created Cox and Mirror Lakes near Spearfish.  Both of the lakes is believed to be quite deep, Follette says, "with depths of at least 60 feet."

This was perhaps one of the best-prepared presentations we've enjoyed at the Spearfish Area Historical Society, and we appreciate Everett Follette sharing his notes with us, and we used them in preparing this narrative.  A tip of the hat, too, to Rand Williams for providing the screen.  Of course, the treats were excellent, thanks to the good work of Catherine Polley and Alyce Schavone.  Norma Landsberger has been coordinating snacks for the past several years and will be stepping down from that responsibility.  Our deep thanks to Norma for her contribution.  Anyone willing to coordinate snacks for programs next year (September through May) is encouraged to contact Larry Miller by phone (722-6018) or e-mail.

On the business side of things, the society unanimously adopted revised bylaws, and a copy of the new document is posted online under the "Bylaws" tab above.  Many thanks to committee chairman Leo Orme and members Alyce Schavone, Walter Buccholz, Callie Houghton and Larry Miller for their efforts over the past few months in recrafting this important document.

Mark your calendars now for the April 3rd program, when Dr. David Wolff returns with a new take on Dying in Deadwood - Violent Deaths in the Early Hills.

New signs for historic downtown buildings

Spearfish Historic Preservation Commission
member Lennis Larson shows the sign for Lown
Mercantile, now the Bum Steer at 5th & Illinois. 

The Spearfish Historic Preservation Commission last week showed off some of the new historical markers that will be erected this spring and summer in the downtown business area.

Members of the commission, chaired by Greg Dias, displayed many of the new signs at the Spearfish City Council at their meeting on Tuesday (2/21/12).  Each of the 10 signs that were exhibited contains a narrative that talks about the building depicted on the sign.  The artwork was done by Spearfish native Kevin Miller.

"He's  wonderfully talented artist, and we really appreciate the great work that he's done for us," said Dias.   "We still have another six markers that need to be completed."

The markers that are finished will be erected adjacent to the downtown structures they tell about.  Included in the signage are:

• Lown Mercantile (now the Bum Steer)
• Mail Building (now Versatile Carpet)
• Odd Fellows Hall (now NAPA Auto Parts)
• American National Bank (now the Back Porch)
• Old Spearfish City Hill (now an office building)
• Spearfish Filling Station (still in operation as a service station)
• Queen City Hotel (Bay Leaf Cafe)
• Billiard Hall (Across the Pond Interiors)
• Seth Bullock Building (Bridal Boutique and Prom Too)
• Matthews Block (several businesses along Main Street)

For more information about the Spearfish Historic Preservation Commission, visit their website at: http://spearfishhpc.com/index.htm

Stories about Dr. Lyle Hare -- our own country doctor!

Mary Selbe and Darleen Young shared
many great stories about Dr. Lyle Hare

Very few folks around Spearfish haven’t heard of Lyle Hare.  Many older folks remember him well, and the younger ones recognize his name – which is attached to the football stadium at Black Hills State University.

Despite freezing temperatures, a sizable crowd of area folks enjoyed a step back in time Tuesday (2/7/12), when Darleen Young and Mary Selbe shared a collection of stories and photographs about the legendary Dr. Hare for the February program of the Spearfish Area Historical Society.  The meetings are held on the first Tuesday evening of each month from September through May.

And while the two ladies shared some of their personal memories of the “true country doctor,” as Darleen Young described him, there were many in the audience who recounted many stories about Dr. Hare, a surgeon who for many years was the only doctor in town.

Born in the tiny community of Cedar Rapids, Nebraska, in 1885 to immigrants from Canada, Hare and his family later were among the first to settle in the panhandle community of Hemingford.  When he was about four years old, the family moved to Hill City, South Dakota, where the elder Hare farmed and worked in the newspaper business.

Lyle came to Spearfish to attend the Normal, where he played both football and basketball.  After graduating in 1907, he entered the University of South Dakota School of Medicine and completed his course work in 1909.  While there, he played football and made quite a name for himself.

Army First Lieutenant Lyle Hare - 1918 

“He was quite an athlete,” reported Darleen Young.

“Two years in a row, he was a unanimous choice for All-Conference fullback, and some sportswriters of the time even mentioned him when writing about their selections for All-American teams.”

Then it was off to the College of Physicians and Surgeons in Chicago, graduating in 1911, and then marrying Edna Stone, a girl from northwest Iowa. After an internship at the University Hospital in Chicago, they made a big move back west.  And athletics played a role in that move, too.

Dr. Hare opened an office in Spearfish and also accepted a job as football coach and school physician at the Normal.  He reportedly served as athletic director as well.

“The Homestake Mining Company appointed him as their physician for employees and their families living in Spearfish,” according to Darleen Young.

During World War I, Dr. Hare was commissioned a First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Medical Corps and sent to Europe -- assigned as a doctor at Base Hospital #109 in France.

The war ended in 1918, and Dr. Hare’s wife, Edna, became a victim of the flu epidemic and died.  Their daughter, Helen Jane, was about four or five years old at the time.  Hare returned home and continued his practice in Spearfish, gaining a well-deserved reputation as a fine doctor and surgeon.  He later married Hazel Beckman of St. Onge.

Walter Buchholz recalled Dr. Hare
giving him quite a scare as a kid! 

“He really was a true country doctor,” said Young, noting that Dr. Hare traveled throughout the area on horseback, by teams, sleighs, and cars.  “Sometimes, when roads were impassable, his doctor’s calls were made by airplane -- flown by Clyde Ice.”

Dr. Hare was also deeply engaged in civic matters and served as Mayor Spearfish from 1922 to 1926.

Mary Selbe remembered that Dr. Hare also was a member of the State Department Board of Health and Medicine – and that he also served as President of the Department of Medical Examiners for several years.

During the Depression years of the 1930’s, things got so tough that the Normal School cut back to a two-year program.  Many people close to the situation credit Dr. Hare for a key role in restoring the four-year program to the school in 1940.

During World War II, Dr. Hare became a member of the Lawrence County Selective Service Board and reportedly helped carry on the practices of other doctors who had been called in to the military.

Mary Selbe remembered that “Dr. Hare had a cabin over in Wyoming near Sand Creek, just down the way from the Annenbergs, and often at 4 p.m. on Fridays, he’d close the office and go fishing over there.”  It seems that he always managed to come home with some good catches – perhaps because a friend at the nearby hatchery would open the gates and improve the fishing for him!

Dr. Lyle Hare (1885-1975)

Selbe also recalled that Dr. Hare’s daughter, Jane, had tuberculosis and was in a sanitarium near Hill City for a time.  However, she recovered and completed her education, becoming a dermatologist in Rapid City for many years.

The football stadium at what is now Black Hills State University was named for Dr. Lyle Hare in 1947, recognizing his contributions to the athletic programs at the school and his staunch advocacy on behalf of the institution.  A new stadium was built in 1960, and major improvements were made to the facility in 2005.

Hazel Hare died in 1972, and Lyle Hare died in 1975, ending a remarkable career.

The historical society evening was capped with some treats and wonderful one-on-one conversations among attendees, several of whom were delivered in to this world by Dr. Hare

Next month, Everett Follette will share some of the perceptions and misconceptions about the geology of the northern Black Hills.  Mark you calendar for Tuesday, March 6^th at the Spearfish Senior Citizen’s Center.  The program starts at 7:30 p.m.

"Buckskin" Johnny and the Spearfish stockade

Vernon Davis of Beulah, Wyoming, comes from a family of pioneers.  His ancestors migrated from Wales to Massachusetts in 1636.  Born in Redig and raised in Belle Fourche, Davis says he served with the Navy Seabees from 1968 to 1972 and went on to retire from the Naval Reserve.  He operated a plumbing and construction business in California for nearly 20 years before deciding to “come home.”

Vernon Davis outside Buckskin Johnny's cabin

“My grandmother was a real pioneer lady,” Davis told the Spearfish Area Historical Society this week (1/3/12) as a prelude to sharing information he has gathered regarding the old Spearfish stockade – along with a narrative about some of his ancestors.  They included his great great Uncle, “Buckskin” Johnny Spaulding, and his grandfather and grandmother Davis.

“She traveled about 6,800 miles before 1886.  As a young girl, she went from Massachusetts to Wisconsin, Wisconsin to Illinois, Illinois to Nebraska, then to Minnesela, on to Camp Crook, Portland – and then to Bandon on the Oregon coast.”

That’s when President Roosevelt appointed Davis’ grandfather, T.J. Davis,  postmaster of Camp Crook.  T. J. and his family returned to Dakota Territory in a covered wagon.  Vernon Davis shared an old photograph showing his grandfather in a Corporal’s uniform during the Civil War, but expressed a bit of bewilderment, since he’s found no records indicating that his grandfather was ever a Corporal, even though he served “through every battle in the Civil War.”

Davis focused most of his attention upon the old stockade that once stood in downtown Spearfish – often referring to it as a “fort.”

It was apparently built rapidly – right on the heels of Custer’s defeat at the Little Big Horn in June of 1876.

“The fort was built in July of 1876…and there were a lot of unhappy Indians running around the country.”

Vernon Davis speaks to SAHS members

Davis says the walls of the stockade were constructed of 10-foot long logs, buried two feet in the ground and with a point on the top.  A beam was soon placed along the inside of the wall, a few feet off the ground, allowing defenders of the stockade to shoot over the wall.

Davis presented a map he had drawn based upon his research, indicating that the “fort” was situated near the present day Wells Fargo Bank on Hudson Street.  It showed Spearfish Creek running through a southern corner of the stockade.”

Citing discrepancies with another map that was drawn with information attributed to author Annie Tallent, Davis stood by his contention and added “that creek bed has moved a long way…since I was a kid here.”

He noted that a diary kept by “Buckskin” Johnny listed only a few cabins inside the stockade, and there was “no way that all those people” listed by Tallent, could have lived inside there.”

Davis said that the stockade was gone by 1880.

“The railroad took it,” he said, indicating the logs from the stockade were moved by the railroad to the steep walls up in the area of what is now the Snapper’s Club in the city campground.

“They were used to catch falling rocks” before they impeded rail traffic that once went through the area.  While Spearfish no longer has rail service, in earlier years a spur ran from near the mouth of Spearfish Canyon into town.  It ran approximately along what is today Canyon Street.

Davis also told of the Pettigrew party of about 13 wagons that set out from Spearfish heading west.  They were attacked by Indians in July of 1877 in the general vicinity of Beulah, Wyoming.  However, since they had ample warning, the group was able to dig rifle pits in front of the wagons and a huge “hole” in the center of the circled wagons to protect the women and children.  Trapped for a couple of nights, according to Davis, the group was rescued after one of the party returned to Spearfish for help.

Davis also told of an incident that likely contributed to his interest in preserving cemeteries and tombstones.  It occurred on September 10, 1876 near St. Onge.  A scout by the name of Jimmy Iron was killed by Indians.  Davis says his grandfather and Uncle John returned to the site some time later and put down a marker.  It can still be seen on a knoll near the fairgrounds at St. Onge.

Area residents have long heard about “Buckskin” Johnny Spaulding.  Many have even toured his old cabin, one of the very earliest settlements along the Redwater River southeast of Belle Fourche.  It was restored by the Belle Fourche Lions Club and is open to the public on the grounds of the Tri-State Museum.

Inside the Buckskin Johnny Cabin in Belle Fourche

Spaulding earned his nickname by dressing in buckskin from his wolfskin cap to the soles of his feet.  Born in Wisconsin, he harvested buffalo hides in Nebraska before striking out for the Black Hills in the mid-1870s. During the ensuing years, he maintained a diary that recounted his many interesting experiences in the Black Hills – including several encounters with Indians.

According to his friend, journalist R. B. Hughes, Johnny “used neither liquor nor tobacco in any form, and an obscene or profane word I never heard pass his lips.”  A particularly significant feat, given those rough and tumble times along the frontier.

“He didn’t like riding a horse,” said Davis.  “He always said that if you’re going to ride a horse in Indian country, you’re going to get killed, because they’ll follow horses.”

 “They don’t leave as big a signature.  They step light, and he used them as pack animals .  He walked practically all the time.”

Johnny Spaulding eventually migrated to Oregon, Washington and California.  On June 14, 1898, he enlisted in the Army during the Spanish-American War and served in the Philippines.   Some years later – in 1916 and 1917 – he resided in a California home for disabled volunteer soldiers.  When admitted to the facility, he was listed as having chronic rheumatism, artherio sclerosis and defective hearing.  He also had some heart problems.

But those heart problems wouldn’t affect romance. Ten years later – at age 78 – “Buckskin” Johnny Spaulding reconnected with his sweetheart from some 56 years earlier, Nettie Dobbs.  They were married in October of 1927.  Alas, Johnny passed away four years later at the Napa Valley Veterans Hospital.  Nettie died a few months later.

Spearfish could well have become "Evansville"

Spearfish Creek rises in South Dakota just north of O’Neill pass, not far from the Wyoming border.  It flows a scenic route, winding through Spearfish Canyon and streaming some 40 miles before it empties into the Redwater River.

Paul Higbee

“But measuring the 40-mile length is the wrong way to really measure Spearfish Creek,” said writer Paul Higbee last night (12/6/11) during a presentation to the Spearfish Area Historical Society about the historic irrigation system that permeates the valley beyond the mouth of Spearfish Canyon.

“The more important measurement is the 3,000-foot drop over that 40 miles,” Higbee noted, citing a five-inch drop every 100 feet on its route northward to the Redwater. 

Joining Higbee for the presentation was life-long resident Billy Evans, whose grandfather -- Robert Evans -- was the moving force behind the elaborate and valuable irrigation system developed in the valley around Spearfish.

An Irishman, the elder Evans cut his teeth in the irrigation business in Montana. Using that knowledge and experience, he set about to provide the vision and reality of what would become a viable irrigation system for more than a century -- one that remains an important part of the economy.

Billy Evans told about the earlier irrigation exploits of his grandfather in Montana and described in some detail the process by which the Spearfish irrigation system was planned and constructed in the 1870's.

Originally, according to Evans, there were 12 ditches crossing the valley, eventually irrigating some 3,700 acres.  He even brought along an irrigation shovel, flat-ended rather than pointed, to allow mud to slide off.  It’s a shovel he said he used for some 40 years.  He told about the fresno, a larger tool specifically designed to move the earth necessary for creation of the ditches.  Too large to haul in for demonstration, the device is shown in this video about the Spearfish irrigation project.  And you'll find additional photos and other Spearfish history in our Spearfish Gallery.

Billy Evans with his ditch shovel

Billy Evans provided a bit of background about unique aspects of Spearfish Creek.  Beyond the sharp decline in elevation that provides the driving force behind the irrigation system, much of the creek lies over about a 40 to 45-foot bed of gravel.

“The water runs so fast, and the gravel on the bottom become so cold in the winter, that Spearfish Creek freezes from the bottom up.”  It’s that same gravel-bottom feature that allows the creek to literally recharge itself along its channel.

Evans shared stories from the turn of the last century when Homestake Mine purchased land across the area and secured water rights to help support their operation.  Those were challenging times for the many valley farmers who were struggling to make Spearfish valley an even more productive source of farm products for the region.

Another big challenge came in about 1970 when the interstate highway was constructed across the valley.  Original plans for the freeway would have routed it right through the heart of town and would have severed many ditches.

“At first, they were going to route it around Lookout Mountain, but then changed their minds and planned it right through town,” said Evans.

Through the efforts of Walter Dickey, Josef Meier, Ray Runnings and others, I-90 finally was routed up along a hillside to the east and ended up crossing only a couple of ditches.

Robert Evans wasn’t the only Evans family member to have a significant impact upon Spearfish.   Paul Higbee noted that Evans’ grandmother, Sarah (Pettigrew) Evans was the first teacher in Spearfish and had a deep commitment to not only education, but to the arts as well.

To be sure, the Evans family contribution to the community was enormous. And according to Higbee, current Spearfish mayor Jerry Krambeck has opined that Spearfish could very well have been named “Evansville.”

Cecil Whitlock with his prize

This is not the first time that the Spearfish irrigation system has been a topic for the historical society, and chances are it won’t be the last.  The system continues to be an integral part of the local economy and will likely remain so for years to come.

A bit of additional excitement took place following the program when Cecil Whitlock was presented with a large framed "then and now" photograph of Spearfish.  His raffle ticket won him the prized Paul Horsted item, which was among the many rare photos Horseth included in his book "The Black Hills: Yesterday and Today."  Horsted donated two framed photographs of Spearfish, for which we are very grateful.  And our congratulations to Cecil Whitlock!

The next meeting of the Spearfish Area Historical Society will feature Vernon Davis reconstructing the history behind the old Spearfish stockade -- including a bit of additional insight into one of Vernon’s ancestors, Johnny Spaulding.  That meeting is set for 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012.