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11月28日 Researching DeadwoodResearching Deadwood
I have started some of the research towards our next trip to Deadwood. The fact of the matter is that we still don't know when this trip will be. Our department at Qwest has heavily tightened up the vacation schedule for next year. Now I can't say to much about this one way or another. What I will say is we won't be taking the 'Great Expedition' in 2008. What we will do is a lot more smaller trips; probably four and five day trips. This will mean a lot more trips to the Blackhills and Deadwood.
Now this comes to the practical matter of research. There are an amazing amount of historical resources available online or in print for Deadwood. Some of them are not all that well known. We have two copies of one such book that I can already see will be handy in our bit of paranormal research:
'Boots on Bricks: A Walking Tour of Historic Downtown Deadwood', Mark S. Wolfe, 1996, Deadwood Historic Preservation Commission
There is no ISBN on this book but I have a link for those who might want to order it:
This book has some to the best maps I have yet found of the downtown area. It also contains a lot of historical information that would be of value in establishing the history of various buildings. One of things that I learned was that the location of the Green Door Brothel was originally a Salvation Army barracks for their workers!
You won't find any mention in this book about the alleged hauntings in the area and not all that much on the brothels. It does tell you a lot about who built, when it was built and why it was built. It also provides some good information on what buildings were on these lots before the various fires that ravaged Deadwood. It is important in understanding the history of the town to remember it has a history of devastation. It was had two major fires and one flood that I have found.
Another very valuable book that we have, and more than one copy at that is:
'Ghost Towns and other Historical Sites of the Black Hills', Bruce A. Raisch, 2006, Walsworth Publishing, ISBN-13 978-1-57864-351-6 ISBN-10 1-57864-351-1
This book, inspite of the name, is not about ghosts. What it is about is the many abandoned towns that are scattered throughout the Blackhills. Most of these towns were initially established as miners searched for gold. If they found gold they would flourish. Once the gold ran out the populations would generally move on to other digs. Some still have a few people living in them but commonly they just sort of quietly fade into history.
There are literally hundreds of these ghost towns throughout the Blackhills. Another item that I picked up in Lead at the Homestake Mine Visitor's Center was this nifty DVD with maps to all the ghosts towns and abandoned mines in the Blackhills. Now I didn't find the DVD listed on their online store but the CD's with the same information are there. What is sort of nifty is that they also come with topographical maps and satellite maps and the GPS points for each site. Now I am not recommending that you start crawling down into any old mine shafts! For that matter you should be careful if you venture to any of these old towns. Some of the buildings are still there but their condition is questionable at best.
Now the Homestake Mine Visitor's Center also has an online store. The site also has a good overview history of the mine. You have to remember that this was one of the biggest gold strikes in history. It brought a lot of people from all over the world into the Blackhills. There were a lot of them that lost their lives in the pursuit of gold. I was curious to find out how many miners lost their lives in the Homestake Mine. They don't exactly brag about this but mining is a dangerous activity at the best of times. I got my answer by literally walking into it; about one city block from the visitor's center there is monument to the miners who lost their lives in the Homestake Mine. There are the names of over 500 miners who died in the course of a little more than 100 years of mining.
Now gold and the history of the Blackhills run hand-in-hand. If you want to understand what happened there you really need to understand the gold rush. I have already listed a number of books here in the past that tell about the gold rush. Today I am adding another and, in some ways, one of the best:
'Chasing the Glitter: Black Hills Milling 1874-1959', Richmond L Clow, 2002, South Dakota State Historical Press, ISBN 0-9715171-0-x
This book might be one of the definitive books on the early mining period with a good discussion of the various mining operations outside the Homestake Mine. It looks at the various other operations throughout the Blackhills and their success or demise. If you are going to wander from ghost town to ghost town or ghost to ghost as it may take you then you might want to better understand why they did what they did.
One valuable lesson I have learned is that the reasons these people came here to seek the gold wasn't always the same. It would be easy to write it off to greed. The fact of the matter was they often saw this as the better alternative to the circumstances they had before they came to the Blackhills. Some were running away from destitution in the economic crisis of 1873. Some were simply looking for a place to ply their trade; many of the hardrock miners that showed up after 1879 were actually experienced in other forms of mining. There were some that had nothing to do with the mines. The Blackhills represented other economic opportunities in the lumber and commerce.
The thing is they all came and a lot of them never left. This was a often dangerous time to live. There are actually a couple of mass graves near Deadwood due to epidemics. There were a lot of prospectors who lost their lives to indian attacks and, sometimes, other prospectors. Outlaws saw their own opportunities in these same hills. Some took the secrets of their stolen gold to the graves with them.
Is it any wonder I love researching this area so much?
11月26日 Talking about Bewitching Businesses - Entrepreneur.com- msnbc.com
11月25日 Custer's Ghosts, Custer's GoldCuster's Ghosts, Custer's Gold
This book currently has to be the most definitive single volume you can find about paranormal phenomena at the Little Bighorn battlefield. It also covers many of the other less paranormal mysteries surrounding the battle. The battle has always been surrounded with an aura of mystery due to the lack of definitive witnesses to the final moments of Custer's command at the battle. Sure, there were plenty of Lakota and Cheyenne witnesses but most of their accounts were not recorded until decades after the battle and there were a lot of contradictions within these accounts.
This book is also answering a lot of my questions about the psychic investigations undertaken, believe it or not, by the National Park Service. The National Park Service generally isn't the most open-minded about people undertaking paranormal investigations on their properties. The investigation undertaken on the Little Bighorn battlefield was conducted with the approval of Neil C. Mangum, Cheif Historian of the park at the time. The findings were interesting in their apparent accuracy but offered little to explain any of the ongoing mysteries of the battle.
This book might become important in some of the research Laurie and I are doing. I will need to look at some of Moore's source material. I might even have to try adding more information to some of the work he has done. I really have to recommend this book to anybody interested in parapsychology and history. It is also a fun read!
'Custer's Ghosts, Custer's Gold', Donald W. Moore, 2007, Upton and Sons, ISBN 978-0-912783-43-7 11月24日 The South Dakota Road Guide to Haunted LocationsThe South Dakota Road Guide to Haunted Locations
Now this book has to be the ultimate example of 'ghost tourism'. The fact of the matter is the book has a lot of excellent information in it for us. It has already expanded the information we have on two locations we are interested in and has added a new one to our immediate travel plans. Now the authors also have similar books out on Minnesota and Wisconsin (we purchased those too) and a supporting website. It is always a plus in my mind when the authors have a website for communication.
The Unexplained
They list 52 different sites throughout South Dakota; they have four sites specifically in Deadwood and ten other sites in the Black Hills. Now some of these sites, such as the coal mines in Firesteel, they have effectively debunked. Some sites they are definitely adding to the knowledge base for that site. They have a considerable section on the Bullock Hotel and have given us a lot more information on the Green Door brothel.
Now everybody who does any investigation of this phenomena are subject to limitations particular to the circumstances they operate under. In the case of a group like TAPS they have better scientific resources in terms of people and equipment but are limited by the amount of time they have to do onsite work. In the case of the fellows who did this book I get the feeling their goal was to list the sites and not do any type of indepth investigation. This is not a criticsim of the book! The reality of the matter is that the sheer number of locations they are reporting would impose limits on any such effort. The fact that they are writing these books can be seen as furthering this topic by finding locations that other might do the research.
Now the book does provide Laurie and me with a location that just seems to beg for our attention:
(1) Fort Sisseton State Park
This is a frontier army post dating from the time of the plains indian wars. It did not take a lot of online research to start digging up additional accounts of strange occurrence's at the fort. The fact is that I found at least a half dozen sites with fairly recent accounts of activity there. The fort also has the additional benefit of a good historical information base. One problem I see in some of this is the lack of reliable information on different locations. It just seems to me that the more information you have on the original occupants or participants the better you can research the phenomena. It sometimes baffles us that the various groups and people investigating this don't do more historical research to find out why the alleged entities might be haunting a location?
Well, I really do have to recommend this book. I also have a feeling you will see me referring to it in the future. It is definitely a fun little book to read!
'The South Dakota Road Guide to Haunted Locations', Chad Lewis & Terry Fisk, 2006, Unexplained Research Publishing Company, ISBN: 13: 978-0-9762099-3-5 or ISBN: 10: 0-9762099-3-4 11月22日 Talking about Sleep with the lights on: 8 haunted hotels - TODAY: Travel - MSNBC.comHaunted Travel
11月20日 We are not the only people looking...It looks like we are not alone in looking...
I've started digging into looking for more historical information on Benjamin Hodgson. I've found quite a bit right on our own bookshelves; Benny was just unfortunate enough to have won himself an identifiable role in history. The thing I am now discovering is that other people seem to be looking into him from the parapsychological perspective.
It looks like Benjamin Hodgson is buried in the midst of a lot of interesting historical figures.
The South Jersey Ghost Research Organization and the field investigation they conducted.
I am learning quite a bit about the groups that conduct research into paranormal phenomena. They cover a wide spectrum of experience and capability. The most famous right now is probably TAPS; this is the same group featured on the the television series 'Ghost Hunters'.
The Atlantic Paranormal Society
I have to admit that the more I learn about TAPS the more I have come to respect them. They seem to be setting the standards for how research should be done. They have a professional, competent approach that I can earnestly respect. I am seeing that there is disagreement about how such investigations should be conducted and how evidence should be judged. TAPS seems to be making a constructive set of arguments about what evidence should be considered and how it should be evaluated.
Minnesota has some groups doing research into all of this too. Actually, quite a few groups! Right now this is the one I am watching carefully.
This group is also working at establishing standards of investigation that will constructively further this line of inquiry. It sounds like this field is filled with all sorts of humanity; including some questionable ones. The only way the field will ever establish any mainstream credibility is if some type of 'professional' standard is established and maintained.
Right now I am not finding any such groups in South Dakota. I would be delighted if anybody could direct me to some? I would like to find out if any serious efforts have been made to investigate some of the sites we are looking at currently.
11月17日 Where do you start when hunting a ghost?Lt. Benjamin H. Hodgson
Where do you start when hunting a ghost?
The more I've been reading the more I can see the alleged haunting phenomena is spread through many of the areas Laurie and I travel in. In reading Murray's book 'Ghosts of the Old West' I have found five specific places that we have been and very likely will travel to again:
(1) Fort Laramie National Historical Site ( http://www.nps.gov/fola/ )
(2) The Little Bighorn Battlefield ( http://www.nps.gov/libi/ )
(3) War Bonnet Creek Battlefield
(4) Fort Hays State Historic Site ( http://www.kshs.org/places/forthays/ )
(5) Sheridan Inn ( http://www.sheridaninn.com/ )
Now I took these locations just from Murray's book. I've also found three allegedly haunted locations within Deadwood. Of course just about everybody knows about the legendary ghosts at the Bullock Hotel but there are other alleged phenomena in Deadwood. There is one ghost legend less than a block away heading north on main street!
Well, the way I see it you start any such research by referring to some conventional historical sources and putting an emphasis on one individual or event. Probably the most notable incident I've read about so far is at the Little Bighorn battlefield; the ghostly manifestations of Second Lieutenant Benjamin Hodgson. He was one of Custer's officers that died at Reno Crossing during the battle.
I first learned about the incidents that allegedly took place in Murray's book (Ghosts of the Old West, pages 18 through 22). What impressed me about the story in Murray's book was he was able to name the specific witness to the phenomena; a student intern named Christine Hope. He also mentions that she was originally from Minnesota which might raise the possibility of contacting her. Now the specific incident took place in 1983 but it is still possible that she might be around.
According to the account in the book late on night she woke up to see what looked like the officer sitting in a chair in her apartment. She had no idea who he was at the time but later saw a picture which helped her identify him as Hodgson. Now the problem with this story is that she was the only witness to this particular incident; credibility is strengthened for any incident if it involves multiple witnesses. There was no reported interaction between the phenomena and Ms. Hope. There is a school of thought that believes all hauntings can be broadly divided into two groups, those that are sentient and those that are not. To explain this is that some incidents are like watching a movie of the historic events being played out in front of you. In these cases it would seem that the phenomena is not even aware you are there to witness it. In the other case it is sentient and possibly attempting to communicate with the witness. Since Ms. Hope's apartment in the Stone House on the Little Bighorn battlefield did not exist in 1876 it is not possible that she was witness to some event from the past. This would tend to put this incident in the category of a sentient incident.
This is all still only a very good story at this point. Without some investigation any such account is nothing better than just a good story. An incident 25 years ago also doesn't lend itself to careful examination. On the other hand, if there is any truth to all of this it stands to reason other incidents might have taken place. The bigger problem might be in getting witnesses to come forward. There is the inclination not to report any such incident. Nobody wants to be labelled as crazy. Certain communities, academic and professional, are also less than friendly to this sort of thing.
Still, it might be worth a try at investigating. I was very pleased to find another book on our shelves, in Laurie's collection, that had an even more extensive account of Ms. Hope's incident.
'Custer's Ghosts, Custer's Gold', Donald W. Moore, 2007, Upton and Sons, ISBN 978-0-912783-43-7
Both Moore's and Murray's books report other witnesses to the apparition of Hodgson. Moore's book also goes at some length into other curious paranormal events that allegedly took place around Hodgson in the years before the battle. This all leads me look into the lieutenant's life at more length.
At this point I decided to get a brief biography of this unfortunate young man. It was a good chance for me to refer to a book that I relatively recently added to our collection:
'The Officer Corps of Custer's Seventh Cavalry: 1866-1876', James B. Klokner, 2007, Schiffer Military History, ISBN 978-0-7643-2660-8
I've gotten fond of this book because it provides brief biographies of literally all the officers that served with the 7th Cavalry up to the battle. This is what it had to say:
Benjamin Hubert Hodgson
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on June 30, 1848. Enrolled at the United States Military Academy in July 1865, with fellow classmates William Craycroft and William Robinson. Found deficient in mathematics and withheld a year, he graduated with the class of 1870 among fellow Seventh Cavalrymen Charles Larned and Winfield Edgerly.
Hodgson was commissioned in the Seventh Regiment as Second Lieutenant, Company B, on August 9, 1870 to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of Charles Rea, joining his company in the field in Colorado. Following winter garrison at Fort Leavenworth, he accompanied his regiment on duty in the south, posted to Columbia and Spartanburg, South Carolina until March 1873. Upon his posting to the Dakotas, he took part in the Yellowstone Expedition of 1873, and the Black Hills Expedition of 1874. Stationed at Fort Rice, he accompanied elements of the regiment posted to the Department of the Gulf, where he served on duty in Shreveport, Louisiana. Hodgson, a fierce fighter of diminutive physical size, rejoined the command in the Dakotas in April 1876 in time to accompany the regiment on the Yellowstone Campaign, withdrawing his resignation papers for "the thrill of one last campaign." While on temporary duty as adjutant to Major Reno during the Battle of the Little Bighorn, he was killed in action in the valley fight, retreating back to high ground on June 25, 1876:
"I saw Lt. Hodgson's horse leap into the stream and saw him struggling as though wounded. I saw the Lt. disengage himself from the stirrups and grab the stirrup strap of a passing trooper and with that aid, make his way across the stream. No sooner had he reached the bank than it became apparent he had been wounded. But he pluckily held on and the trooper seemed to be trying to help him up behind him on the saddle but without daring to stop his horse. An instant later, Hodgson seemed to be hit again for he lost his hold, fell to the ground, staggered to his feet, and sought to reach another comrade who reigned in to aid him. And just as it seemed that he was saved, I saw the second trooper throw up his arms, reel in the saddle and fall heavily to the ground. Hodgson started to make his way toward the ravine, up which the command was disappearing, he staggered forward a few steps, stumbled, struggled to his feet again only to fall once more. He apparently decided that further effort to retreat was useless as I saw him turn to face the Indians, draw his revolver, and open fire. An instant later, three or four shots rang out from my side of the river, and I saw Hodgson reel and fall and I knew it was all over."
Letter by Theodore Goldin. Reprinted in 'Indian Fights and Fighters', Cyrus T. Brady, 1904, Reprinted 1971, University of Nebraska Press
This is a start...
11月14日 Ghosts of the Old WestGhosts of the Old West
If you are interested in ghosts the first thing is to find reliable information about them. Now I'm not talking about the usual collection of spooky stories with no verifiable facts behind them. It has been my experience that most alleged paranormal events are little better than children's fables once you get down to establishing quantifiable facts. It is a bit dreary to read or hear some dramatic story and then when you ask questions the whole story starts melting away in the light of stark reality. The way I see it the only way these stories will go anywhere in their verification is if a skeptical examination is thoroughly carried out.
The first step will be in the collecting of the various stories and establishing which of these warrant investigation. So far I've found one interesting book that does manage to provide some hard facts that can be worked with:
'Ghosts of the Old West', Earl Murray, 1988, Dorset Press, ISBN 0-88029-470-1
This book is very promising! Sure, it has the usual spooky stories but this is a book about ghosts after all! What is also has is the name of witnesses, dates, specific locations and more potentially factual data than you usually find. It was also great to see that many of the locations in this book are within an easy drive of Deadwood. Fort Laramie was actually listed with several interesting incidents. The Little Bighorn Battlefield also had incidents listed. Actually Laurie has managed to find a few other ghost stories attached to the battlefield on her own. There is also the case hotel in Sheridan Wyoming that might be interesting.
The funny thing was it didn't have one thing on Deadwood! I have a feeling that the phenomena is probably so widespread that you could fill volumes with the stories that are out there. I have been doing a bit of research on the incidents that have taken place in the 'Green Door' in Deadwood and found a considerable amount of information available online! I am not as concerned about the alleged hauntings of the Bullock Hotel. The fact of the matter is that the Bullock, fine hotel that it is, does tend to over glorify the spooky events that occur there. Heck, on one of our last trips we ran into some people wandering around the hallways looking for a ghost to photograph! I did advise them that their best luck would probably be at the top of the second floor landing...
The next thing I will bring up is my research into the technology of ghost hunting. We have been watching the 'Ghost Hunter' series on DVD and it is interesting to see the gadgets they use and how they use them. I also found the TAPS website, the organisation featured on the 'Ghost Hunter' series, and found their tutorials and links on the technology. The funny thing is how they modify existing technology to do this sort of work. I am now looking at information offered by more traditional scientists and technicians in regard to this sort of usage. I'll try to post this information once I've had a chance to go over it a bit more thoroughly.
Right now I have to modify one of my old laptops into a large scale audio-visual storage unit of sorts. The one thing I have definitely figured out is that if you intend on doing this you will need the ability to store data. Lots of data. Talking about Former pilots, officials call for UFO study - Space- msnbc.com
There must be something in the air...
11月10日 Haunted HistoryHaunted History
Maybe the Booming Prairie Chicken needs to do a little special research?
Lately Laurie and I have been starting to gather some unusual research information. We like to stay in hotels that have some history to them. They generally beat the heck out of what you will find at a Holiday Inn or Hampton Inn. We do have a loyalty of sorts to the Hampton Inn chain but they do tend to be a bit bland. If we find a city or location has a hotel with some real history to it we will usually pick it over the local chain hotel.
The best examples of this are the Bullock Hotel in Deadwood or the Occidental Hotel in Buffalo. Both are amazing in their Victorian charm and offer interesting history.
The Historic Bullock Hotel
The Occidental Hotel in Buffalo, Wyoming
The lesson we have learned is that some of these older establishments have additional 'charms' to offer. They very often have their own legends of hauntings and paranormal activity. The Bullock doesn't leave much to the imagination; they are very proud of their ghostly legend. I even remember telling one of the Deadwood locals about the Occidental Hotel in Wyoming and their response back to me was, "do they have a ghost?" The Bullock even offers a ghost tour six days out of the week!
The Ghostly Legend of the Bullock Hotel in Deadwood
Now this isn't the first time we have wandered into this sort of thing. While I was travelling around Civil War battlefields in the east I found the phenomena was quite common. On a trip Laurie and I were on a few years ago we even encountered some strange events while we were staying at Antebellum Era bed and breakfast outside Fredericksburg, Virginia. I can't go into this at any length here because the owners of the B&B would prefer not to dwell on this aspect of their establishment.
We have also encountered numerous ghost stories attached to various historical sites. It seems like all Civil War battlefields have their ghostly legends. I have personally heard one fellow tell me about encountering what he thought was a living history actor on the Chancellorsville Battlefield National Park grounds. He didn't interact with the Confederate soldier he saw but became somewhat concerned with the confused look the soldier had. Then he said the soldier simply disappeared.
Now Laurie and I do a fair amount of historical research before and after just about any trip we take. It helps me to know what happened at any given location. Now we are expanding our research a bit. We are collecting the various ghost stories that surround many of the places we visit. It is relatively easy to find various travel guides that dwell on the paranormal histories of different places. I am seeing that these are becoming pretty common in the travel sections of all the bookstores we visit.
The thing is we are also beginning to learn about more of these legends on our own. I talked with a young woman recently that told me about her father telling her of an apparition he experienced while working at the Homestake Gold Mine. He was working there in the years right before the mine closed. He was involved in an accident underground that caused the serious injury of at least one miner. The woman's father told her that as they worked to bring the injured miner out of the shaft the rescue party saw the apparition of another miner guiding them. Now this is a second hand story and might have gotten embellished a bit over the years but it does make a person wonder.
So we will be adding more information about this sort of thing to the blog. You're probably thinking I should have started this on Halloween. Well, I was thinking about it then but, you know, better late than never...
11月7日 Paulson Brothers Ordnance CorporationPaulson Brothers Ordnance Corporation
One of my coworkers brought this newspaper article to my attention. Every so often I run into somebody who enjoys history with a dedication that has to be admired. Then again you see some historical enthusiasts that even manage to make a living out of their passion. The Paulson brothers are a very good example. I really have to envy these two in a lot of ways. Most people go to work each day thinking how they would rather be doing something, sometimes anything, else. The Paulson brothers look like they go to work each day now doing exactly what they want to do!
When I first read this I thought to myself that I hope they have a website. It looks like they are already well known among those who might want to buy a Civil War era cannon. I just thought it would be nice to keep track of their endeavors a bit. Well, they do have a website and if you want to order a cannon this is the place to do it!
Paulson Brothers Ordnance Corporation
I'll tell you right now I did check out the price for the 10 inch siege mortar. I had this idea that it would be great on the Fourth of July to just lob a mortar shell or two. The price is a little more problematic and the legality of launching large iron balls around the neighborhood is questionable. It would make a heck of a lawn ornament... 11月4日 Talking about Consumers feel crunch for jumps at the pump - Oil & Energy - MSNBC.com
High Gasoline Prices and the Booming Prairie Chicken
11月3日 Talking about Navy stuns Notre Dame, snaps 43-game skid - Notre Dame Central - MSNBC.comIt is about time... I have a quiet loyalty to Navy Football and it is about time this was corrected. Go Navy! Quote Navy stuns Notre Dame, snaps 43-game skid - Notre Dame Central - MSNBC.com Deadwood and Historical PreservationDeadwood and Historical Preservation
I am in the habit of keeping track of the news in Deadwood; we intend on retiring there someday so it just seems like a prudent thing to do. Every so often I see somebody complaining that Deadwood has sold out its historical heritage in the name of economic opportunism. I think people should face the fact that Deadwood made a revival on the basis of gambling. Tourism, from what I can tell, has always been a way to bring in the almighty dollar but nothing like gambling. I think some people worry that the casinos rule Deadwood.
Guess what, I got some information this morning that shows this isn't the case!
Now I actually have a lot of respect for the casinos in Deadwood. The contribute a lot of money back to the community in various forms. They even put money into historical preservation. They probably get this money from gambling profits. Then you read this story in the 'Rapid City Journal' and you see that the casinos don't always call the shots; historical preservation still has some leverage in Deadwood.
That brings me to something else I found out this morning. Historical preservation can take different forms and even make a dollar or two!
Yup! There is a new hotel in Deadwood and it is a restored Victorian era hotel at that! Now you can bet that Laurie will want to stay there one of the first chances we get!
Martin & Mason Hotel is right across the street from the Adam's Museum. Now this place has a few comforts that were not common to the Victoria era. There is a bathroom for each room. One of the claims to fame the Bullock Hotel had back in 1895 was that it actually had a bathroom for each floor of the hotel! I reassure you that the Bullock today has one for each room. It looks like Martin & Mason's is still working on restoring various parts of the hotel but it is open for business as of today.
By the way, it has a casino on the first floor. I suspect the casino might have had some financial role in the restoration of the hotel... |
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