Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1897-01-02
DAKOTA GOLD DISCOVERIES
A Wild Stampede From Every Sec
ton of the Hills.
The Severe Weather of the Past
Month Did Not Chill the
Ardor of the For
tune Seekers.

1faa NoFAF 49,
Top country, twelve miles southwest
from Deadwood, continues TO be an In
splred theme with miners and prospec-
tors, recent developments surely war
ranting the words Of praise, and some
times the exaggerated talk they indulge
in when referring to IL. 1t certainly IL
a wonderful bit OF country, and the
work so far performed on some OF the
claims there has dispelled many old and
accepted theories of biologists, and
lends an added force to the axiome OF
old miners. hat gold is where you find
It." Veins n shoots of ore being en-
countered in formations which hitherto
have been looked upon as barren OF the
precious metals.
A wild stampede from every section
of the Hills has taken place towards the
new district, not eve the very cold
weather which has prevailed for the
past month or more acting as a check
upon the ardor OF the fortune seekers,
SO already, although the youngest camp
In the Hills, it Is one OF the most popu-
lous. Two cities" have been laid out
there within the past two weeks. and
both are even now striving for metro
politan honors. Balmoral with the ac-
cent on the first sylable) City and
ANtlN VIC lily dIt llt tuDllolllOuS w ny
which they are known. Both cities"
have sprung up as If by magic, and
where but a few weeks ago a cabin or
two of some prospectors relieved the
monotony OF the scenery, row after row
of business houses and dwellings APP
pear, streets cut through the under
brush and forest, and a busy busting
throng Of humanity wake the echoes.
Poor Mans Camp.
Yellow creek has always been looked
upon as an ideal poor mans camp"
and 1t certainly has raised many a poor
man from poverty to afluence during
the few years that its ores have been
mined, out Ragged Top far excels 1t IN
his respect. So far the average of the
ore found and treated has been
richer thar tina of that famous camp,
easier worked and easier found, in
many instances being quarried, not
mined. Within a week or so numerous
rich finds have been made, and some OF
the assay returns have been so high
thai even the local papers have hest
tated to publish them, and when they
have their statements concerning them
have always been qualified. Among
come of the more recent strikes have
been those on the Davy group, owned
by Kilpatrick Brothers and Collins and
w. II. Dairy, which adjoins the ground
upon which the first discovery of ore
was made. ON this ground a ledge
cropped out, marked by huge bolders OF
ore, many Of them lying loosely upon
the surface. The boulderS were
broken and shipped, n the
returns received were so favorable that
they stirred the owners to greater eX-
ertions. Work was Immediately started
sinking. and but a few feet had been
sunk when a. solid ledge was encouf-
tered. Work was begun taking out ore,
and an open cut 200 feet long completed,
I'm the face OF which ore Is now being
"ouarrled" and daily shipments made.
A shaft was started in an endeavor TO
sink through the lime to the second con-
tact. and to see what lay beneath. the
shaft now has a depth of lO1 feet m ~
still I'm line. Work on this SMART mas
been temporarily suspended, but VIII be
resumed shortly. The surface work on
this property has proved 1t to be a Vef-
table bonanza, and even should the
owner fail to find a second contact at
a lower level, what they now nave III
sight Is sufficient to make them all
wealthy many times over.
A Ricn Find.
The Anchor and Balmoral properties
were the original locations in the tagged
rop district, and in the Balmoral the dis
coyery was made which has resulted In
the stampede thither and been the means
of lansing to be worked and made prolt-
able hitherto ~uncxplored ground, which'
from its peculiar formation, prospectors
had never thought of investigating. The
--.- l.. .,..,a Nth httun hnfllIarG and
Mr.. Wall, one of the locators, while pass
ing over the ground one day in a spirit OF
Investigation broke one of them into frag-
ments. The broken rock attracted his at
tcntlon at once. lie had seen something
similar to IL before; 1t looked something
like the ore he had seen in Ruby Basin and
Nevada Gulch, so he brought "A few pieces
to the city and had them assayed. lie was
surprised to receive an average assay IRON
a. number of tests made OF over 800 a ton.
The ground was Immediately entered upon
by Wall, Murray, Medill and May, and a
number of locations, sixteen in all. taken
up. Work on these locations demonstrate
ed that but a few feet be.cw the surface
were numerous shoots and veins OF nigh
grade sillceous ores. A few shipments
We're made to local reduction works when
gave to the shippers "A large profit. the
of the new discovery soon leaked out,
and then began the wild scramble Tor
Today, for miles in every direc-
lion. not a foot of ground remains an
,laimed In the district, and many conflict
ng locations have been made. which in
ime will prove to be a source of revenue
o lawyers, for untold litigation Is sure TO
,e the result.
These recent discoveries, while of great
'alue to the particular section in which
hey nave been made, are of even far
value to the Black Hills at large,
or they prove beyond n doubt that the de-
,osits OF siliceous ore are not confined to
my one particular locality, but are cock
with the Hills themselves, and will
10 the means OF inducing miners in other
to look more closely to the rock
II which they are working and to exam
ne more carefully the ores which they
AXE out.