Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1916-12-30

1t was Christmas eve and four feet
of snow lay on the ground. Hank
Magrew's cabin stood near the road
leading down into Polar gulch and
underneath a great cliff of porphyry
which had been exposed by the ero-
sion of many centuries From the
base of this cliff stream of water
emerged and formed a spring which
was almost hidden from view by the
clump of wild raspberry, and other
bushes which surrounded it and lined
the banks Of the little stream which
flowed just past the rear of the cabin
1t was this spring of water that had
caused Hank to build his cabin in
Polar gulch rather than in Rumbago
gulch, farther to the east where the
greater portion OF his claims lie
Forty years before this Christmas,
in the month of July 1876, Hank
Magrew had come to the Black Hills,
attracted by the reports of wondeE
full discoveries of gold in the then
wild territory. After a few months
spent in placer mining with fair sue
cess in Deadwood gulch Hank struck
out for himself in search of the rich
ledges which were believed to exist
higher up in the mountains, and
which were the subject of most of the
conversation at that time in the cab
ins of the miners, and in the restau-
rants in town where the prospectors
congregated.
1t required no technical knowledge
to become prospector The few
months which he had spent as one of
the owners of Claim No. 3 Below Dis
covery on Deadwood creek were suf-
ficient for him to pick up knowl-
edge OF rocks that carried the prec-
ious metals, and the use of miners
terms, and carrying his pick and grub
bucket about with him he soon be
came familiar figure among the
miners, as he went tramping over the
mountains in search OF rich ledge.
Day after day he might be seen dig
ging among the rocks with his pick,
or scrapping away the earth at the
base Of dyke and looking keenly
and anxiously through his glass at
the various ore bearing rocks which
he found for trace OF the precious
minerals.
Finally one day the report was
brought to town that Hank had found
some good looking rock and had To-
Gated a bunch" of claims on the
divide between Rumbago and Polar
gulches, and thereafter the Magrew
group, as il was called, became one
Of the landmarks in that neighbor-
hood from which other prospectors
located and described their ground.
Though looking for minerals rath-
or than for scenery the point where
i1duh udu nA0ht lli1 dA1NOftAf wac
nevertheless a slightly one. A love
of nature was deeply rooted in Hank
Magrew's character, and from his
New England parents he had inherit
ed also a fondness for scientific sub
jects. such as geology and astronomy.
The natural beauty of the location
may have influenced Hank to search
in this particular neighborhood for
the minerals which he hoped to find,
but, however, that may have been, IT
needed only an outcrop showing the
mineral bearing rock to induce Hank
to look no further, and he was con-
vinced at once that development work
on this promising discovery would
lead him quickly to the place where
II made into a large body of rich
ore.
The work of locating his ground
having been completed Hank next
turned his attention to selecting
site for his cabin. Each of the two
small gulches led down into the great
canyon which sweeps around the
western border of the mining dis
trict. The heads of the two streams
were but short distance apart, and
across the hog back which separated
the two gulches near their source,
stretched the Magrew group of
claims, with all Of its prospective
boundless wealth
Polar gulch was selected as the To-
cation for his cabin not alone because
of the fine spring of water which has
been referred TO, but also because It
was more secluded, for Hank Ma
grew had very little use for society.
Occasionally when he went to Dead
wood to secure a supply of grub, he
would take peep in at the dance
halls. and on few occasions he had
been known to relax little, and I'M
bibe too freely, but these were rare
instances, and for the most part ne
spent his life in the gulch within the
shadow of Terry's Peak.
Magrew's cabin was known TO all
of the inhabitants of the Bald Noun
tain district 1t stood back from the
road a distance and under porphyry
cliff. There was but one room, and
aside from the bed which attached
to the wall the only furniture con-
sisted of a cook stove and table, with