Now & Then, 05/21/2026

We recently returned from a wonderful time vacationing at our favorite place to visit, Deadwood, South Dakota.
We traveled with our son Dan, our daughter-in-law Julie, their sweet little Shih-tzu Remy, hubby and me. Julie was our designated driver. She loves driving and does an excellent job. Son has a great deal of responsibility at his job and he is happy she drives, letting him relax, unwind and enjoy the scenery.
We feel so blessed that Dan and Julie take us on a road trip every year. At our age, we could not do it on our own. They could no doubt have more fun with friends their own age, but they kindly spend their vacation time with us.
It takes about 13 ½ hours to get there. Sometimes we drive right through, and sometimes we stay overnight along the way. We enjoy the Badlands and Black Hills, and of course the stop at Wall Drug.
Even for those who do not enjoy gambling, the history of Deadwood makes the area an interesting place to visit.
Aside from the images of the Black Hills, gold rush and the Sioux Indian wars, Deadwood is remembered as the place where “Wild Bill Hickok” was shot while playing poker in Saloon No. 10.
It is said Hickok joined a flood of miners, shopkeepers, prostitutes, card players and outlaws invading the raw and just-formed town of Deadwood in June of 1876.
His intent was to separate prospectors and miners from their gold, not at gun point, but at the poker table. Hickok was a newlywed; his wife, the former Agnes Thatcher, was waiting for him back in Cheyenne.
While gambling, he’d pour his drinks with his left hand, leaving his best gun hand ready while gambling. He always wanted to sit with his back to the wall. When he walked into Saloon No. 10, the only seat open faced away from the Saloon’s doorway. Although uneasy, he finally sat down. He never saw a loafer named Jack McCall walk within three feet, pull a .45 out of his coat and pull the trigger.
Hickok spilled his hand, a pair of black aces and eights, known forevermore as “Deadman’s Hand.”
We often visit Mt. Moriah Cemetery where Wild Bill, Potato Creek Johnny, Calamity Jane, Preacher Smith, Seth Bullock and W.E. Adams are buried.
Calamity Jane was born Martha Jane Canary. She was married a number of times and had a daughter about whom little is known. Noted for dressing, most of the time, in men’s clothing, and for wild behavior, she was also known by the early miners and settlers for her kind and generous nature.
She whooped it up with the prospectors and gamblers on nearly a nightly basis in the saloons and gambling halls. She always got what she wanted, a sack of groceries for a sick miner or a ticket home for a wayward saloon girl, all at the point of a gun.
She was said to be in love with Wild Bill Hickok, but the romance was one-sided. Wild Bill never cheated on his bride of just a few weeks. When Calamity Jane died, at her request, she was buried next to Wild Bill. Forever close to him in death, but never in life.
The trial of Jack McCall has been performed in Deadwood since the mid-1920’s, making it one of the nation’s longest running plays. It is a family-friendly show where selected members of the audience participate in the performance, serving as jurors of the trial.
My hubby, Dan, and Julie went to the museum in the basement of Saloon No. 10. They enjoyed seeing original memorabilia, old guns and saddles, stills, whiskey bottles, the original poker table, and old cowboy boots. The space included a jail cell and a bedroom.
Dan and Julie also went on the Brothel Tour. Brothels were a fixture on the second story of numerous Main Street buildings. The tour begins in the parlor, where a guide pulls back a torn sheet from what appears to be a closet. Inside a pallet with a makeshift mattress and a chamber pot set a grisly scene for the early days of prostitution. It wasn’t until the 1980’s that the brothels were thankfully closed down.
When the Grizzly Gulch fire in June and July 2002 charred 11,589 acres of forest around Deadwood, it created an ideal habitat for bighorn sheep. They could often be seen from our hotel window that looked out at a wooded area, a stream and a walking trail. Remmy enjoyed the trail and the grazing deer.
While there, my hubby ended up in the ER with an infected tooth. His face swelled and he experienced a great deal of pain. He saw a wonderful doctor who gave him a shot and antibiotics and, in a few days, he felt much better. One day my heart rate exceeded 120 beats a minute, but it settled down and all was fine. Whoever called these “Golden Years?”
A special thank you to Jana Kitzinger, local hairdresser and lover and care giver of animals. She took wonderful care of our girls!
I enjoyed playing blackjack with my son. We both walked away winners each time we played. But the slots weren’t liking me much this trip.
But then again, just being in good enough health at our age to spend another vacation in Deadwood does make us winners, doesn’t it?