Wagon Train Rediscovers America
Riding the Fort Pierre to Deadwood Trail one hundred years later.
By: Bill Markley 03/01/2009
The discovery of gold in 1874 by Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer’s expedition ignited a stampede.
Mining camps sprang up in the Dakota Territory’s Black Hills—Deadwood being the most notorious. One of the routes to Deadwood originated in Fort Pierre. On the Missouri River’s west bank, Fort Pierre was a natural stop for freighters transporting goods to goldfields. Steamboats brought cargo up the Missouri. In 1880, when the railroad reached Pierre, it unloaded freight that was ferried across the Missouri and loaded into wagons.
Bull and mule trains freighted tons of supplies over the Fort Pierre to Deadwood Trail until 1908, when the advancement of railroads through the Black Hills prodded pioneers off the trail.
Today the trail meanders through both public and private land, making a trip across it impossible...until last year’s historic journey.
Rediscovering the Trail
Rancher Roy Norman had a dream to mark the trail before it was lost. In the 1970’s, he traced trail ruts and placed 52 wooden signs interpreting the trail.
Darby Nutter, president of Fort Pierre’s Verendrye Museum, had a dream to ride the trail with friends. South Dakotans Lonis Wendt, Paul Seamans and Sam Seymour acted on their dream to GPS the trail.
In 2007, these trail enthusiasts joined forces, selecting Gerald Kessler of Fort Pierre to be wagon master and appointing outriders to assist the 300 trail riders. Sixty-four speakers told trail history at evening camps, accompanied by musical entertainment. Organizations were lined up to provide meals. The committee also set up easements, insurance, water, porta-potties and trash pickup, and coordinated with ambulances, fire departments and law enforcement.
The wagon train would travel 240 miles in 17 days; two would be rest days. I was riding with James and Teri Todd of Harrisburg, South Dakota, who had three saddle horses and a wagon pulled by four Belgian horses.
As we enjoyed opening night festivities at the Fort Pierre rodeo grounds, one issue remained unresolved. The wagon train needed to cross one-eighth of a mile of U.S. Forest Service land; after nine months, the agency still had not signed the easement. Without it, the wagon train could not faithfully follow the trail into the Black Hills.
Day 1: Wednesday, July 30
“Wagons Ho!” shouted Gerald, starting 54 wagons and 200 horses and riders on their journey out of Fort Pierre. I rode as an outrider alongside James’s team. “I want to be toward the wagon train’s rear so I can see all the action,” James said. Cheering crowds lined Main Street. The wagon train turned west and began the ascent of the bluffs. “When I began the climb out of Fort Pierre, I could not see them, I could not hear them, but I could feel the presence of all those souls who had gone out of Fort Pierre on that trail encouraging us onward,” said Mike Pellerzi of Canning, South Dakota.
Comments (8)
Sounds like a great experience. Thanks for documenting your journey. (the only saddle sores i get are from sitting in this office chair to long) I can only imagine the few minutes of anguish on the evening of day 9 leading up to Dave Bald Eagle saying "Thats a Joke". Its a shame everyone can't experience a trip like that, I think it would do alot of good.
I ran across my dad's edition of "The Trail of the Jackasses", and buried myself in its pages. Came across your account during a lengthy Jean Dehaven search.
What a great adventure, and a tip of the hat to our fore-fathers and heritage!
I now live on the Brazos River, not far from the Chisholm Trail,.......... hmmmm
You always could spin a good yarn, Bill. Thanks for the tale of the trail!
Pat Decker Nipper
We (four of Howard's sisters) drove from Sioux Falls to Deadwood to witness the train's arrival.
We were so proud to see Howard and "Scout" in all their glory....they had a great ride!!!!
Thanks for your article, Bill. We are sending
it to Howard in New Mexico.
Bill: A very succinct article in diary form. The story reminds me of the trek Jean DeHaven of Wessington, SD, made in the 1960s. Author Bob Wakefield made that experience into a book "Trail of the Jackasses." You may want to make this story into a lecture presentation and contact the South Dakota Humanities Coucil as a presenter. The Center for Western Studies, Augustana College, also likes this category for presentations.
Great article Bill! You really recaptured the spirit of the ride, and the feeling it evoked! It was magic, pure magic!
Bonnie Timmons
Way to go Bill!
We had a ball didn't we?
Very good read. I bet the original travelers of the trail would have liked some air rescue. I think yalls ride exemplified the American spirit and I am quite sure you made the spirits smile. But after all that horse time you had a shot of Windsor. What the hell is Windsor. I would've had a couple of shots of Tequila, and probably some Ben Gay for a sore back.
Post A Comment