north to south. The Rapid City Journal, speaking of the matter under date of February 3, 1877, says: "The organization of a new territory giving us 'a habitation and a name' is more and more talked of in Washington. The bill is rolling and every helping hand used in the proper direction speeds it on its course and will ultimately lead to the fulfillment of our wishes. The following letter received by Judge Murphy speaks for itself: • WASHINGTON U. S. SENATE CHAMBER, January 8, 1877. DEAR SIR: Your letter of the 15th ult., in regard to organizing a territory in the Black Hills country, is at hand. I will lay the matter before the Committee on Territories of the Senate, and do what I can to further the project. I can not say just now what the prospects are for such a bill passing the Congress. Yours truly, 6 J. P. JONES. To J. M. Murphy, Esq., Deadwood City, Black Hills Territory. The bill came before the Senate in February and read as follows: A Bill to establish the Territory of the Black Hills, and to provide for a temporary government thereof: SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, that all part of the territory of the United States described as follows: Commencing at a point where the 43d parallel of north latitude intersects with the 25th meridian of longitude west from the city of Washington; thence following a due westerly course along said 43d parallel to its intersection with the 30th meridian west from the city of Washington; thence north along said 30th meridian of longitude to its intersection of the Yellowstone river to the center of said channel; thence following the center of said channel to its intersection with the 47th parallel to the western boundary line of Dakota Territory; thence due south along said boundary line to the 46th parallel on north latitude; thence due east along said 46th parallel to the 25th meridian of longitude west from the city of Washington; thence south along said 25th meridian to the place of beginning; Be, and the same is hereby organized into a temporary government by the name of Lincoln Territory. SEC. 2. That the said Territory of Lincoln, and the several officers thereof, shall be invested with all the rights, powers, and privileges, and be subject to all regulations, restrictions and provisions, contained in Chapter 1 of Title 23 of the Revised Statutes of the United States, except as is herein otherwise provided. SEC. 3. That the legislative power and authority of said territory shall be vested in the governor, and legislative assembly. The legislative assembly shall consist of a Council and House of Representatives; the Council shall consist of nine members, which may be increased to 13 members, having the qualifications of voters in said territory. SEC. 4. The House of Representatives shall consist of 13 members, which may be increased to 27 members, possessing the same qualifications as are herein prescribed for the members of the Council; provided that the right of voting and of holding office in said territory shall be exercised only by inhabitants thereof who are citizens of the United States. SEC. 5. That a delegate to the House of Representatives of the United States to serve during such Congress of the United States be elected by the voters of said territory, qualified to elect members of the Legislative Assembly, who shall be entitled to all and the same rights and privileges as are exercised and enjoyed by the delegates from the several other territories in said House of Representatives, provided, that no person shall be a delegate who shall not have attained to the age of 25 years, and have the other qualifications of a voter in said territory. SEC. 6. That when the land in said territory shall be surveyed under the direction of the Government of the United States, preparatory to bringing the same into the market, Sections 16 and 36 in each township in said territory shall be and the same is hereby received for the purpose of being applied to schools in the State or States hereafter to be erected out of the same. SEC. 7. That the President of the United States, by and with the consent of the Senate, shall be, and is hereby authorized to appoint a surveyor-general for the said territory, who shall locate his office at such place as the Secretary of the Interior shall from time to time direct and whose duties, powers, obligations, responsibilities, compensations, and allowances for clerk hire, office rent, fuel and incidental expenses shall be the same as those of the Territory of Dakota under the direction of the Secretary of the Interior, and under instructions as he may deem advisable from time to time to give. Early in February Senator Spencer made a speech in favor of the bill, and much was done both at Washington and in the newly-to-be-created territory, but in spite of all efforts the bill failed. Later when, in 1886-9, the question of admission and division of the territory of Dakota came before the people, the question of having a separate State for the Black Hills came up again, based on the facts that the interests of the rest of Dakota and those of the Black Hills were not identical. CHAPTER VI. LEAD (FORMERLY LEAD CITY). Lead, the largest city west of the Missouri river, in South Dakota, began its history in the spring of 1876, when gold was discovered in the surrounding hills and gulches. At this time the Black Hills was an unbroken forest. The immense lead now known as the Homestake property, was then unknown and covered with heavy timber. At first a few miners' cabins were built along Gold Run Gulch, and the occupants were engaged in placer mining. The first gold was discovered in Gold Run Gulch, a short distance below what is now known as the Homestake settling dam, in March, 1876, known among miners as "Discovery Claim." All the placer claims in the different gulches were rapidly taken up. Some of the claims produced an abundance of gold while others were poor. Soon after prospecting for quartz began, and the Emanuel Brothers, where the cut now is, discovered the Homestake Mine. Soon after they found the Old Abe; then followed the discovery of the Highland by M. Cavanaugh, and the Golden Star by Smoky Jones. Little could be done with the ore until a mill was built, but some was reduced in an arastra in Pennington, by the Emanuel Brothers, being ore from the Homestake mines. The spring of 1877 gave birth to the first quartz mill, one of twenty stamps, built by Messrs. George Beemer & Co., near where the D. C. depot now stands, and christened theRacine," after the home of its proprietor. Stamps began dropping April 15, 1877. The next was the Enos Mill, named after its proprietor. This was built in July, 1877. Mr. Enos, at that time, owned a one-fourth interest in the Homestake Mine. Heretofore, there had been nothing but the scattered cabins of the prospecting miners, but in May and June, when the discovery of gold was made known to the world, the growth of the town was rapid. Four hotels were built the Miner's, Springer, Abt's and Martin — and immigration began flocking in from all directions, continuing until the city has grown to be one of the finest in South Dakota. Anton Webber had the first grocery store, which was located in Washington. Mr. Gushurst in the same year started a store in Washington, and when the town was 1 1 |