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History Below The Pines, Spearfish, SD (2026)

09/07/2026

Happy !

Let's use our new "SUP CAM" and do the impossible! We are going to see past a mine blockage at one of Seth Bullock's old mines! Let's talk about it!

So, first let's break this down! What is the "SUP CAM?" Great question! So, about a month ago we upgraded our equipment and added the sup cam to our long list of cameras. This new addition to our gear lineup lets us reach those ultra-tight spots to see what's lurking behind an old wall, under an old wooden floor, or beyond a cave-in. The Sup Cam also comes with over 5 feet of high durability cable meaning we can get it into pretty much anywhere and have a clear image. Attached to the end of the camera is also a super bright light giving us all the light needed to see bevond that hole.

So, now that you guys know what sup cam is, we are excited to say, that for the first time, we were able to finally use the sup cam! This past weekend we were invited to an old privately owned mine and the owner had dreams of accessing it. The only issue is that the portal is super dangerous... However, the owner had found two mine hatches further past the portal, however, both of the manway hatches were cemented in. The owner, was toying around with the idea of removing the caps however, they wanted to see what was beyond the cap before they spent money on removing the large cement lids. This is where we come in handy with our equipment!

First thing is first, in the photos there is a photo of a veritical pipe going down a dark hole. Unfortunately, the ladder that is in that manway did not go all the way down and we did not want to test the theory that the ladder was safe without our ropes which, we did not have with us! However, after grabbing our bright LED light we were able to confirm that the bottom had caved in. That answered that question!

Moving onto the cement caps. One of them actually had a crack just big enough for us to slip the "SUP cam" into. Now, keep in mind, this mine was very large and had many manways or escape hatches in it, in case of cave-ins. These manways also, had not been opened in years or even seen daylight in years! So, what we got to see is very neat!

As we powered up the cam and slipped into the dark abyss that hasn't seen a human light in likely 50 years if not more, a rusty ladder came into sight. The excitement started to grow as we were hoping that hatch had not caved in and that the ladder led into the workings of this old mine. Unfortunately, this ladder led down another manway within and that one was caved in. The other manway was inaccessible completely.

Though, we were disappointed in the results, it gave the landowner some valuable information and we got to use our new equipment. We did record the video, however, it is a little bit choppy. We may or may not post it...

So, no, we did not get see any old equipment or find access however, we were very happy to have been able to have been helpful to this landowner. We are still deep in research for this landowner as well. The original mine on property was actually owned by two famous businessmen out of Deadwood including Seth Bullock himself! So, later we are hoping to post more of our research!

Until then, we hope you enjoyed this brief look into an old Black Hills privately owned ghost mine. We think it is kind of neat that you all get to see in a hole that hasn't seen humans in half a century or more!

Keep checking back for more Black Hills history soon!

-HBP

09/07/2026

We hope you have all had an amazing Labor Day Weekend! We know we have!

It has been a busy weekend for the crew! This weekend We were able to pack in a ton of time researching history followed by documenting mines, editing videos, making a few stops in the Northern Hills, and even helping one of our landowners celebrate their birthday! Like we said, it has been a BUSY weekend!

We hope you all enjoy the day and get to kick back and relax! Have a wonderful Labor Day!

Oh, we almost forgot... WE WILL have a Mining Monday Post coming later! We are going to show you all some super cool stuff from getting past cave ins to one of Seth Bullock's mines! More to come! Stay tuned! 👀

-HBP

09/06/2026

Happy Sunday Funday!

Black Hills History Buffs: This is your reminder*** Tomorrow, September 7th, 2026 is the LAST day of the season for general tours underground at the world famous Broken Boot Mine! Go get your tour on and experience what it is like to go underground in a mine from the 1800s!

We feel that we would be doing you and injustice if we let you go without the history though! So here it is!

Last spring, we took in an old postcard from 1966 into our private collection. The photo depicts the tourist mine - Historic Broken Boot Gold Mine in Deadwood, SD.

This mine is currently owned and operated by the Deadwood Chamber of Commerce in the summer months. It is also the only underground mine tour in the Northern Black Hills open to the public to this day.

The History: In 1878, two men by the names Olaf Siem and James Nelson were eager to chase the dream of striking it rich in the wild west. They settled on a hillside just outside of modern-day Historic Deadwood. For 26 years, the two men mined to their hearts content. According to our research, in that 26 years, the mine produced around 15,000 ounces of gold. This is not considered a good amount at all.

According to the Broken Boot website, the two miners actually found more pyrite (fools gold) than they did real gold. Now, if we have any geologists following along, they would tell you pyrite could be used in processing actual gold. They would be correct. You see, it was used in sulfuric acid. The acid was primarily used back then to oxidize and leach sulfide - encapsulated refractory gold ore. In simple it made it easier to get the gold.

which, at that time, most likely would have been popular as the mines brought ore to be processed. Because of this the mine was able to make some profit. More or so off of the fools gold than the real gold.

In 1904, Siems Mine now, Broken Boot Mine, would close its doors and sit abandoned until 1917 when the mine would reopen for war efforts. This would be a short stint as the war would end in 1918.

In 1918, the mine would become an official Black Hills ghost mine until 1954. It was at this time that some men would get together and approach the owner of the mine at that time, which was Mrs. Selma. She was actually Olafs daughter. The men's idea was to open it for tours to let folks go underground in a real gold mine. Selma and her husband agreed and ended up leasing it to the men. As for why it's named Broken Boot today... well, we will let you go on the tour and find that out for yourself!

You can find out more information on the mine here: https://brokenbootgoldmine.com/about-the-boot/

09/04/2026

What could these two Black Hills businesses have to do with history?! Well, you will just have to wait and find out soon! We are very excited to announce more but until then, we shall keep you all waiting!

STAY TUNED👀😬🍿🍺

-HBP

09/04/2026

Happy

Today, we take you back to 1962 to the town of Pluma, South Dakota. Once a bustling little community that sat between Lead and Deadwood.

In this location(we know the angle is off...) is where The Liberty Motel used to sit. The motel was home to 18 cozy room that included heat, lounging, and cooking facilities according to the note on the back of the photo.

The motel was owned and operated by Bill and Julia Koti. From our understanding and research the couple moved to Pluma(outside of Deadwood) in 1933 after moving from Michigan. After settling in Pluma they opened a service garage however, Mr. Koti wanted to try other avenues and that is when he opened up the motel.

We also have been told at one point there used to be a Burlington Trolley that would go by the motel or in the near vicinity. It was powered by overhead wires.

Pluma also was home to the Belt Light & Power Company. The large energy facility used steam engines that were powered by coal to generate electricity for the local mills and mines. Old photos still exist showing large steam turbines and such. In fact if you visit Pluma today and stop at one of the various History Link Signs you will be able to see old photos of the power company! Pretty interesting stuff!

Locals talk about the old iconic Shamrock Cafe that sat in Pluma! We couldn't find much on it but we have heard that the restraunt used to have super good food! Another Pluma Favorite was the drive in theater. We have heard many stories about it!

Today, Pluma is very much still alive and is home to numerous businesses and even a few residences. One of our favorite stops is to grab a snack at The Chubby Chipmunk! Definitely a reccomended stop! Then make your way across the highway to read some of the signs and sit by the creek.

Are you a local?! Do you remember Pluma!? Have any fun memories?! Feel free to drop them in the comments!

-HBP

09/02/2026

Here at History Below The Pines we are beyond thankful for the individuals who are apart of the team! We also like to give them shout outs on special occasions! Somehow we missed Tim's big day! Please join us in wishing him a very happy belated birthday!

Tim has been with us since the very beginning and specializes in the history research field. He is our go to guy for everything mining history and Warren Lamb Railroad. He also helps when it comes to contacting landowners!

Thanks for being part of the team Tim! We hope you had a great birthday!

-HBP

09/02/2026

Happy

You have made it to the halfway point of the week!

For today's Way Back Wednesday post we are talking about some Homestake history!

Recently, this old photo came into our collection and of course we had to dig into the history of it. Here is this half fallen down hoist house. It has to have a story...

So, you are probably asking yourself, "What am I looking at?!" Well, this is the remains of the Ellison Shaft at the Historic Homestake. One of the many shafts that once took miners and supplies deep underground.

So to fully understand we want to tell the entire story of the Ellison. Construction started on the Ellison headframe in 1897. This same year construction started on the hoist house, and the crusher machine room. Following construction a 900 foot Tramway was to be built to take ore from Ellison to the large mills.

On January 1, 1902 construction would be finished with a final price tag of 1 million dollars. It was quite the cost! Throughout the years, the Homestake added all sorts of equipment to the mine and to the surroundings of the Ellison. It was one of the busy point of the mine at one point!

Unfortunately, the Ellison Shaft would not tower over the Homestake for very long. On July 10, 1930 around 8pm mountain time, the Historic Ellison shaft would suffer a horrible fire. Historians tell us that the fire started in the large compressor room. This was said to be from overheated pipes.

In a short time it is said that the headframe along with a number of outbuildings were fully engulfed in fire. The final blow was that nearby was where the mine was keeping the dynamite caps. This along with other buildings caught flames. This only accelerated the burn. Locals actually referred to is as a fire ball, others said it looked like hell was burning. The fire was so large that it could be seen for over a mile!

Would about the miners?! Good question! At the time of ignition there were actually miners located in the Ellison cage. (The elevator thingy that takes miners underground.) The cage of course stopped and trapped them for a short period of time. News reports show that the miners were quick on their feet as they were able to climb out of the cage and down hundreds of feet via manways. They eventually got to a tunnel that connected one of the other shafts. They ended up taking the next cage up and helping with the situation. However, Other men unfortunately were not so lucky. Two did perish when one of the cages released sending them to their deaths.

The next morning all that was left was noted as being "a heaping burned pile of debris." The interesting part of this whole story is that the mine actually never ceased operation. Even though this horrible fire happened they kept pulling out gold!

The following days the mine ended up cleaning up the devastation and found other avenues to replace and assigned workloads to other shafts.
The mine worked fast to clean up. They rose from the ashes. In fact cleanup started July 11... by August 17th the Ellison Shaft reopened and by February of that next year it would be in full operation once again.

Pretty impressive how fast the Homestake rose from the ashes!

If you thought this story was interesting and are a fan of The Homestake history we definitely recommend checking out the book Price of Gold! A coffee table book dedicated to the stories of the Homestake! You can actually find the book either online or at multiple stores throughout the Black Hills! You can also find more Homestake stories on our podcast!

We hope you enjoyed this look into some Homestake history!

-HBP

09/02/2026

Let's talk about a grisly murder that happened 133 years ago in a now Black Hills ghost town. (WARNING: This story is not reccomended for younger audiences.)

We thought we would start off the month with a good ghost story. After all it is fall and we are in the spooky months.🎃

For this story we have to go back to September of 1893 to a small mining town in the Northern Black Hills. Welcome to Central City, South Dakota! Now, the town was founded only a number a years before in 1877. The town began as any mining camp in the Black Hills. It was a bustling gold mining camp. The town was full of activity, from saloons to boarding houses, to a theater, brewery and more. The town was noted as being a true wild west town. In fact, there was even a story about the United States Cavalry having to come into town to take care of a few folks but that is a story for another time.

Now, from the town's founding in 1877 to the years between to 1893 the town had seen a lot of action. It had also seen lots of tragedy. In 1883 the town suffered its first natural disaster as a record breaking flood came through and wiped most of town out however, Central City would rebuild and come out victorious, only for a large fire to sweep through town in 1888 and do even more large damage to town.

At this point the town never fully recovered. In fact, its population drastically dropped and the town was more of a rough camp. It was not a valued place to live or lay your head at night. Now that we set the scene...

To get to our story at hand we have to make our way down the dusty streets of Central City to Main Street and Sawpit Gulch. It was here in September of 1893 Central City would witness one of its most Grizzliest murders on record.

A man by the name Guisippi Tha lived in Central City. He was a strange man but was also known for his wealth. The story goes that one day in the 1890s Guisippi sent to Italy for a wife. Well, long story short, his future bride arrived a short time after to Central City. They got married almost immediately and set up a house in what would be today Sawpit Gulch. About a year later the couple welcomed there first child. They then decided to have another child. At this point the family was happy and Guisippi was making money for the family. However, over time greed and vices caused him to become aggressive.

Sadly, his new wife of a few years got scared. So scared that she took the children and moved them to another home away from the aggressive father. Guisippi, the father ended up finding them and blamed the people protecting his then wife. At this point he was almost psychotic. They told him to stay away and to leave town. Unfortunately, this only made him more upset.

According to an old newspaper article, Guisippi went back to the home one night in 1893 and lit the house on fire. Thankfully, he was never successful in burning it down as his estranged wife and kids were in there. Well, he did not stop there... the story stated that he went to a mining supply shop and purchased some TNT. Luckily, that was not successful either.

Sadly, one day in 1893 Guisippi did the unthinkable and took the lives of the people protecting his wife, then his wife, and then himself. It was not noted on the actions only that they were found by a passerby. Guisippi was buried on Mount Moriah and his victims were in a separate cemetery.

Today, it is said that the ghost of Guisippi can be seen lurking around sawpit Gulch at night. Local lore is told that on stormy nights in Central City you can look out and see Guisippi peering into their windows from the outside. Other lore includes faint screams thought to be from Guisippi's victims. The former home of Guisippi is now gone but the stories live on...

Welcome to Fall, Welcome to the spooky months, welcome to September!

Throughout the next few months we will be sharing tales like these along with our haunted history videos! So, stay tuned for more spooky content!

For those who are not fans of the paranormal or spooky content, DO NOT fear, we will also be posting regular Black Hills history content. We are just dusting some spooky stories into the mixup.

Thanks for being here and keep checking back for more history content coming soon!

-HBP

History Below The Pines

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