Mike Higbee's Prospectors Cache

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Pennington County South Dakota

by Tom Ashworth

Immediately south of Lawrence County in the southern part of the Black Hills, Pennington county produced an estimated 128,000 of gold largely from lode mines, but with some placer deposits. The most productive areas for panners seem to be along Spring, Castle, and Rapid Creeks. In Palmer Gulch placer gravels are also said to be rich.

Hill City

From 6 miles southwest of town to 5 miles northeast of town has numerous mines. Total production is estimated at 35,400 ounces of lode gold. There are area mines in and around town. Near the head of Spring Creek you can find several old mines.

Keystone

Keystone is in the western part of the county. The gold belt extends from 3.5 miles northwest of town to 1.5 miles southeast of town. The estimated production from 1875-1959 is 85,000 ounces of lode gold, plus unrecorded amount of placer gold. The area along Battle Creek had productive placers. The Keystone-Holy Terror Mine had and estimated production of 76,000 ounces of lode gold and was the most productive in the county.

Mystic

Southwest of Mystic along Castle Creek, in bars and terrace deposits made up of quartz gravels you can find the important placer locations in Crooked Gulch, Hoodoo Gulch and Chinese Hill. Plenty of placer gold still being recovered.

Mystic-Placerville-Big Bend-Rapid City

Mystic-Placerville-Big Bend-Rapid City area, all along Rapid Creek for 40 miles you can find placer gold. Rapid Creek has produced some very nice placer gold especially at Neilsen's and near Placerville. In Placerville on Placerville Bar, Swede Bar and Stockade Bar were all very productive.

Rapid Creek

BY: Coley Foster

All along Rapid Creek on the Rochford road there are good placer deposits. The Standby Mine near Rochford was a pretty good producer. There a couple of GPAA claims along the road here. Also for new persons to prospecting there is a guy Named Lew Wight that has a claim (Glory Hunters) at the intersection of the Rochford and Mystic roads. He gives classes and provides equipment for people to work his claim. There is a fee but I am not sure how much it is. It did seem reasonable and his class was very good.

I work this area a lot

Rochford

In the Rochford district, including a belt of mines 9 miles long, extending from 4 miles southwest of town at Myersville to 5 miles north of 30 degrees West at Nahant in Lawrence County is the Hornblende Belt. There are many mines in this belt.

Rockerville

Rockerville is in the center of an area of several square miles of high terrace gravel deposits that were very productive.

Sheridan

At Sheridan, along Spring Creek, there were many productive placer workings.

Silver City

West of Silver City you can find numerous mines that produced gold from quartz veins in schist. These mines produced gold, lead and antimony. North 2 miles from town along Rapid Creek there were many old mines that produced lode gold, copper and silver.