In 1874 when General George Custer’s Expedition was in the Black Hills, two miners named Ross and McKay attached to the expedition and discovered gold in the gravel on French Creek near Custer. Since that time around 32,000,000 of gold came from South Dakota. The Homestake mine is located here and it is the largest and richest gold mine in America.

Black Hills

Placer gold is found in the gravel bars of all the streams in the Black Hills. Several of these deposits have made recreational prospectors rich.