In the 1860s, Roman Catholic missionary Father De Smet is reported to have seen Sioux Indians carrying gold which they told him came from the Black Hills.

[1] Prior to the gold rush, the Black Hills were used by Native Americans (primarily bands of Sioux but others also ranged through the area).

[3] Discovered by Louis Thoen on the slopes of Lookout Mountain, the stone purports to be the last testament of Ezra Kind who, along with six others, entered the Black Hills in 1833 (at a time when whites were forbidden by law and treaty from entering the area), "got all the gold we could carry" in June 1834, and were subsequently "killed by Indians beyond the high hill".

While it may seem unlikely that someone who has "lost my gun and nothing to eat and Indians hunting me" would take the time to carve his story in sandstone, there is corroborating historical evidence for the Ezra Kind party.

The first arrivals were a force of 1,000 men led by George Armstrong Custer to investigate reports that the area contained gold,[5] even though the land was owned by the Sioux.

On April 9, 1876, Fred and Moses Manuel, Hank Harney and Alex Engh discovered a gold outcropping near Lead, South Dakota; they claimed their find and named it the Homestake.

During the gold rush, "Treasure Coaches" transporting large quantities of the precious metal worth up to $300,000 on each haul to Cheyenne, Wyoming, became a favorite target for road agents.

The chief guard took cover behind a large pine tree, exchanged a few shots with the bandits, and got them to agree to let him go if he would leave the coach with them.

After he left, the outlaws tied the driver to one of the coach's wheels, opened the safe with a sledge hammer and chisels, divided the loot, and rode off in different directions.