At its height, the city had a population of 25,000,[10] attracting Old West figures such as Wyatt Earp, Calamity Jane, Seth Bullock and Wild Bill Hickok (who was killed there).

The entire town has been designated as a National Historic Landmark District, for its well-preserved Gold Rush-era architecture.

[5] The settlement of Deadwood began illegally in the 1870s, on land which had been granted to the Lakota people in the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie.

The settlers' squatting led to numerous land disputes, several of which reached the United States Supreme Court.

This announcement was a catalyst for the Black Hills Gold Rush, and miners and entrepreneurs swept into the area.

[10] In early 1876, frontiersman Charlie Utter and his brother Steve led to Deadwood a wagon train containing what they believed were needed commodities, to bolster business.

Madame Mustache and Dirty Em were on the wagon train, and set up shop in what was referred to as Deadwood Gulch.

[12] Women were in high demand by the miners, and the business of prostitution proved to have a good market.

Both he and Calamity Jane were buried at Mount Moriah Cemetery, as well as other notable figures such as Seth Bullock.

Because Deadwood was an illegal town in Indian Territory, non-native civil authorities lacked the jurisdiction to prosecute McCall.

McCall's trial was moved to a Dakota Territory court, where he was found guilty of murder and hanged.

In 1876, General George Crook pursued the Sioux Indians from the Battle of Little Big Horn, on an expedition that ended in Deadwood in early September, known as the Horsemeat March.

On April 7, 1877, Al Swearengen, who controlled Deadwood's opium trade, also opened a saloon; his was called the Gem Variety Theater.

As the economy changed from gold panning to deep mining, the individual miners went elsewhere or began to work in other fields.

In 1879, Thomas Edison demonstrated the first successful incandescent lamp in New Jersey, and on September 17, 1883, Judge Squire P. Romans took a gamble and founded the "Pilcher Electric Light Company of Deadwood".

[15] Some of the other early town residents and frequent visitors included Martha Bullock, Aaron Dunn, E. B. Farnum, Samuel Fields, A. W. Merrick, Dr. Valentine McGillycuddy, Reverend Henry Weston Smith, Sol Star, and Charlie and Steve Utter.

A Chinese quarter arose on Main Street, as there were no restrictions on foreign property ownership in Dakota Territory, and a relatively high level of tolerance of different peoples existed in the frontier town.

[18] During the 2000s, the state sponsored an archeological dig in the area, to study the history of this community of diverse residents.

Nearly 3,600 volunteer and professional firefighters, including personnel from the Homestake Mine, Ellsworth Air Force Base, and the South Dakota National Guard's 109th Engineer Battalion, worked to contain the fire.

[20][21] In 1961, the entire town was designated a National Historic Landmark, for its well-preserved collection of late 19th-century frontier architecture.

Organizers planned the "Deadwood Experiment," in which gambling was tested as a means to stimulate growth in the city center.

[26] Deadwood was the first small community in the U.S. to seek legal gambling revenue to maintain local historic assets.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.929 square miles (12.77 km2), all land.

The northern end of the George S. Mickelson Trail starts in Deadwood and runs south through the Black Hills to Edgemont.

[citation needed] During the winter, two ski areas operate just a few miles outside of nearby Lead: Terry Peak and Deer Mountain.

The Midnight Star was a casino in Deadwood owned by American film actor Kevin Costner.

The Midnight Star was a saloon which featured prominently in the previous western Costner had acted in, Silverado (1985), one of his first major roles.

[37] Mayor McLaughlin called the first meeting of the Deadwood City Council to order on March 15, 1881.