Meetings of the Spearfish Area Historical Society are the first Tuesday of every month, September through May, at the Spearfish Senior Citizens Center. Sessions begin at 7:30 p.m.

February 2010 Program
LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN

One of the most well-known landmarks in the northern Black Hills is Lookout Mountain, rising above Spearfish valley and providing a marvelous view of the region. It's a site also chock full of history!

Our tour guide for the February meeting (2/2/10) of the Spearfish Area Historical Society was long-time member Paul Dingeman. Paul and his family were long associated with property at "Valley Corner" on the north edge of Spearfish, and he has an abiding interest in the history of this region. A retired educator, he and his wife Joan seldom miss a meeting of our group.

We've not seen any more folks squeeze in to the Senior Citizen's meeting room than we observed last night (2/2/10) for Paul Dingeman's presentation on Lookout Mountain. By our count, about 100 people attended this program.

Looking east on Illinois Street. This February 2010 view is reminiscent of a more famous photograph from near this vantage point. In the 1950s, when a tornado swooped down on the town, a marvelous photograph was taken of the twister, sweeping down the side of Lookout Mountain. A mural of that photograph is prominently displayed in Roma's restaurant -- the sandstone structure at the very left of this photo. Click on the image to see a larger version.

With a Black Hills State University building in the foreground, Lookout Mountain looms to the east above Spearfish.

A couple of young boys enjoy sledding near West Elementary School. Lookout Mountain rises in the background.

Paul Dingeman says this gentleman is Frank Thomson, whom he says probably did more research on the legendary Thoen Stone than anyone else. This marker is located near the old Passion Play property above Spearfish City Park. Our thanks to the South Dakota State Historical Society for archiving this great photo. Someone has duly noted Lookout Mountain in the background. That's where it's believed the stone was found in 1887.

On file with the South Dakota Historical Society, this photograph is a close-up of the Thoen Stone. The stone itself is in an exhibit at the Adams Museum in Deadwood.

Most accounts surrounding the stone say it was discovered near Lookout Mountain by Louis Thoen. The sandstone slab had a message etched onto its surface, listing the names of the group that had come to the area in 1833 in search of gold. All seven of the men, except Ezra Kind, were "killed by ind." Inscribed on the side shown here is the message, "got all the gold we could carry. our ponys all got be indians. have lost my gun and nothing to eat and indians hunting me."

Another shot of the Thoen Stone marker.

In her book Roadside History of South Dakota, writer Linda Hasselstrom told of the many old mining settlements around Spearfish Canyon and said the "gold mentioned by the Thoen Stone (if the story is true) probably originated on one of those drainages."