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| Seth Bullock A stare that could stop a man from shooting. |
In the 1990s a little boy,
staying with his family in the Bullock Hotel in Deadwood, South Dakota, became
lost when he was locked out of his room. A tall man, wearing a wide-brimmed
hat, boots, and long mustache helped him find his way back . . .
In the late 1800s, Seth
Bullock traveled to the Black Hills gold strike, with a wagon full of supplies
to sell to the miners that worked in Deadwood, South Dakota.
He spent the rest of his life
here as a merchant, rancher, sheriff, U.S. Marshall, and hotel owner.
At age 21, he was a Montana
Territorial State Senator who played a role in establishing Yellowstone as a
national park.
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| Main Street in Deadwood, 1876. |
When he and his partner
arrived in Deadwood Gulch, in 1876, he found a hell-bent, rowdy mining
community.
Wild Bill Hickok was shot in the head and
killed the day after he arrived.
Within a few short months, he
was appointed sheriff, and with several handpicked deputies he was able to
clean up the town.
Bullock was a tall, imposing
man with a steely-eyed stare, who demanded respect. He was an honest and fair
businessman who often solved potential violent situations with intelligence and
creativity.
A territorial judge liked to
tell the story of when Bullock stopped a “dangerous miners strike.” These men
hadn’t been paid, so they camped out in the mine—refusing to come out.
Bullock not wanting to injure
anyone dropped a “foul, smelly substance” down the airshaft. The striking
miners eventually surfaced in search of fresh air.
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| Deadwood, Sout Dakota, 1876 |
He managed to keep law and
order in Deadwood without ever firing a shot or killing anyone.
In 1884, riding on his ranch,
Bullock ran into three rough-looking characters. One of these men was Theodore
Roosevelt, the future president of the U.S.
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| Rough Riders |
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| Bullock and Roosevelt |
The two men became life-long
friends, and during the Spanish-American War in 1898, Bullock enlisted as one
of Roosevelt’s famous Rough Riders.
After a fire destroyed
Bullock’s hardware store, on Main Street, in 1894, he and his partner Sol Star
had a luxury hotel built on the site—the Bullock Hotel, which remains open
today.
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| An early photograph of Bullock Hotel. |
Seth Bullock passed away in
1919, at the age of 70.
Many eyewitness reports
indicate his ghost haunts his hotel.
A long-time employee of the
Bullock Hotel shares several compelling guest experiences.
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| Bullock photograph displayed in the hotel. |
One morning, he saw a little
boy point to a photograph of Seth Bullock, that the hotel displays, and explain
the following excitedly.
Dad, that is the man who
helped me, last night, when you and mom went downstairs. The boy tugged on his
arm, I told you I left the room to explore and got locked out. I was lost, and
he approached me, he said he could help.
He led me back to our room
and opened the door, without a key.
See, he has a big mustache,
but he was wearing a big hat and wore cowboy boots. He pointed to the
photo—“That man has the same eyes.”
This employee states this
incident was the first of many that convinced him the stories about Seth
Bullock haunting the hotel were true.
Working the front desk, late
one night he received a frantic call from a guest staying on the second floor.
She complained, there is a
dirty man out in the hallway smoking a smelly cigar—I was told there is “no
smoking allowed.”
The employee asked her to
describe this man. “He is tall, has a large mustache, he stared at me rudely.
He is dressed like a cowboy with a large hat and boots tucked into his pants.”
There was no one of that
description staying in the hotel.
The employee goes on to
explain that many guests have given similar descriptions of a man they saw in
this same hallway—he appears to be real . . .
In Room 211, where Seth
Bullock died, guests have experienced everything from items being misplaced to
objects being thrown across the room.
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| Room 211 |
Witnesses state while walking
in this hallway, they heard their names whispered.
Music is heard in this area
with no source and maids state they often find themselves locked out. One used
a towel to keep the door propped open only to see it fly across the room.
Maid carts also move without
assistance on this floor.
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| A reflected image of what is believed to be Seth Bullock. |
Electrical items turn on and
off in this room even when they are unplugged. Guests report they felt a
“strong presence” that appeared to be watching and then later followed them.
The Bullock staff keeps a
notebook in their lobby so guests can record their experiences. It is believed
many other ghosts besides Bullocks remain at this hotel.
The hotel’s kitchen, bar, and
basement, etc. all have had multiple incidents of unexplained activity.
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