Welcome to the Black Hills of the 1880s, where you will meet a host of rowdies ranging from madams to stagecoach robbers, from tall-tale tellers to killers.

The lively romp details some of the Wild West's most engaging stories, specifically in the Black Hills and Deadwood, home to prostitutes and poets, desperados and dancehall girls, fortune tellers and fugitives. Readers will meet a host of rowdies ranging from madams to stagecoach robbers, from tall-tale tellers to killers.

A multi-cultural collection of short stories

The Black Hills region is a land of superlatives-iconic monuments, wilderness forests, vast prairie grasslands, stunning badlands, remarkable caverns, beautiful lakes, and unparalleled opportunities to hike, camp, boat, bike, fish, see wildlife, and discover this landscape's remarkable natural and cultural diversity. Make the most of your visit with The Best of the Black Hills, your inside guide to the best of America's premier vacation destination. Enjoy the best trails and scenic drives, see the best vistas, stay at the best historic and cultural sites, and discover the best activities for adults and children. Where are the best places to see bison, elk, and mountain goats? Where are the best places to see eagles and wild turkeys? Where are the best wildflower displays, the best picnic spots, and the best places to watch sunsets? What are the best things to do on a rainy day and what are the best winter activities? This handy guidebook has all the answers in clear, concise descriptions written by a former national park ranger, with 176 photographs and 13 locator maps

In the 1870s, Deadwood was a thriving—and largely lawless—boomtown. And as any fan of western history and films knows, stagecoach robberies were a regular feature of life in this fabled region of Dakota Territory. Now, for the first time, Robert K. DeArment tells the story of the "good guys and bad guys" behind these violent crimes: the road agents who wreaked havoc on Deadwood's roadways and the shotgun messengers who battled to protect stagecoach passengers and their valuable cargo. DeArment shows in dramatic detail how for two years gangs of robbers ruled the road, perpetrating holdups and killings, until lawmen and stage-company and railroad agents finally brought an end to the mayhem. The characters populating this violent tale include such legendary figures as Wild Bill Hickok and the famous railroad detective James L. "Whispering" Smith, a formidable opponent of bandits. We also get to know the men who operated the stages, the lawmen and company men who ran and defended the coaches, and the outlaws who fought against them. DeArment tells where these men came from and what became of them after the outlawry ended. He ends his account in the 1880s with Buffalo Bill's Wild West show and its spectacular rendition of a shotgun robbery, featuring an actual Deadwood stagecoach. After nearly a century and a half, the Deadwood stage continues to command our attention.