A Deeply Confused Pilgrim

Seth Bullock (left) and Timothy Olyphant as Seth Bullock (right) on HBO’s Deadwood

After attending a family-related event in Sturgis, South Dakota, I decided to drive to the nearby town of Deadwood for a little gambling and sightseeing. I checked out the interpretive re-creation of the “actual location” where Wild Bill Hickok was shot, visited the graves of Wild Bill, Calamity Jane, “Vinegar Bill”, and Seth Bullock. I’ve seen the first season of the HBO series Deadwood and I thought it was pretty good; I’ll certainly continue watching it.

Grave of Seth Bullock on Mt. Moriah

Indeed, the success of the series has apparently resulted in a slight increase in tourist traffic to the region. The cemetery, for example, has been modified to accommodate increased traffic. In keeping with a tradition that is practiced on celebrity graves throughout the word, pilgrims to Deadwood’s Mt. Moriah Cemetery (Boot Hill) leave coins, small notes, and other trinkets on the monuments. Perhaps the most remote of the noteworthy graves at Mt. Moriah is that of Sheriff Seth Bullock. It’s fair to say that most people were probably not familiar with Mr. Bullock until he became the stoic and honorable protagonist of the HBO series (played with a practiced flatness by Timothy Olyphant). The gravesite of the actual Seth Bullock is set far apart from the cemetery proper, on a peaceful hill overlooking a scenic valley in the heart of the Black Hills. On top of his gravestone sits the usual assortment of coins & trinkets. Now, out of respect I did not molest these tokens during my visit. One of my companions, however, did – which is how I came into possession of a small card from Kčva Juice which had a kind message for Mr. Bullock scrawled on the back.

It’s the thought that counts...