In the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie, the United States signed off the land eventually known as Deadwood, South Dakota, to the Lakota people. 

But that all changed when Lieutenant Colonel George Custer discovered gold in French creek in 1874, kicking off the Black Hills Gold Rush. Soon, the illegal town of Deadwood took hold to capitalize on new opportunity, attracting a particularly shady bunch given the American government's inability to govern what was still legally Native American land. 

Gambling, opium trade, and adult service businesses thrived, culminating in Wild Bill Hickok's murder in 1876. Eventually however, more established mining businesses weeded out the town's shady characters. 

The Battle of Little Big Horn and subsequent Horsemeat March in 1876 purged the area of its remaining Native settlements, and the narrow-gauge railroad in 1888 solidified the town's status as a relevant economic participant. 

Deadwood's Wild West days were over, but its legendary status as one of America's most lawless towns will hold its place in history forever.