The Story
Olaf Seim and James Nelson staked "Seim's Mine" in 1878, at the height of the Black Hills gold rush. Over 26 years it produced only about 15,000 ounces of gold, while yielding abundant iron pyrite — fool's gold — which was more valuable because it could be processed into sulfuric acid. The mine closed in 1904, briefly reopened in 1917 for WWI gunpowder materials, then shut for good in 1918. It sat idle 36 years until 1954, when Deadwood businessmen reopened it as a tourist attraction — and, finding a worn-out boot abandoned in a back chamber during cleanup, rechristened it the Broken Boot Gold Mine. Public tours have run continuously since 1954.
Surprising Facts
→ Its name comes from an old boot found abandoned in a mine tunnel during 1954 renovations.
→ It made more money from fool's gold (iron pyrite, used for sulfuric acid) than from actual gold.
→ It briefly reopened in 1917 specifically to supply materials for WWI gunpowder production.