In 1874, an expeditionary force of one thousand men were led by the infamous George Armstrong Custer into the Black Hills of South Dakota, a 1000-square-mile region held sacred by the Sioux. A few months after the group's arrival, a man named Horatio N. Ross discovered gold along French Creek in the central Black Hills. One of the last great North American gold rushes inevitably followed.
Black Hills Gold Jewelry
Gold-Filled Bangle with 12k Gold Leaves
A fun bracelet to wear for casual or dress, this 14k gold-filled bangle is adorned with 12k pink and green Black Hills Gold leaves. Diamond cutting adds an eye-catching sparkle.
$400
White settlement in the region increased dramatically with the discovery of gold. The city of Deadwood grew out of this Wild West era of prospectors, saloons, and legendary figures like Wild Bill Hickock and Calamity Jane. This historic mining town was also home to S.T. Butler, widely acknowledged as the father of Black Hills Gold jewelry. The three-color grape leaf style that Butler used may have originated in California during the 1849 gold rush and worked its way eastward through the mining camps of Nevada, Idaho, Montana, and the Black Hills.
Sterling Silver & 12k Gold Journey-Style Pendant
Capture the journey look in a unique combination of graduated Black Hills Gold 12k pink and green gold leaves against a sterling silver background.
$200
F.L. Thorpe, grandson of S.T. Butler, was a third generation goldsmith artisan who expanded his grandfather's original designs into the hundreds. In 1919, a partnership was formed between Frank Thorpe and and E.O. Lampinen under the name F.L. Thorpe Company. When the partnership of Thorpe and Lampinen was dissolved, Lampinen operated his own shop in Deadwood under the name of Black Hills Jewelry Manufacturing. F.L. Thorpe Company also continued operating.
10k Gold Ladies Two Leaf Ring
10k Yellow Gold ring with 12k pink and green gold leaves in a raised setting. Available in whole sizes 5-9.
$500
In 1944, Ivan Landstrom bought Black Hills Jewelry Manufacturing from Lampinen and moved the firm from Deadwood to Rapid City and continued to operate under the name of Black Hills Jewelry Manufacturing, manufacturers of Landstrom's Original Black Hills Gold Creations.
A 16-year-old girl named Clara Arnold learned the art of making Black Hills Gold from relatives of S.T. Butler in the early 1900s. By the 1940s, she owned and operated her own manufacturing plant in Rapid City. She sold her company to the Stamper family in 1959, and it has since operated under the name Stamper Genuine Black Hills Gold Jewelry.
In the 1980's a federal judge ruled that if a manufacturer was to call its jewelry Black Hills Gold, then it must be made in the Black Hills. Several new companies were born in the Black Hills after this, including South Dakota Gold, Mount Rushmore and Coleman. These new manufacturers brought increased competition and new styles to the marketplace, branching out the original vines of Black Hills Gold tradition.
History had travelled full circle in 1995, when Landstrom's purchased F.L. Thorpe, reuniting the two original Black Hills Gold manufacturers. Landstrom's still manufactures most of the original Thorpe styles, in addition to expanding Thorpe's product line to include new styles.
While much has changed in the Black Hills Gold marketplace in recent years, the intricately hand crafted grapes and pink and green leaves remain the traditional centerpiece of all manufacturers' jewelry.
Black Hills Gold Jewelry
Gold-Filled Bangle with 12k Gold Leaves
A fun bracelet to wear for casual or dress, this 14k gold-filled bangle is adorned with 12k pink and green Black Hills Gold leaves. Diamond cutting adds an eye-catching sparkle.
$400
White settlement in the region increased dramatically with the discovery of gold. The city of Deadwood grew out of this Wild West era of prospectors, saloons, and legendary figures like Wild Bill Hickock and Calamity Jane. This historic mining town was also home to S.T. Butler, widely acknowledged as the father of Black Hills Gold jewelry. The three-color grape leaf style that Butler used may have originated in California during the 1849 gold rush and worked its way eastward through the mining camps of Nevada, Idaho, Montana, and the Black Hills.
Sterling Silver & 12k Gold Journey-Style Pendant
Capture the journey look in a unique combination of graduated Black Hills Gold 12k pink and green gold leaves against a sterling silver background.
$200
F.L. Thorpe, grandson of S.T. Butler, was a third generation goldsmith artisan who expanded his grandfather's original designs into the hundreds. In 1919, a partnership was formed between Frank Thorpe and and E.O. Lampinen under the name F.L. Thorpe Company. When the partnership of Thorpe and Lampinen was dissolved, Lampinen operated his own shop in Deadwood under the name of Black Hills Jewelry Manufacturing. F.L. Thorpe Company also continued operating.
10k Gold Ladies Two Leaf Ring
10k Yellow Gold ring with 12k pink and green gold leaves in a raised setting. Available in whole sizes 5-9.
$500
In 1944, Ivan Landstrom bought Black Hills Jewelry Manufacturing from Lampinen and moved the firm from Deadwood to Rapid City and continued to operate under the name of Black Hills Jewelry Manufacturing, manufacturers of Landstrom's Original Black Hills Gold Creations.
A 16-year-old girl named Clara Arnold learned the art of making Black Hills Gold from relatives of S.T. Butler in the early 1900s. By the 1940s, she owned and operated her own manufacturing plant in Rapid City. She sold her company to the Stamper family in 1959, and it has since operated under the name Stamper Genuine Black Hills Gold Jewelry.
In the 1980's a federal judge ruled that if a manufacturer was to call its jewelry Black Hills Gold, then it must be made in the Black Hills. Several new companies were born in the Black Hills after this, including South Dakota Gold, Mount Rushmore and Coleman. These new manufacturers brought increased competition and new styles to the marketplace, branching out the original vines of Black Hills Gold tradition.
History had travelled full circle in 1995, when Landstrom's purchased F.L. Thorpe, reuniting the two original Black Hills Gold manufacturers. Landstrom's still manufactures most of the original Thorpe styles, in addition to expanding Thorpe's product line to include new styles.
While much has changed in the Black Hills Gold marketplace in recent years, the intricately hand crafted grapes and pink and green leaves remain the traditional centerpiece of all manufacturers' jewelry.
