The historical record contains a wealth of primary sources from the early days of Deadwood, Dakota Territory. Images and paperwork of all stripes are extant both online and in physical archives. Lacking have been fuller profiles of the town’s various and sundry characters, divorced from the legends that many worked to craft for themselves. One such character of note is Ellis Albert “Al” Swearingen, who is most closely associated with Deadwood but met his demise in Denver on Nov. 15, 1904.
Al and twin brother Lemuel Swearingen were born in Oskaloosa, Iowa, on July 8, 1845. Their parents, Daniel and Keziah Swearingen, were farmers who would eventually establish a reported that Swearingen had forcibly detained without pay at the Gem two married stage performers from Omaha, prompting their husbands to petition Deadwood Mayor Sol Star for their release. According to one of Al’s contemporaries, chronicler John S. McClintock, the profits the Gem brought effectively blinded Deadwood’s most prominent citizens to Swearingen’s boundless corruption. Death eventually tracked him down in Denver. Newspaper accounts suggest he fell off a streetcar or train while trundling about the Colorado capital, though the weight of evidence points to a darker demise.
