Gold nugget

The Making Of The PCJ2 Gold Nugget

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• published: 24 Sep 2013
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Potato Creek Johnny's gold nugget is considered the single-most valuable artifact of Black Hills history in existence. In 1929, Potato Creek Johnny found the nugget in a creek in Spearfish Canyon. He sold the leg-shaped piece, weighing 7.346 troy ounces, to pioneer businessman W.E. Adams in 1934, who then donated the nugget to the new Deadwood museum named in his honor. Stored in a bank vault, the original nugget is rarely shown; instead ceramic replicas are used for display. Both Johnny and his nugget became Deadwood legends. In 2011, the gold piece was appraised at $500,000. The Icebox Nugget was discovered in 2010 by Charlie Ward and Byron Janis of the Icebox Mining Company. The 5.27 troy ounce Icebox Nugget was bought by The Clock Shop, Rapid City, SD, owners Chris and Trevor Johnson. The father-and-son team also purchased 10.35 ounces of placer (flake) gold found in the area where the nugget was discovered. The Clock Shop has generously donated this gold to form a replica of the Potato Creek Johnny nugget, known as the PCJ2. Representatives of the two nuggets first met in April 2011, when the Potato Creek Johnny and Icebox Nuggets were displayed together in Rapid City for a limited-time viewing. Thanks to the enthusiastic reception of the large crowd at the event, The Clock Shop and the Adams Museum arranged to show the nuggets together again in July at the Adams Museum. As throngs of visitors gathered to witness these two unique pieces of history, The Clock Shop owners Chris and Trevor Johnson proposed a novel fund-raising concept—to create the PCJ2 and then auction it as a benefit for the Adams Museum. While Chris Johnson was in the process of putting together a proposal about the PCJ2, he met military veteran and Wounded Warrior Justin Shellhammer—a man who added an unexpected dimension to the project. Shellhammer's story began after his enlistment in the US Army, training in the military police, and deployment to Afghanistan for Operation Enduring Freedom. On April 5, 2005, when walking in the front of a group of soldiers, Shellhammer stepped on an active land mine. Like many unfortunate soldiers, Shellhammer's leg was amputated at Walter Reed Hospital. But unlike most amputees, only a month later Justin Shellhammer ran two miles—and the following September, he ran in a 4-1/2K race to benefit the families of firefighters and policemen killed on September 11, 2001. Shellhammer attributes this determined spirit, along with his sense of humor, to assistance from the Wounded Warrior Project. After hearing Justin Shellhammer's remarkable story of bravery, Chris and Trevor Johnson expanded their fundraising idea to add the Wounded Warrior Project as a beneficiary along with the Adams Museum; they titled the project Preserve our History — Secure our Future. This video documents the making of the PCJ2 nugget, from its inception, to the creation of a mold from the original Potato Creek Johnny nugget, to the pouring of the melted placer gold into the mold, to the final processing and shaping of the incredible PCJ2! The PCJ2 will be auctioned on Saturday, September 28. Potential bidders can follow events leading up to the auction online at PCJ2.com or bid on celebrity items and the PCJ2 at DakotaPlainsAuctions.com.