A replica of the most famous Black Hills gold nugget is being auctioned off for charity in late September.
A cast of the famed Potato Creek Johnny Nugget made last year with donated gold is set to auction on September 28th in Deadwood.
SDPB’s Charles Michael Ray reports that organizers are hoping to stir up excitement around the auction.
Mary Kopco is the Executive Director of Deadwood History. It's one of the organizations behind the auction. She says the effort is now underway to attract the kinds of bidders interested in the nugget replica.
“It’s important to note that this is the only identical solid gold nugget that will ever be made of Potato Creek Johnny’s original gold nugget so someone who wants to own an original piece of Black Hills history will I’m sure be interested at bidding on it,” says Kopco.
Kopco says the auction is on-line and now open for biding. She notes that the event is thanks largely to Chris Johnson, owner of the Clock Shop – his business donated the gold used in the nugget replica.
Kopco says auction proceeds go to the Adams House Museum to fund a permanent display of the original nugget and to the Wounded Warrior Project.
You can find a link to the SDPB-TV "Dakota Life" program on this nugget here.