Promoting history of the Black Hills from 1874?s Custer Expedition to the more recent developments, the 1881 Courthouse Museum is a great place to start learning about Black Hills, South Dakota. Housed inside the original courthouse for Dakota Territory, this house was built originally to serve as the center of government in the area. It was built in 1880-1881using locally manufactured bricks but following the Old Italian style.

Aside from being a Dakota Territory Courthouse, this building also served as a meeting place for church, community and social services. For 92 years it has been used as a courthouse and later on 1973 it was given to the Custer County Historical Society, which turned it into a museum in 1976.

The 1881 Courthouse Museum preserves and exhibits the history of the area. It includes exhibits for the Custer Expedition, the Mining industry within the area, important historical relics, as well as other important exhibits like local arts and other industries. The museum was placed under the National Register for Historic Place on November 27, 1972.