When Al and Bullock are discussing the issue with Hearst in the Gem around 42:50, the side on shot shows visible black masking on Al's missing finger as he stands at the bar before sitting down.
In one scene the senator is playing an Edison Standard cylinder phonograph, which was not introduced until the turn of the century.
"Placer" was pronounced with a long A. It's actually a short "a" in placer mining.
At the beginning of the movie, a steam locomotive is shown with its "Northwestern Line" emblem turned so the "Northwestern" banner is horizontal, but it should be angled so the slanted letters have vertical strokes. The correct emblem is seen a few minutes later at the train station.
At the end of the film, Al and Jewel sing the Australian ballad "Waltzing Matilda". The story takes place in 1889, but "Waltzing Matilda" was composed in 1895 and first published in 1903.
The setting of the film was 1889 in Deadwood.
The real life Deadwood mostly burned to the ground in September of 1879 and most of its residents moved away. The city only "recovered" in the 1980s when it started to become a tourist destination.
The real life Deadwood mostly burned to the ground in September of 1879 and most of its residents moved away. The city only "recovered" in the 1980s when it started to become a tourist destination.
"Waltzing Matilda", used at the end and in the closing music, wasn't written until 1895, fully six years after the film is set.