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Published: August 10th 2008
The "Black Hills" National Forest.
In 1874, General George A. Custer led an Army exploration into the area and discovered gold. Whilst heading into the
Black Hills of Dakota, we decided to visit
Mount Rushmore, The Crazy Horse Memorial, Bedrock and
Four Mile Town.
Black Hills National Forest
The Black Hills area has a rich, diverse cultural heritage. Archaeological evidence suggests the earliest known use of the area occurred about 10,000 years ago. Later Native Americans, such as the Arapaho, Cheyenne, Kiowa, and Lakota, came to the Black Hills to seek visions and to purify themselves. The Black Hills was also a sanctuary where tribes at war could meet in peace.
(Sky-piercing granite peaks and forested mountains dominate the skyline of western South Dakota. America's oldest mountains rose above the surrounding flatlands 60 million years ago, at about the time the dinosaurs disappeared. Even after eons of erosion their granite peaks still soar as high as 7,242 feet to the dizzying heights of Harney Peak. The Lakota Sioux named the area "Paha Sapa" or Black Hills because a thick forest of pine and spruce trees cover the slopes making them appear black from a distance.) Mount Rushmore
As we've seen this many times in magazines, on
Mount Rushmore National Memorial ..
Host to almost three million visitors a year from across the country and around the world. TV and in the news, there was no way that we could pass it by. It was so impressive, we were just knocked out by the size of it.
The epic sculpture features the faces of four American presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. South Dakota's Black Hills provide the backdrop for Mount Rushmore, the world's greatest mountain carving. These 60-foot high faces, 500 feet up, look out over a setting of pine, spruce, birch, and aspen in the clear western air.
(Sculptor Gutzon Borglum began drilling into the 5,725-foot mountain in 1927. Creation of the Shrine of Democracy took 14 years and cost a mere $1 million, though it's now deemed priceless.) Crazy Horse Memorial
What an incredible experience to see this work in progress. We thought Mount Rushmore was big, but this is going to be mega when finished. "Crazy Horses" outstretched arm measures an incredible 263 foot long and his head is 87 foot 6 inches. Because this statue was started before we were born, we very much doubt that we will be around when it's finally completed.
(
"My fellow chiefs and I would like Faces in stone...
Gutzon Borglum and 400 workers sculpted the colossal 60-foot (18 m) carvings.. the white man to know the red man has great heroes, too."
These are the words Chief Henry Standing Bear wrote to sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski in 1939 urging him to visit the Black Hills and carve mountain sculpture honoring American Indians. Fifty-five years after Ziolkowski began carving Crazy Horse Memorial, his family continues the dream and work progresses on the world's largest mountain sculpture. When finished, Crazy Horse will stand 641 feet long and 563 feet high.)
As a non-profit undertaking, the memorial receives no federal or state funding. Ziolkowski was offered $10 million from the federal government on two occasions, but he turned the offers down.. Four Mile Town
The property was named Four Mile by the earliest stagecoach line. It was located 4 miles from Custer, (the first town established in the Black Hills) where the mail was picked up.
The "town" is rebuilt to represent the town of Four Mile. Postal records from 1890 made out to Four Mile, show the lost ghost town of “MOSS CITY” was located at Four Mile. The owner is a lovely lady, who has done a great deal of research into the history
Mount Rushmore is a project of colossal proportion,.
It involved the efforts of nearly 400 men and women... of the town. She also narrates on a tape, that you carry through the town. She explains what you are seeing and the history of the building. She also tells you what was going on in the area at that time. As well as being informative, she has added lots of amusing comments and facts.
What a great place to visit. We had a ball. It was the best $5 we've ever spent....
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