John Cletheroe's
USA and Canada Holiday Hints


Crazy Horse Memorial, Black Hills, South Dakota

Location

In the Black Hills of South Dakota, on US16/385 north of the town of Custer.

Description

The Crazy Horse Memorial is a memorial to the famous Native American leader, in the form of a huge statue of the rider on horseback carved from the side of a mountain. When completed, the statue will have some extremely impressive dimensions: it will be larger than the Sphynx, at 563 feet it will be taller than the Washington Monument and the figure's outstretched arm will be longer than three American Football fields.

Opinions seem divided on whether this memorial is worth a visit or not.

The statue is still at an early stage of construction even after many years, and therefore is not actually very impressive according to some reports I have received. Entrance to the site is also reported to be relatively expensive, since this is a commercial venture and not a National Park Service location.

On the other hand, I received an email from Paul Smith saying that he felt that a visit was well worth the entrance fee. He went on to say:

This is a commercial venture meant to help finance the costs of creating the monument. No federal funds of any kind are being used. I have visited twice and was pleased and enthralled each time. The history of this undertaking is fascinating and the commitment of the workers commendable. It is important to remember that this project has been sponsored by the Lakota (Sioux) people, for I know they consider Mount Rushmore to be a sacrilege of what was once sacred unsullied Lakota land.
Kathy Bragg sent me an email with a similar message:
I was so very impressed with the Crazy Horse Monument and visitor centre this summer. Even with Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone, Old Faithful and Pikes Peak as part of my vacation I still think of Crazy Horse as one of the greatest!!!!! It was not that expensive and it goes to such a good cause. I even came home to Texas with a piece of the mountain that was blasted to sculpture Crazy Horse. There is enough of the monument to make your heart strings stir. There is plenty to see on the Mountain and in the visitor centre.

Some Ideas for Places to Stay

External Links

In the Area


South Dakota

Historical Places

Native Americans

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As with all the other pages on this personal web site, all the information on this page is solely the opinion of the author, who has no connection whatsoever with any of the companies and organisations mentioned other than as an actual or potential customer.
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Most recently modified 12-Aug-01