Original subtitles

THERE’S NOTHING LIKE THE STORY OF THE DAKOTAS--

NORTH AND SOUTH.

TWO VERY DIFFERENT STATES THAT FORGED THEIR UNIQUE DESTINIES

OUT OF ONE RUGGED TERRITORY.

A LAND OF OPEN PRAIRIE, \h\h\hANCIENT BADLANDS,

AND TOWERING NEEDLES OF STONE.

IT WAS IN THE DAKOTAS

THAT A LEGENDARY NATIVE AMERICAN WOMAN NAMED SACAGAWEA

FIRST SET OUT TO GUIDE EXPLORERS ACROSS THE AMERICAN WEST.

\h\hBUT IT WAS ALSO HERE THAT THE U.S. GOVERNMENT

\h\h\h\h\hWAS FOUND GUILTY OF "DISHONORABLE DEALINGS"

WITH ONE OF AMERICA’S \hGREAT NATIVE TRIBES.

AND WHERE A HORRIFYING MASSACRE BY THE U.S. ARMY,

\h\hKNOWN AS WOUNDED KNEE, IS STILL REMEMBERED TODAY.

\hBOTH OF THESE NORTHERN STATES HAVE MADE THEIR MARK ON HISTORY.

ONE HEALED THE SOUL OF A FUTURE AMERICAN PRESIDENT

WITH ITS COLORFUL HILLS.

THE OTHER IMMORTALIZED HIM \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hIN STONE

\h\h\h\hWITH A MONUMENT TO AMERICAN DEMOCRACY.

BUT WHILE THERE MAY BE A LOT THAT THESE TWO STATES SHARE,

THERE’S ALSO A LOT THEY DON’T.

IN SOUTH DAKOTA, CORN IS KING.

BUT IN THE NORTH, WHEAT RULES,

\h\h\hALONG WITH A THRIVING YELLOW PLANT CALLED CANOLA.

THE DAKOTAS MAY BE TWO

OF THE LEAST POPULATED STATES \h\h\h\h\h\h\hIN THE NATION,

BUT TODAY, THOUSANDS \h\h\hARE POURING IN.

SOME COME ON INTIMIDATING STEEDS AND TAKE OVER ENTIRE TOWNS.

\h\h\h\h\hOTHERS CROWD INTO GIANT "MAN CAMPS"

TO DRILL FOR BLACK GOLD--

\hLEADING NASA SCIENTISTS TO WONDER ABOUT CLUSTERS

OF STRANGE NEW LIGHTS \h\h\hON THE PRAIRIE.

\h\h\h\h\hTHERE’S NO END TO WHAT ONE CAN DISCOVER

UP HERE ON THE NORTHERN \h\h\h\h\hGREAT PLAINS,

IN THE LANDS KNOWN \h\hAS THE DAKOTAS.

IN 1883, A TRAIN WOUND ITS WAY THROUGH THESE RUGGED BADLANDS

IN NORTH DAKOTA.

\h\h\hON BOARD WAS A 24-YEAR-OLD STATE ASSEMBLYMAN FROM NEW YORK,

WHO’D COME HERE TO HUNT BISON.

HIS NAME WAS THEODORE ROOSEVELT.

OUT ON THE PRAIRIE,

\h\h\h\h\h\hTHE FUTURE PRESIDENT ONLY MANAGED TO KILL ONE BISON,

BUT ENDED UP FALLING IN LOVE \h\h\h\h\h\h\hWITH THE BEAUTY

OF THIS WILD WESTERN LAND.

BY THE TIME HE HEADED BACK \h\h\h\h\h\h\hTO NEW YORK,

HE’D BOUGHT A MAJOR INTEREST \h\h\h\h\h\hIN A LOCAL RANCH

AND ORDERED THIS SMALL CABIN \h\h\h\hTO BE BUILT FOR HIM

TO LIVE IN WHEN HE RETURNED.

\hIT WAS MOVED HERE TO THE TOWN OF MEDORA AND RESTORED IN 1959.

A FEW MONTHS LATER,

THE CABIN PROVIDED A MUCH-NEEDED REFUGE TO ROOSEVELT--

AFTER HIS WIFE AND MOTHER BOTH DIED ON VALENTINE’S DAY, 1884.

OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS \hTHE RESTORATIVE POWER

\h\h\hOF THE REGION’S FERTILE RIVER VALLEYS AND ROCKY HILLS

DREW HIM BACK AGAIN AND AGAIN.

\h\hTO GIVE HIMSELF MORE ROOM TO ROAM,

HE BOUGHT AN EIGHT-MILE STRETCH

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hALONG THE BANKS OF THE LITTLE MISSOURI RIVER

\h\hFOR $400, A PLACE CALLED ELKHORN RANCH.

TODAY THE RANCH HOUSE IS GONE.

IT WAS DURING HIS VISITS HERE

THAT HE FOUND THE SOLACE \h\h\h\h\h\h\hHE NEEDED,

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hAND DEVELOPED THE CONSERVATIONIST VALUES

THAT SHAPED THE REST \h\h\h\hOF HIS LIFE.

\h\h"I WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN PRESIDENT," HE LATER SAID,

\h\h\h\h\h\h"HAD IT NOT BEEN FOR MY EXPERIENCE IN NORTH DAKOTA."

ROOSEVELT LAST VISITED \hNORTH DAKOTA IN 1918.

\h\h\hBUT PEOPLE HERE HAVE NEVER FORGOTTEN

THE IMPACT THEIR STATE HAD ON THEIR FORMER PRESIDENT,

\h\h\h\hWHICH IS WHY EVERY SUMMER EVENING

THE HILLS OUTSIDE OF MEDORA \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hCOME ALIVE,

WHEN THE LIGHTS GO UP AT THE BURNING HILLS AMPHITHEATER...

\h\hFOR A HIGH-ENERGY, COUNTRY-STYLE JAMBOREE

\h\h\hTHAT CELEBRATES THE LEGACY OF PRESIDENT THEODORE ROOSEVELT

AND HIS LOVE OF THESE \hNORTH DAKOTA HILLS.

\h\h\h\hMUSICALS ABOUT ROOSEVELT’S TIME HERE

HAVE BEEN A STAPLE IN MEDORA \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hSINCE 1958.

THIS LATEST VERSION \hINCLUDES STORIES

OF TEDDY PUNCHING OUT A DRUNK \h\h\h\h\h\h\hIN A DAKOTA BAR

AND GOING ON A BEAR HUNT.

NOW ANYONE CAN ENJOY \h\h\hTHIS LANDSCAPE,

HERE AT THEODORE ROOSEVELT \h\h\h\h\h\hNATIONAL PARK,

\h\h\h\h\hWHICH LIES ON LAND WHERE HE ONCE HERDED CATTLE.

EACH YEAR OVER 600,000 PEOPLE \h\h\h\h\h\h\hVISIT THE PARK,

\h\h\hTO HIKE AND ENJOY THE SAME NATURAL BEAUTY

\hTHAT ONCE HEALED THE SOUL OF AMERICA’S 26th PRESIDENT.

TODAY THE PARK LIES

IN THE SOUTHWESTERN CORNER \h\h\h\h\hOF NORTH DAKOTA.

BUT WHEN ROOSEVELT STAYED HERE,

THE STATES OF NORTH DAKOTA AND SOUTH DAKOTA DIDN’T YET EXIST.

ROOSEVELT FIRST KNEW THIS LAND ONLY AS THE DAKOTA TERRITORY.

IT LAY IN A REGION

THAT PRESIDENT THOMAS JEFFERSON HAD BOUGHT FROM THE FRENCH

\h\h\h\h\hIN 1803, AS PART OF THE LOUISIANA PURCHASE.

BACK THEN, NO ONE IN WASHINGTON EVEN KNEW WHAT WAS OUT HERE,

\h\h\hOR IN MUCH OF THE REST OF THE LAND BEYOND IT TO THE WEST,

RIGHT UP TO THE PACIFIC OCEAN.

\hSO JEFFERSON SENT A CORPS OF EXPLORERS

\hUNDER THE COMMAND OF MERIWETHER LEWIS

AND WILLIAM CLARK

TO TRAVEL UP THE MISSOURI RIVER TO FIND OUT.

THEIR MISSION WAS TO SURVEY AND MAP THE VAST WILDERNESS

ALONG THE RIVER’S BANKS

AND TO FIND A NEW ROUTE \hTO THE PACIFIC OCEAN.

IT WASN’T AN EASY TRIP \h\h\h\hFROM THE START.

\hA REPLICA OF THE KEELBOAT THEY USED IS NOW ON DISPLAY

HERE IN THE NORTH DAKOTA \h\hCAPITAL OF BISMARCK.

\h\h\h\hWHEN THERE WAS WIND THEY SAILED THE BOAT UPRIVER

AGAINST THE MISSOURI’S CURRENTS.

WHEN THE WIND DIED, THEY HAD TO USE PADDLES AND POLES

TO PUSH THE BOAT UP THE RIVER,

\h\h\hOR GET OUT AND PULL IT ALONG THE SHORE USING ROPES.

IN LATE AUGUST, THEY ARRIVED \h\h\h\h\h\h\hIN THE REGION

THAT WOULD LATER BECOME \hTHE DAKOTA TERRITORY.

BUT AFTER FOUR MORE WEEKS \h\h\h\hOF ARDUOUS TRAVEL,

THE HARSH DAKOTA WINTER BROUGHT THEIR PROGRESS TO A HALT.

THEY CHOSE A SPOT NEAR A STRING OF NATIVE VILLAGES

TO WAIT THE WINTER OUT.

TODAY THE SITE OF THOSE VILLAGES

CAN STILL BE SPOTTED \h\h\hFROM THE AIR.

THESE ROUND PATTERNS \h\h\h\hIN THE EARTH

ARE ACTUALLY THE FOUNDATIONS \h\h\h\hOF HOMES ONCE BUILT

BY MEMBERS OF THE HIDATSA, MANDAN AND ARIKARA TRIBES.

ON TOP, THEY USED \hEARTH AND GRASS

TO CREATE SNUG EARTH LODGES \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hLIKE THESE

\h\hTHAT HAVE BEEN RECONSTRUCTED HERE

\h\h\h\hAT THE KNIFE RIVER INDIAN VILLAGES NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE.

TO WAIT OUT THE COMING WINTER, LEWIS AND CLARK

BUILT A TEMPORARY HOME \h\h\h\h\hOF THEIR OWN,

\hA TRIANGLE-SHAPED STOCKADE THAT THEY NAMED FORT MANDAN.

TODAY THIS RECONSTRUCTION SHOWS WHAT IT PROBABLY LOOKED LIKE.

BUT THEY FOUND MORE THAN SHELTER

\h\h\h\h\h\hWHILE LIVING WITHIN THE FORT’S WALLS.

THEY ALSO FOUND TWO VALUABLE NEW RECRUITS FOR THEIR TEAM:

\h\h\h\h\h\hA FRENCH TRAPPER NAMED TOUSSAINT CHARBONNEAU

AND HIS SHOSHONE WIFE, \h\h\h\h\h\hSACAGAWEA.

THE COUPLE HELPED \hLEWIS AND CLARK

\h\h\h\h\hTO COMMUNICATE WITH THE INDIANS NEARBY.

FIRST, ENGLISH WAS TRANSLATED \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hINTO FRENCH.

THEN THE FRENCH WAS TRANSLATED

\h\h\h\h\hINTO ONE OF THE INDIAN LANGUAGES,

\hAND THEN THAT WAS ALL DONE IN REVERSE.

WHEN SPRING FINALLY ARRIVED

AND THE EXPLORERS CONTINUED ON UP THE MISSOURI RIVER,

CHARBONNEAU AND SACAGAWEA JOINED THEM AS TRANSLATORS AND GUIDES.

SACAGAWEA--WITH HER BABY \hSTRAPPED TO HER BACK--

WOULD GO ON TO PLAY \hAN ESSENTIAL ROLE

IN THE EXPEDITION’S SUCCESS

\hAND TO WIN FAME AS THE MOST ADMIRED NATIVE AMERICAN WOMAN

SINCE POCAHONTAS.

\h\h\h\hON AUGUST 14, 1806, THE EXPLORERS STOPPED AGAIN

\hHERE AT THE MANDAN VILLAGES ON THEIR RETURN JOURNEY EAST.

SACAJAWEA’S FRENCH HUSBAND \hWAS GIVEN LAND AND $500

AS PAYMENT FOR HIS HELP DURING THE EXPEDITION,

BUT SACAGAWEA RECEIVED \h\hNOTHING IN RETURN.

THEY LATER MOVED SOUTH TO LIVE AT THIS TRADING POST

\h\h\h\hCALLED FORT MANUEL, IN WHAT’S NOW SOUTH DAKOTA.

\h\h\h\h\hIT WAS HERE, ON DECEMBER 22, 1812--

\hSOON AFTER GIVING BIRTH TO HER DAUGHTER LISETTE--

THAT SACAGAWEA DIED.

SHE WAS JUST 25 YEARS OLD.

LESS THAN A YEAR AFTER HER DEATH,

\h\h\h\hWILLIAM CLARK ADOPTED BOTH OF SACAGAWEA’S CHILDREN.

IN A LETTER TO CHARBONNEAU, \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hHE WROTE:

"YOUR WOMAN WHO ACCOMPANIED YOU

THAT LONG, DANGEROUS, \hAND FATIGUING ROUTE

TO THE PACIFIC OCEAN AND BACK

DESERVED A GREATER REWARD

FOR HER ATTENTION AND SERVICES ON THAT ROUTE

THAT WE HAD IN OUR POWER \h\h\h\h\h\hTO GIVE HER."

HAD SACAGAWEA LIVED LONGER,

SHE WOULD HAVE SEEN RAPID \hAND IRREVERSIBLE CHANGE

SWEEP ACROSS THIS REGION.

\hLEWIS AND CLARK’S JOURNALS HAD DESCRIBED THE ABUNDANT WILDLIFE

\hTHAT THEY’D SEEN ALONG THE UPPER MISSOURI RIVER,

\h\h\h\hAND SOON FUR TRAPPERS AND TRADERS WERE HEADING WEST

TO SCOUR THE REGION’S RIVERS \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hAND STREAMS.

\h\h\h\h\h\hTHEIR SEARCH FOR FURRED CREATURES OF ALL KINDS

KICKED OFF THE TRANSFORMATION \h\h\hOF THIS THEN-WILD LAND

INTO THE TWO DAKOTAS THAT WE KNOW TODAY.

WHEN LEWIS AND CLARK TRAVELED \h\h\h\hUP THE MISSOURI RIVER

THROUGH WHAT’S NOW SOUTH DAKOTA,

THEY NEVER SET EYES

\h\h\h\h\hON ONE OF AMERICA’S MOST IMPRESSIVE LANDSCAPES...

A PLACE WHERE RUGGED CLIFFS RISE UP THROUGH THE PRAIRIE

\h\hLIKE THE SPINY SKELETONS OF GIANT, ANCIENT CREATURES.

\hMEMBERS OF THE SIOUX WERE THE FIRST TO NAME THESE FORMATIONS.

THEY CALLED THEM "MAKO SICA," \h\h\h\h\h\h\hOR "LAND BAD."

\h\h\hTODAY, PEOPLE TRAVEL TO SOUTH DAKOTA’S BADLANDS

FROM AROUND THE WORLD,

JUST TO SEE THESE CLIFFS ERODED OUT OF THE SOFT SOIL DEPOSITS

ON THE PRAIRIE FLOOR...

\h\h\h\hDEPOSITS LAID DOWN OVER 28 MILLION YEARS AGO,

THAT ARE STILL BEING WORN AWAY BY WIND AND WATER

AT AN AVERAGE RATE OF AN INCH A YEAR--

MAKING IT ONE OF THE FASTEST ERODING LANDSCAPES ON EARTH!

\hFLYING OVER THIS STRANGELY SEDUCTIVE

BUT DESOLATE LANDSCAPE,

IT’S EASY TO SEE WHY THE SIOUX CALLED THEM WHAT THEY DID,

AND WHY FRENCH FUR TRAPPERS WHO ARRIVED HERE THE EARLY 1800s

\h\h\hNOTED THAT THIS PART OF WHAT’S NOW SOUTH DAKOTA

\h\hWAS "A BAD LAND TO TRAVEL THROUGH."

BUT THAT DIDN’T STOP THEM \h\h\h\h\h\hFROM COMING.

MANY TRAPPERS AND TRADERS CAME HERE HOPING TO GET RICH--

AND SOME SUCCEEDED.

\h\h\h\h\h\hONE EVEN BECOME THE RICHEST MAN IN AMERICA.

HIS NAME WAS JOHN JACOB ASTOR.

IN 1828 HE RECEIVED PERMISSION TO BUILD A TRADING POST

\h\h\hHERE ON THE BANKS OF THE MISSOURI RIVER.

ASTOR’S AMERICAN FUR COMPANY \hWAS SOON OPEN FOR BUSINESS

HERE AT FORT UNION.

THIS IS A RECONSTRUCTION \h\hOF THE ORIGINAL FORT,

WHICH WAS BUILT TO IMPRESS \h\h\h\h\hTHE NATIVE PEOPLE

ASTOR HOPED TO TRADE WITH.

OVER THE NEXT FOUR DECADES

\h\h\hMEMBERS OF THE ASSINIBOINE, CROW, BLACKFEET AND OTHER TRIBES

CAME TO THE POST TO TRADE \h\h\h\hWITH ASTOR’S MEN.

\hIN A TYPICAL YEAR, 25,000 BUFFALO HIDES

AND MORE THAN $100,000 IN GOODS PASSED THROUGH THE FORT,

A FORTUNE IN THOSE DAYS,

AND ENOUGH TO HELP MAKE \h\h\hJOHN JACOB ASTOR

\h\hAMERICA’S FIRST MULTI-MILLIONAIRE.

\h\hFUR TRAPPERS AND TRADERS WERE THE FIRST REAL PIONEERS

TO ESTABLISH ROOTS \h\hIN THE DAKOTAS.

\h\hAND IT WASN’T LONG BEFORE OTHERS FOLLOWED,

\h\h\hCURIOUS TO FIND OUT WHAT THE VAST OPEN SPACES

OF THE NORTHERN GREAT PLAINS \h\h\h\h\h\h\hHAD TO OFFER.

AND THEN ON MARCH 21, 1861,

CONGRESS CREATED THE VAST NEW DAKOTA TERRITORY.

\hINITIALLY, IT INCLUDED PART OF WHAT IS NOW MONTANA AND WYOMING,

BUT IN 1863 IT WAS REDUCED \h\hTO COVER ONLY THE AREA

THAT WOULD GO ON TO BECOME \hNORTH AND SOUTH DAKOTA.

THE TINY RIVER TOWN OF YANKTON, WHICH NOW LIES IN SOUTH DAKOTA,

\h\h\h\h\h\hWAS CHOSEN TO SERVE AS THE NEW TERRITORIAL CAPITAL.

THE NEW TERRITORIAL GOVERNMENT’S HOME WAS MODEST,

A SMALL WHITE CLAPBOARD BUILDING

WHICH HAS SINCE BEEN \h\h\hRECONSTRUCTED.

\hIT WAS INSIDE THESE WALLS THAT THE DAKOTA LEGISLATURE

SOON VOTED TO FOUND A COLLEGE \h\h\hFOR THE NEW TERRITORY.

\h\h\h\h\h\hTHAT COLLEGE IS NOW THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH DAKOTA,

\h\h\hLOCATED 25 MILES AWAY IN THE TOWN OF VERMILLION.

\h\h\h\hSINCE THERE WAS NO ACTUAL INITIAL FUNDING FOR THE COLLEGE,

\h\hIT TOOK 20 YEARS BEFORE THE FIRST CLASSES WERE HELD.

THE OLDEST BUILDING ON CAMPUS \h\h\h\h\hTODAY IS OLD MAIN,

WHICH WAS AN IMPRESSIVE SIGHT \h\h\h\h\h\h\hON THE PRAIRIE

IN 1893 WHEN IT WAS BUILT.

\h\h\hBUT THE UNIVERSITY MAY BE MOST FAMOUS TODAY

\hFOR ITS FORMER STUDENT-- NBC NEWS ANCHOR TOM BROKAW.

THE REPORTER GRADUATED FROM USD

\h\h\h\hAFTER DROPPING OUT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA.

\h\h\hTHE CAMPUS IS ALSO HOME TO THE NATIONAL MUSIC MUSEUM.

\h\h\hINSIDE ARE MORE THAN 14,000 MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD...

AS WELL AS COMPOSITIONS

BY A SOUTH DAKOTA FARMER \hNAMED ELMER LYLE CAREY,

\h\h\hWHO PERFORMED AT THE INAUGURATION

OF PRESIDENT WILLIAM TAFT \h\h\hIN WASHINGTON, D.C.,

WHEN HE WAS JUST 17!

WHEN LOCALS IN VERMILLION \h\h\h\h\h\h\hASKED CAREY

WHERE HE LEARNED TO PLAY SO WELL,

\h\h\h\h\hHE ANSWERED: "OUT IN THE COUNTRY...

ABOUT SEVEN MILES NORTH."

THAT’S BECAUSE CAREY’S FAMILY

WAS PART OF A GREAT WAVE \h\h\h\h\h\h\hOF SETTLERS

THAT STARTED ARRIVING

JUST A YEAR AFTER THE TERRITORY WAS FORMED.

IN 1862, CONGRESS PASSED \h\h\hTHE HOMESTEAD ACT,

\h\h\hWHICH OPENED UP THE DAKOTA TERRITORY

AND OTHER REGIONS OF THE WEST \h\h\h\h\h\h\hFOR SETTLEMENT.

\hHOMESTEADERS WERE OFFERED 160 ACRES OF LAND, FOR FREE,

\hAS LONG AS THEY FARMED IT SUCCESSFULLY FOR FIVE YEARS.

A FLOOD OF SETTLERS TOOK UP THE OFFER,

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hAND SOON THE EMPTY DAKOTA PRAIRIE

WAS DOTTED WITH SIMPLE FARMS,

AS MORE AND MORE HOMESTEADERS \h\h\h\h\hSTAKED THEIR CLAIMS

AND TRIED TO HOLD ON

FOR THE FIVE YEARS IT TOOK \h\h\h\hTO KEEP THEIR LAND.

IN THIS NEARLY TREELESS REGION,

\hTHEY BUILT HOUSES WITH WHATEVER THEY COULD FIND.

MANY USED PRAIRIE SOD ITSELF \h\hFOR WALLS AND CEILINGS.

\hBUT SETTLING ON LAND THAT WAS ALREADY HOME

TO NATIVE TRIBES LIKE THE SIOUX CAME AT A PRICE.

\h\hAS MORE AND MORE SETTLERS FANNED OUT ACROSS THE REGION,

CONFLICTS WITH THE TRIBES FLARED ACROSS THE TERRITORY AND BEYOND.

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE 1800s, \hWHITE SETTLERS WERE MOVING

\h\h\h\hONTO WHAT’S NOW NORTH AND SOUTH DAKOTA,

AND CLAIMING LAND AS THEIR OWN.

SO IN THE SUMMER OF 1857,

\h\hMEMBERS OF THE REGION’S NATIVE TRIBES GATHERED HERE

\hON A SACRED MOUNTAIN THEY CALLED BEAR BUTTE

\h\h\hAND RESOLVED TO RESIST WHAT THEY SAW AS AN INVASION.

OVER THE NEXT DECADE THE TRIBES WOULD FIGHT FEROCIOUS BATTLES

AGAINST THE U.S. GOVERNMENT,

AND MANY WOULD DIE TRYING \h\hTO DEFEND THEIR LANDS

AND PROTECT THEIR WAY OF LIFE.

ONE OF THOSE CONFLICTS \h\h\h\hSTARTED IN 1866

\h\h\hAND WAS KNOWN AS RED CLOUD’S WAR.

\h\h\h\hIT’S BEEN CALLED ONE OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL WARS

\h\h\hAGAINST THE U.S. GOVERNMENT EVER FOUGHT BY AN INDIAN NATION.

AFTER TWO YEARS OF FIGHTING \h\h\h\hTHE SIOUX NATION WON

THE GREAT VICTORY ITS PEOPLE \h\hHAD FOUGHT AND DIED FOR.

THE U.S. GOVERNMENT \h\hADMITTED DEFEAT

AND PROMISED THE SIOUX \h\h\hTHAT THEIR LANDS

\h\h\hWOULD BE PROTECTED FROM SETTLEMENT FOREVER.

THIS HISTORIC TREATY WAS SIGNED HERE AT FORT LARAMIE,

JUST ACROSS THE DAKOTA BORDER, IN WHAT’S NOW WYOMING.

THE 1868, THE LARAMIE TREATY \h\h\h\hGUARANTEED THE SIOUX

PERMANENT RIGHTS TO 25 MILLION ACRES OF DAKOTA TERRITORY,

WEST OF THE MISSOURI RIVER.

THE U.S. GOVERNMENT PROMISED \hTHESE SIOUX LANDS WOULD BE

"SET APART FOR THE ABSOLUTE \h\h\h\hAND UNDISTURBED USE

AND OCCUPATION OF THE INDIANS."

BUT JUST A FEW YEARS LATER, \h\h\h\hGOLD WAS DISCOVERED

\h\hIN THE BLACK HILLS, INSIDE THE TREATY AREA.

\hIT’S ESTIMATED THAT 10,000 ILLEGAL SETTLERS ARRIVED HERE

OVER THE NEXT TWO YEARS.

\hTHEY ESTABLISHED MINING CAMPS LIKE THIS ONE, CALLED DEADWOOD,

WHICH BECAME FAMOUS

FOR THE BARS, GAMBLING DENS \h\h\h\h\h\h\hAND BORDELLOS

THAT SOON SPRANG UP HERE \hTO CATER TO THE MINERS.

AT FIRST THE U.S. ARMY TRIED \h\hTO STOP THE TRESPASSERS

AND ABIDE BY THE TREATY.

BUT WHEN SIOUX OUTRAGE \h\hOVER THE VIOLATIONS

REIGNITED THE INDIAN WARS,

THE ARMY SWITCHED TO PROTECTING THE SETTLERS INSTEAD.

IN 1877 THE U.S. GOVERNMENT \hVIOLATED THE TREATY AGAIN

\hWHEN IT CARVED THE BLACK HILLS OUT OF THE LARAMIE TREATY AREA.

\h\hSOON MANY IN THE SOUTH WERE PUSHING FOR STATEHOOD

AND TO OPEN MORE OF THE SIOUX \h\hLANDS UP FOR SETTLEMENT.

THEY SAW NO REASON

\h\h\hWHY THE INDIANS NEEDED SO MUCH SPACE OF THEIR OWN.

IN 1889, MANY NATIVE AMERICANS

\hWERE FORCED OFF THEIR LEGALLY GUARANTEED LAND

AND ONTO MUCH SMALLER \h\h\h\hRESERVATIONS

LIKE THE ONE HERE, \h\hAT PINE RIDGE.

\hONE OF THOSE WAS CHIEF SITTING BULL,

\hWHO DIED HERE AT PINE RIDGE IN 1890, FROM GUNSHOT WOUNDS,

WHILE IN FEDERAL CUSTODY.

\h\h\hBUT THERE WAS ANOTHER DARK CHAPTER

\hOF THE SIOUX’S STORY THAT WAS YET TO COME.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hAT THE TIME OF SITTING BULL’S KILLING,

\hA SPIRITUAL MOVEMENT CALLED THE GHOST DANCE

WAS SWEEPING THE RESERVATIONS

\h\h\hAND STIRRING A REVIVAL OF NATIVE CULTURE AND PRIDE.

THE U.S. GOVERNMENT FEARED THESE DANCES WOULD INSPIRE

A NEW WAVE OF INDIAN WARS.

SO WHEN WORD SPREAD THAT A GHOST DANCE

WAS GOING TO TAKE PLACE HERE AT THE PINE RIDGE RESERVATION,

THE U.S. ARMY WAS SENT IN \h\h\h\h\h\h\hTO STOP IT.

ON DECEMBER 29, 1890, BY A CREEK KNOWN AS WOUNDED KNEE,

THE SIOUX CHIEF SPOTTED ELK \h\h\h\h\h\h\hAND HIS PEOPLE

SURRENDERED PEACEFULLY \h\h\hTO THE U.S. ARMY.

BUT WHEN THE TROOPS MOVED IN \h\h\hTO DISARM THE INDIANS,

A SHOT WAS FIRED--

AND THEN HUNDREDS MORE.

BY THE TIME THE KILLING \h\h\h\h\h\hHAD ENDED,

SPOTTED ELK AND UP TO 300 SIOUX HAD BEEN MASSACRED.

TODAY, THEY REST TOGETHER \h\h\h\h\hIN A MASS GRAVE,

HERE AT THE WOUNDED KNEE SITE...

INCLUDING THE WOMEN AND CHILDREN

WHO MADE UP AT LEAST HALF \h\h\h\h\hOF THOSE KILLED,

\h\h\h\h\h\hINNOCENT VICTIMS OF THE LAST MILITARY ACTION

IN AMERICA’S EPIC INDIAN WARS.

IT TOOK ALMOST A CENTURY

\h\hFOR THE SIOUX NATION TO GET ITS DAY IN COURT.

IN 1980, THE U.S. SUPREME COURT RULED THAT THE BLACK HILLS,

AND THE REST OF THE SIOUX LAND DEFINED IN THE LARAMIE TREATY,

HAD INDEED BEEN STOLEN BY THE U.S. GOVERNMENT

IN WHAT THE COURT CALLED

\h\hA "RIPE AND RANK CASE OF DISHONORABLE DEALING."

THE GOVERNMENT WAS ORDERED \h\h\h\h\hTO PAY THE SIOUX

MORE THAN $100 MILLION

TO MAKE UP FOR THE LOSS \h\h\h\h\hOF THE LANDS.

\h\hBUT THE SIOUX VOTED TO TURN THE MONEY DOWN.

AS OF 2014 THOSE FUNDS STILL LAY IN A GOVERNMENT COFFER,

WORTH, THANKS TO INTEREST, \hALMOST A BILLION DOLLARS.

THE TRIBE STILL CLAIMS THAT NO AMOUNT OF MONEY

WOULD BE ABLE TO COMPENSATE THEM

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hFOR THE LOSS OF THEIR SACRED BLACK HILLS

AND THE REST OF THEIR HOMELANDS.

\h\h\h\h\hONE WAY THAT MORE AND MORE SETTLERS

\h\h\h\h\hWERE ARRIVING IN THE DAKOTA TERRITORY

IN THE LATE 19th CENTURY \h\h\h\h\h\hWAS BY TRAIN.

\h\h\hTHE RAILROAD WAS THE ERA’S MOST TRANSFORMATIVE TECHNOLOGY.

\h\h\h\h\hWHEREVER TRAINS WENT, CHANGE CAME ALONG FOR THE RIDE.

THE DAKOTA TERRITORY \hWAS NO EXCEPTION.

TRAINS FIRST REACHED WHAT’S NOW NORTH DAKOTA IN 1872,

WHEN A LOCOMOTIVE MADE ITS WAY INTO THE TOWN OF FARGO.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hTHE OWNERS OF THE NORTHERN PACIFIC RAILROAD

\hHAD FOUNDED THE TOWN JUST THE YEAR BEFORE,

ON A SPOT THEY DEEMED BEST \h\h\hFOR A RIVER CROSSING.

RAIL TRAFFIC QUICKLY TRANSFORMED THIS PATCH OF WILDERNESS

INTO A BUSTLING TOWN THAT’S NOW NORTH DAKOTA’S BIGGEST CITY.

BY THE TIME THIS RAILROAD \hSTATION OPENED IN 1920,

THE TRAINS WERE BRINGING

THOUSANDS OF NORWEGIAN \h\hIMMIGRANTS TO TOWN.

THEY CREATED A UNIQUE

\h\h\hSCANDINAVIAN-AMERICAN CULTURE HERE IN NORTH DAKOTA

AND ACROSS THE NORTHERN \h\h\h\h\hGREAT PLAINS.

A CULTURE THAT WAS \h\hBROUGHT TO LIFE

IN THE COEN BROTHERS MOVIE \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h"FARGO,"

STARRING FRANCES McDORMAND

\h\h\h\h\h\hAND WINNER OF TWO ACADEMY AWARDS.

\h\h\h\hDESPITE BEING NAMED FOR THIS NORTH DAKOTA CITY,

\h\hMOST OF THE FILM ACTUALLY TAKES PLACE

JUST OVER THE BORDER \h\h\hIN MINNESOTA.

AFTER TRAINS ROLLED INTO FARGO,

\hTHE RAILROAD MEN PUSHED THEIR TRACKS WEST ACROSS NORTH DAKOTA,

WHILE CREATING SOME IMPRESSIVE ENGINEERING WONDERS

TO OVERCOME THE OBSTACLES \h\h\h\h\hALONG THE WAY...

OBSTACLES LIKE THIS GORGE KNOWN AS GASSMAN COULEE.

\h\h\h\h\hKEEPING THE TRAINS ABOVE THE FLOOD-PRONE GORGE

REQUIRED BUILDING A BRIDGE \h\h\h\h\h\h1,792 FEET LONG

\h\hAND 117 FEET TALL AT ITS HIGHEST POINT.

THIS STEEL VERSION WAS BUILT \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hIN 1899,

REPLACING AN 1887 WOODEN TRESTLE LOST TO A TORNADO.

UP TO 40 FREIGHT TRAINS STILL USE IT EVERY DAY.

SOME SAY WHEN ONE CROSSES OVER,

YOU CAN HEAR THE RUMBLE FROM A QUARTER OF A MILE AWAY.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hIN 1872, THE NORTHERN PACIFIC RAILROAD

REACHED THE MISSOURI RIVER

\h\h\hAT A SPOT KNOWN AS MISSOURI CROSSING.

THE RAILROAD MEN RENAMED \hTHE TINY TOWN BISMARCK,

AFTER GERMAN CHANCELLOR \h\hOTTO VON BISMARCK,

\hHOPING TO ATTRACT GERMAN INVESTORS IN THEIR RAILWAY.

\hTRAINS ARRIVING HERE BROUGHT IN PROSPECTORS

HEADING TO GOLD MINES \hIN THE BLACK HILLS.

AND IN 1883, THE GROWING TOWN

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hWAS MADE THE TERRITORIAL CAPITAL,

TO THE DISMAY OF MANY \h\h\h\h\hIN YANKTON.

BUT PLANS FOR STATEHOOD WERE ALREADY UNDER WAY,

AND ON NOVEMBER 2, 1889,

THE DAKOTA TERRITORY WAS FINALLY DIVIDED

INTO TWO SEPARATE STATES,

WHEN PRESIDENT BENJAMIN HARRISON SIGNED LEGISLATION

\h\h\hADMITTING BOTH NORTH DAKOTA AND SOUTH DAKOTA INTO THE UNION.

IT’S SAID HE SHUFFLED \h\h\h\h\hTHE PAPERS,

\h\h\hSO NO ONE WOULD EVER KNOW WHICH STATE WAS ADMITTED FIRST.

\h\hINITIALLY, SOUTH DAKOTANS COULDN’T DECIDE ON A LOCATION

FOR THEIR NEW CAPITAL.

\hAFTER 14 YEARS OF DEBATE AND THREE STATEWIDE VOTES,

\hTHE CENTRAL RAILROAD TOWN OF PIERRE FINALLY CAME OUT ON TOP,

AS SOME HAD LONG EXPECTED.

THE CITY FATHERS URGED THE STATE

TO HURRY UP AND BUILD \hA CAPITOL BUILDING--

ONE SO GRAND, NO ONE COULD EVER AGAIN THINK

OF MOVING THE GOVERNMENT AWAY.

CONSTRUCTION OF THE CAPITOL \hBEGAN THE VERY NEXT YEAR

AND WAS COMPLETED BY 1910.

\hTHE TOTAL COST OF THE BUILDING WAS LESS THAN A MILLION DOLLARS.

\h\h\h\hBUT SOUTH DAKOTA GOT A LOT OF BANG FOR ITS BUCK:

A COPPER-COVERED DOME, \h\h\hMASSIVE ROTUNDA,

CORINTHIAN COLUMNS,

\h\h\hAND RUSTICATED GRANITE AND BEDFORD LIMESTONE WALLS.

\hWITH ITS COMPLETION, PIERRE’S PLACE AS SOUTH DAKOTA’S CAPITAL

WOULD NEVER BE CHALLENGED AGAIN.

BUT ACROSS THE BORDER, \h\h\h\h\h\hLEGISLATORS

IN THE NEW NORTH DAKOTA CAPITAL OF BISMARCK

DECIDED TO DO SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT--

BUILD A STATE CAPITOL

THAT LOOKED LIKE IT BELONGED \h\h\h\h\hIN MODERN AMERICA

AND NOT IN ANCIENT ROME.

\h\hTHE RESULT WAS THIS ART DECO TOWER

DESIGNED BY ARCHITECTS \h\h\hHOLABIRD AND ROOT

THAT MIGHT HAVE LOOKED \h\h\h\h\hMORE AT HOME

IN NEW YORK CITY’S ROCKEFELLER CENTER

THAN HERE ON THE GREAT PLAINS, WHERE, AT 242 FEET,

IT’S STILL THE TALLEST BUILDING IN THE STATE.

IN THE 19th CENTURY, THE DAKOTA TERRITORY

WAS INVADED BY SETTLERS \h\h\hAND GOLD MINERS,

\h\h\hSEARCHING FOR TREASURE ON LAND THAT WASN’T THEIRS.

BUT TODAY, EVERY AUGUST, ANOTHER THUNDERING HORDE

DESCENDS ON THIS PART \h\h\hOF SOUTH DAKOTA

TO TAKE OVER A LITTLE TOWN

\hDURING ONE OF THE BIGGEST BIKER RALLIES IN THE WORLD.

EVERY JULY, MORE THAN HALF A MILLION BIKERS

FROM ACROSS NORTH AMERICA \hROAR INTO SOUTH DAKOTA.

\h\h\h\h\h\hTHEY ARRIVE ON INTIMIDATING STEEDS

AND LAY CLAIM TO THE STREETS, \h\h\h\h\hSIDEWALKS AND BARS

OF THE LITTLE SOUTH DAKOTA TOWN OF STURGIS.

THIS ANNUAL INVASION STARTED BACK IN 1938

WHEN A LOCAL MECHANIC \h\h\hNAMED PAPPY HOEL

AND HIS WIFE PEARL

FORMED THE JACKPINE GYPSIES \h\h\h\h\h\hMOTORCYCLE CLUB

AND LAUNCHED A MOTORCYCLE RACE.

IT QUICKLY GREW.

RACING IS STILL A PART \h\hOF THE SCENE TODAY,

BUT MOST OF THE ACTION \h\h\h\h\h\hHAS SHIFTED

TO STURGIS’S MAIN STREET...

AND SLOWED DOWN QUITE A BIT.

\hBECAUSE IT’S HARD TO SHOW OFF A HARLEY

IF YOU’RE GOING TOO FAST.

STURGIS’S NORMAL POPULATION \h\h\h\h\h\hIS ABOUT 6,700,

AND SO HAVING 500,000 BIKERS \h\h\h\h\h\h\hRIDE INTO TOWN

MEANS THAT GETTING A HOTEL ROOM HERE DURING THE RALLY

IS PRETTY MUCH IMPOSSIBLE.

BACK IN PEARL HOEL’S DAY

BIKERS USED TO CAMP OUT \h\hIN HER LIVING ROOM

OR PARK THEIR RVs IN HER YARD.

TODAY MOST STAY

IN HUGE CAMPGROUND-PLAYGROUNDS OUTSIDE TOWN

THAT OFFER COMFORTS PEARL \h\h\h\h\h\hAND HER GUESTS

NEVER DREAMED OFF,

LIKE HUNDREDS OF RV HOOKUPS

AND THEIR OWN STAGES \hAND COMEDY CLUBS.

HERE AT THE BROKEN SPOKE SALOON CAMPGROUND,

\hBIKERS CAN EVEN RIDE RIGHT IN THE FRONT DOOR

TO GRAB A MARTINI, BUY SOME LINGERIE,

OR GET A TATTOO.

OR THEY CAN HEAD OVER \h\h\h\hTO TAKE A DIP

IN WHAT’S BILLED AS

THE "LARGEST BIKER SWIMMING POOL IN THE WORLD."

\h\h\hDURING THE RALLY THESE ADULT PLAYGROUNDS

ARE STURGIS’S PARTY CENTRAL.

BUT SOME OF THE MORE \hADVENTUROUS BIKERS

HEAD OUT FOR A CHANCE TO WIND

\h\h\h\h\h\hTHROUGH ONE OF THE GREAT LANDSCAPES

OF THE AMERICAN WEST--

THE GRANITE SPIRES OF SOUTH DAKOTA’S BLACK HILLS.

\hBUT IN THE EARLY 20th CENTURY, THERE WERE VERY FEW GOOD ROADS,

WHICH MEANT IT WAS HARD \h\hTO GET HERE AT ALL.

THAT’S WHY SOUTH DAKOTA STATE HISTORIAN DOANE ROBINSON

WANTED TO BUILD A MONUMENT

\hTHAT COULD LURE TOURISTS TO THIS WONDROUS LANDSCAPE.

\h\h\hWHEN HE SAW THIS GROUP OF NOW FAMOUS GRANITE SPIRES,

KNOWN AS THE NEEDLES,

\hHE IMAGINED USING THEM TO CARVE GIANT PORTRAITS

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hOF HEROES OF THE AMERICAN WEST...

HEROES LIKE LEWIS AND CLARK, \h\h\h\h\hBUFFALO BILL CODY,

AND THE GREAT SIOUX CHIEF \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hRED CLOUD,

WHO HAD FOUGHT AND DIED TO KEEP THE BLACK HILLS OFF-LIMITS

TO MINERS, SETTLERS

AND EVEN THE KIND OF TOURISTS \hROBINSON HOPED TO ATTRACT.

BUT WHEN DANISH-AMERICAN \hSCULPTOR GUTZON BORGLUM

SAW THE NEEDLES,

\h\hHE WASN’T CONVINCED THEY WOULD BE SUITABLE

FOR LARGE SCALE CARVINGS

AND TOLD ROBINSON HE FEARED \h\h\h\h\hTHEY WOULD END UP

\h\h\h\h\hLOOKING LIKE MISPLACED TOTEM POLES.

BUT HE SOON FOUND ANOTHER LOCATION JUST A FEW MILES AWAY

\hTHAT HE THOUGHT WOULD BE PERFECT.

A GIANT WALL OF SOLID GRANITE,

BIG ENOUGH FOR MULTIPLE \h\h\hCARVED PORTRAITS,

EACH UP TO SIX STORIES TALL.

THERE WAS, HE DECLARED,

"NO PIECE OF GRANITE COMPARABLE TO IT IN THE UNITED STATES."

HE ALSO THOUGHT THAT A NATIONAL TRIBUTE TO U.S. PRESIDENTS

\hWOULD BE MORE APPEALING THAN HEROES OF THE WEST.

"I WANT TO CREATE A MONUMENT \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hSO INSPIRING

\h\h\h\h\hTHAT PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER AMERICA

WILL BE DRAWN TO COME AND LOOK

AND GO HOME BETTER CITIZENS," \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hHE SAID.

SOON PRESIDENT CALVIN COOLIDGE AND OTHERS

WERE HELPING SECURE \hFEDERAL FUNDING.

\hIT TOOK MORE THAN 14 YEARS FOR BORGLUM, AND 400 WORKERS,

\h\h\hTO BLAST AND CHISEL THIS WORLD-FAMOUS QUARTET

OF FORMER PRESIDENTS.

GEORGE WASHINGTON CAME FIRST,

\h\h\hHIS FAMILIAR PROFILE EMERGING FROM THE MOUNTAIN

IN LESS THAN THREE YEARS--

IN TIME FOR AN ESPECIALLY \h\h\hPATRIOTIC DEDICATION

ON JULY 4, 1930.

\h\h\hTHOMAS JEFFERSON FOLLOWED, IN A SPOT TO WASHINGTON’S RIGHT,

BUT UNSTABLE STONE THERE \h\h\h\h\hFORCED BORGLUM

\h\h\h\h\h\hTO DYNAMITE HIS ORIGINAL JEFFERSON,

AND MOVE THE THIRD PRESIDENT \h\h\hTO WASHINGTON’S LEFT.

\h\h\h\hJEFFERSON’S REVISED IMAGE RECEIVED ITS DEDICATION IN 1936.

\h\h\h\h\hLINCOLN CAME NEXT, IN A SPOT ORIGINALLY INTENDED

FOR A GIANT TABLET INSCRIBED WITH AN INSPIRATIONAL TEXT.

THEN ALL HANDS TURNED TO ADDING TEDDY ROOSEVELT TO THE GROUP.

AFTER BORGLUM DIED, \h\hHIS SON LINCOLN

\hOVERSAW THE CARVING OF THE FINAL DETAILS.

\h\h\h\h\h\hON OCTOBER 31, 1941, JUST 14 YEARS AFTER WORK BEGAN,

THE MONUMENT WAS DECLARED \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hCOMPLETE.

TODAY, EVIDENCE OF THE ENORMOUS EFFORT IT TOOK TO DO THE JOB

CAN STILL BE SEEN HERE.

WHEN ALL WAS SAID AND DONE,

800 MILLION POUNDS OF ROCK \h\h\h\hHAD BEEN REMOVED...

FROM THE FINE CHISEL MARKS \hON THE PRESIDENTS’ FACES,

TO THE ORDERLY LINES OF SCARS LEFT ON THE SURROUNDING STONE

BY DYNAMITE AND DRILLS,

TO THE ENORMOUS PILES \h\h\hOF RUBBLE BELOW.

IN 1959 THE MONUMENT PROVIDED THE SETTING

FOR TWO OF HOLLYWOOD’S MOST INFAMOUS MOMENTS,

IN ALFRED HITCHCOCK’S CLASSIC THRILLER "NORTH BY NORTHWEST."

IN ONE KEY SCENE, HITCH HAS ICY BLONDE EVA MARIE SAINT

\h\h\hPRETEND TO SHOOT LEADING MAN CARY GRANT

IN THE VISITORS CENTER.

THEN HE SENDS GRANT, SAINT \hAND VILLAIN MARTIN LANDAU

ON A DEADLY CHASE ACROSS \hTHE PRESIDENTS’ FACES.

\h\hHITCHCOCK WAS PLANNING TO SHOOT THIS SECOND SCENE

ON THE MONUMENT ITSELF,

BUT A JOURNALIST SPILLED NEWS \h\h\h\hOF THE PLANNED CHASE

AND THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE \h\h\h\hSHUT HITCHCOCK DOWN,

WHICH IS WHY THE FINAL SCENE \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hWAS FILMED

ON A HOLLYWOOD SOUND STAGE \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hINSTEAD.

BUT THE BLACK HILLS \h\h\hARE ALSO HOME

TO A SIOUX MONUMENT, AS WELL.

IT WAS DREAMED UP BY A GROUP \h\h\h\hOF NATIVE AMERICANS

LED BY HENRY STANDING BEAR,

\h\h\h\h\h\hA CHIEF OF THE LAKOTA SIOUX TRIBE.

HE RECRUITED POLISH-AMERICAN SCULPTOR KORCZAK ZIOLKOWSKI,

WHO FINALLY STARTED WORK \h\h\h\hON JUNE 3, 1948.

ZIOLKOWSKI CHOSE TO DEPICT \hCRAZY HORSE ON HORSEBACK,

POINTING TO THE HORIZON,

\hBUT WAS ONLY ABLE TO COMPLETE THE HEAD BEFORE HE DIED IN 1982,

\h\h\h\h\hAFTER WORKING ON THE GIANT SCULPTURE

FOR ALMOST HALF HIS LIFE, \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hFOR FREE.

THE SCULPTOR TURNED DOWN

GOVERNMENT FUNDING \h\hFOR THE PROJECT

BECAUSE OF ITS VIOLATION \hOF THE LARAMIE TREATY,

BUT ADMISSION FEES AND DONATIONS

HAVE ENABLED ZIOLKOWSKI’S FAMILY TO CONTINUE HIS WORK.

MORE THAN A MILLION PEOPLE \hVISIT THIS SITE EACH YEAR

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hTO SEE THIS LARGER-THAN-LIFE PORTRAIT

OF AMERICA’S GREAT INDIAN CHIEF,

\h\h\h\hWHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT HENRY STANDING BEAR

WAS HOPING FOR WHEN HE DREAMT UP THIS TRIBUTE IN STONE.

"MY FELLOW CHIEFS AND I WOULD LIKE THE WHITE MAN TO KNOW,"

HE ONCE SAID, "THAT THE RED MAN HAS GREAT HEROES, ALSO."

\h\h\h\h\h\hTHE BLACK HILLS THAT CRAZY HORSE ONCE KNEW

\h\h\h\hHAVE CHANGED IN WAYS THAT CAN NEVER BE REVERSED,

AND THERE’S NO BETTER EXAMPLE \hOF THAT CHANGE THAN THIS--

\h\h\h\hTHE LARGEST AND DEEPEST GOLD MINE IN THE UNITED STATES.

IT LIES JUST 50 MILES \hFROM MOUNT RUSHMORE

AND IS KNOWN AS HOMESTAKE MINE.

THIS OPEN PIT IS SO DEEP \h\h\h\h\h\h\hAND SO WIDE

IT LOOKS LIKE IT WAS CREATED BY A GIANT BABYLONIAN ZIGGURAT

THAT’S BEEN PLUNGED UPSIDE DOWN INTO THE EARTH

AND THEN PULLED BACK OUT.

TO GET DOWN THE ITS BASE, \h\h\h\h8,000 FEET BELOW,

TRUCKS ONCE FOLLOWED A ROAD \h\h\h\h\hTHAT SPIRALED DOWN

\h\hALONG THE SIDE OF THE MINE ITSELF.

\h\hA GROUP OF CALIFORNIA PROSPECTORS BEGAN DIGGING

ON A TEN-ACRE CLAIM HERE \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hIN 1877,

THE YEAR THE U.S. GOVERNMENT

TOOK THE BLACK HILLS BACK \h\h\h\h\hFROM THE SIOUX.

BEFORE IT CLOSED IN 2002,

\hTHE HOMESTAKE HAD YIELDED 39 MILLION OUNCES OF GOLD,

MAKING IT THE MOST SUCCESSFUL \h\h\h\hGOLD MINE IN THE U.S.

BUT WHILE GOLD MAY HAVE \hTRIGGERED A MAD RUSH

INTO WHAT’S NOW SOUTH DAKOTA \h\h\h\hBACK IN THE 1800s...

THESE DAYS, NORTH DAKOTA IS NOW EXPERIENCING A BOOM OF ITS OWN.

THOUSANDS ARE FLOODING \h\h\h\hINTO THE STATE

TO HELP TAP TREASURE \hDEEP UNDERGROUND.

AND THEY’RE LIGHTING UP THE PRAIRIE LIKE NEVER BEFORE.

\hIN 2012, NASA SCIENTISTS BEGAN LOOKING AT NEW SATELLITE IMAGES

OF NORTH AMERICA, \hTAKEN AT NIGHT.

THEY KNEW THE FAMILIAR \h\h\h\h\hBRIGHT LIGHTS

OF ATLANTA, NEW YORK CITY, \hCHICAGO, AND MINNEAPOLIS.

BUT AS THEIR EYES MOVED WEST,

THEY DISCOVERED A LARGE CLUSTER OF LIGHT ON THE GREAT PLAINS,

IN A PLACE WHERE THEY KNEW

THERE WAS ALMOST NOTHING BUT FARMLAND AND PRAIRIE.

THE FACT WAS, THESE WEREN’T \h\h\h\hACTUALLY THE LIGHTS

OF ANY ONE CITY OR TOWN.

THEY WERE LIGHTS FROM HOUSING \h\h\hAND DRILLING EQUIPMENT,

AND OF GAS FLARES FROM HUNDREDS OF NEW OIL WELLS

THAT DOT NORTH DAKOTA TODAY.

IN 2013, THE U.S. PRODUCED

MORE OIL DOMESTICALLY \h\h\hTHAN IT IMPORTED

\h\hFOR THE FIRST TIME IN NEARLY TWO DECADES.

AND THE HEART OF AMERICA’S \h\h\h21st CENTURY OIL BOOM

HAPPENS TO BE RIGHT HERE \h\h\h\hIN NORTH DAKOTA.

THAT’S BECAUSE THE STATE \h\h\h\hSITS RIGHT ON TOP

OF ONE OF THE LARGEST DEPOSITS OF OIL IN THE UNITED STATES.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hIT’S KNOWN AS THE BAKKEN SHALE FORMATION--

A VAST UNDERGROUND POOL OF OIL THAT STRETCHES ACROSS

MUCH OF WESTERN NORTH DAKOTA \h\h\h\hAND UP INTO CANADA.

THE EPICENTER OF THE BOOM IS THE TOWN OF WILLISTON.

SOUTH DAKOTA MAY HAVE HAD \hITS OWN GOLD RUSH TOWNS

BACK IN THE 1800s,

\h\h\h\hBUT NOW IT’S NORTH DAKOTA’S TURN.

\h\hWILLISTON IS A TRUE 21st CENTURY BOOMTOWN.

BETWEEN 2000 AND 2013,

THE TOWN’S POPULATION \h\hMORE THAN DOUBLED,

AS OIL PRODUCTION IN THE STATE WENT UP MORE THAN 600%.

MOST OF THE NEWCOMERS ARE MEN

WHO HEARD ABOUT THE MONEY \h\h\h\h\hTO BE MADE HERE,

DROPPED EVERYTHING, AND RUSHED OUT TO NORTH DAKOTA

TO GRAB THEIR SHARE.

THEIR MASS ARRIVAL CAUSED A HOUSING CRUNCH SO TIGHT

THAT SOME APARTMENTS \h\h\h\hIN WILLISTON

RENT FOR AS MUCH AS THEY WOULD IN NEW YORK CITY--

LEAVING PLENTY OF NEWCOMERS \hSLEEPING IN THEIR TRUCKS.

THE SOLUTION?

PREFAB HOUSING COMPLEXES

AND TRAILER PARKS THAT ARE KNOWN AS "MAN-CAMPS."

SOME OF THESE COMPLEXES HOUSE

\h\h\hUP TO EIGHT MEN IN A SINGLE TRAILER,

AND RULES AT SOME CAN BE STRICT:

NO DRUGS, ALCOHOL, VISITORS, \h\h\h\hOR GUNS ARE ALLOWED.

BUT MANY WORKERS HERE DON’T HAVE MUCH FREE TIME ANYWAY

TO DO ANYTHING BUT SLEEP.

THEY OFTEN WORK 80-HOUR WEEKS

TO EARN THEIR LUCRATIVE SALARIES OF OVER $90,000 A YEAR.

BUT IT’S NOT JUST THE FLOOD \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hOF WORKERS

\h\h\h\h\h\hTHAT’S STRAINING THE REGION’S INFRASTRUCTURE.

THE FLOOD OF OIL IS, TOO.

THE BOOM IS SO RECENT, THERE AREN’T ENOUGH PIPELINES YET

TO GET THE OIL FROM THE WELLS \h\h\h\h\hTO THE REFINERIES.

TRUCKS DO THE JOB INSTEAD.

\h\h\h\h\hA SINGLE WELL CAN REQUIRE 2,000 TRIPS

\hIN ITS FIRST YEAR OF OPERATION ALONE,

AND THOUSANDS MORE AFTER THAT--

WHICH IS WHY BEING \h\hA TRUCK DRIVER

IN THE BAKKEN FIELD

IS ONE OF THE EASIEST JOBS \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hTO GET.

WITH THEIR TANKS FULL \h\h\h\hOF CRUDE OIL,

MANY OF THESE DRIVERS HEAD HERE,

TO THE BAKKEN OIL EXPRESS RAIL HUB NEAR DICKINSON.

\h\h\h\hTHEY DRIVE RIGHT IN TO ITS SIX-BAY TRUCK CENTER

AND STORAGE FACILITY,

WHICH CAN FILL THE TANKER CARS OF AN ENTIRE MILE-LONG TRAIN

TO THE GILLS WITH CRUDE \h\h\hIN JUST 12 HOURS.

IT’S AN AMAZING SIGHT \h\h\h\hFROM THE AIR.

GIANT LOOPS OF RAIL TRACK,

FEEDING CARS ONE AFTER ANOTHER INTO A LOADING SHED,

\h\h\h\hSO THEY CAN BE FILLED WITH FRESHLY PUMPED CRUDE OIL

FROM THE BAKKEN FIELD.

IN 2013, THIS ONE FACILITY

COULD SHIP 200,000 BARRELS \h\h\h\h\h\h\hOF OIL A DAY

OUT OF NORTH DAKOTA,

WORTH ROUGHLY $20 MILLION,

AND FOR EVERY FULL OIL TRAIN \h\h\hTHAT LEAVES THE STATE,

ANOTHER EMPTY ONE ROLLS IN, \h\h\h\hREADY TO BE LOADED.

BUT THE BAKKEN OIL BOOM WOULDN’T HAVE HAPPENED

\h\h\h\hIF NOT FOR A NEW, AND OFTEN CONTROVERSIAL,

EXTRACTION TECHNIQUE.

EVER SINCE THE 1950s, \hSCIENTISTS HERE KNEW

THAT THE BAKKEN FORMATION HELD BILLIONS OF BARRELS OF OIL.

BUT THEY DIDN’T KNOW \hHOW TO GET TO IT.

THAT’S BECAUSE IT WAS LOCKED \h\h\h\h\hIN LAYERS OF ROCK,

DEEP UNDERGROUND.

ONCE, A PREHISTORIC SEA \hCOVERED THIS REGION.

\h\h\hWHEN IT DRIED UP 60 MILLION YEARS AGO,

\hIT LEFT BEHIND CARBON-RICH LAYERS OF DEAD SEA CREATURES

IN THE SEDIMENT ON ITS FLOOR.

\h\h\hTHEN, OVER TIME, HEAT AND PRESSURE FROM GEOLOGICAL FORCES

\h\h\hTRAPPED THAT CARBON BETWEEN LAYERS OF SHALE,

WHERE IT STILL IS TODAY.

THAT’S WHY OIL COMPANIES \hUSE FRACKING TECHNOLOGY

\hTO FORCE THE OIL OUT OF THE SHALE.

FIRST, GEOLOGISTS IDENTIFY \h\hA GOOD PLACE TO DRILL.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hTHEN, WORKERS CLEAR A FRACKING PAD AND SET UP A RIG.

NEXT, THEY DRILL PIPES TWO OR MORE MILES INTO THE GROUND,

RIGHT THROUGH THE SHALE ITSELF.

FINALLY, THEY PUMP WATER, \h\h\h\hSAND AND CHEMICALS

DOWN INTO THE PIPES, UNDER EXTREMELY HIGH PRESSURE,

\h\h\hWHICH ACTUALLY FRACTURES THE SHALE AND RELEASES THE OIL.

THE OIL FLOWS FREELY \h\h\hUP THE PIPES,

BUT ALONG WITH IT COMES NATURAL GAS.

\hWITHOUT ENOUGH PIPELINES TO CARRY THAT GAS TO REFINERIES,

\hTHE OIL COMPANIES BURN OFF ABOUT 30% OF THE GAS INSTEAD.

\hMANY LANDOWNERS CLAIM THE FRACKING CHEMICALS

AND THE GAS FLARES

\h\h\hARE POLLUTING THEIR AIR AND WATER.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hLANDOWNERS LIKE BRENDA AND RICHARD JORGENSON,

WHO OWN THIS FARM EAST OF WILLISTON.

LIKE MANY FARMERS HERE,

THE JORGENSONS MAINLY OWN \h\h\hTHE SURFACE RIGHTS,

BUT NOT THE MINERAL RIGHTS, \h\h\h\h\h\h\hTO THEIR FARM.

WHICH IS WHY AN OIL COMPANY

\hWAS ALLOWED TO BUILD THIS GIANT FRACKING PAD

JUST 700 FEET FROM THEIR HOUSE ON A NEIGHBOR’S LAND--

\h\h\hONE OF 25 SUCH PADS WITHIN A TWO-MILE RADIUS.

THE FAMILY SAYS THEIR AIR \h\h\h\hHAS BEEN POLLUTED

BY CHEMICALS USED AT THE WELL

AND WITH TOXIC FUMES \h\hFROM THE FLARES.

WHEN THE GAS FLARES BLOW OUT, \hTHE JORGENSONS HAVE SMELLED

\h\h\hWHAT THEY BELIEVE IS HYDROGEN SULFIDE GAS

\h\h\hTHAT IS A KNOWN TOXIN PRODUCED BY FRACKING SITES.

THE CONTROVERSIES OVER THIS \hNEW FORM OF OIL EXTRACTION

ARE LIKELY TO CONTINUE \h\hFOR YEARS TO COME.

MEANWHILE, THOSE WHO DON’T LIVE IN OIL COUNTRY

HAVE OTHER THINGS \hTO THINK ABOUT.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hAND SOMETIMES THE DAKOTAS’ EMPTY PRAIRIES

CAN HAVE AN UNUSUAL EFFECT \h\h\h\h\h\h\hON PEOPLE...

PEOPLE LIKE WAYNE PORTER.

IN 1983, PORTER DECIDED \hTO QUIT GRAZING SHEEP

\h\h\hIN THIS FIELD ALONG INTERSTATE 90,

OUTSIDE THE SOUTH DAKOTA TOWN \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hOF MONTROSE,

\h\h\h\hAND START FILLING IT UP WITH GIANT SCULPTURES INSTEAD...

\h\h\h\hLANDLOCKED GOLDFISH LEAPING THROUGH THE GRASS,

\h\h\hA GIANT BUTTERFLY PERCHED ON A TOWERING FINGER, AND MORE,

ALL MADE BY PORTER HIMSELF.

\h\h\h\hWHEN HE’S DONE, HE LEAVES THEM OUT HERE

FOR PASSING MOTORISTS TO ENJOY.

HIS MASTERPIECE SO FAR

IS THIS 25-TON, 60-FOOT-TALL \h\h\h\hMETAL BUST OF A BULL

THAT TOOK HIM THREE YEARS \h\h\h\h\h\hTO COMPLETE.

PORTER BRAGS IT’S AS BIG

\h\h\hAS MOUNT RUSHMORE’S PRESIDENTIAL PORTRAITS...

\h\h\hPROOF THAT THINKING BIG COMES NATURAL IN THE DAKOTAS.

AND THE BIGGEST THINKERS IN BOTH NORTH AND SOUTH DAKOTA

MIGHT JUST BE FARMERS.

\h\hTHAT’S BECAUSE THEY’RE RESPONSIBLE

FOR MORE THAN 80 MILLION ACRES OF FARMLAND IN BOTH STATES.

HERE IN SOUTH DAKOTA, \h\h\h\hCORN IS KING.

\h\h\h\h\h\hFARMERS HERE GROW MORE THAN 600 MILLION BUSHELS

OF THIS ONE CROP EVERY YEAR.

\h\h\hAND CORN IS MUCH MORE THAN JUST A COMMODITY HERE,

IT’S A SYMBOL OF A WAY OF LIFE

\h\hTHAT’S PASSED DOWN THROUGH GENERATIONS...

AND CELEBRATED EVERY YEAR

IN THE SOUTH DAKOTA FARMING TOWN OF MITCHELL, AT THE CORN PALACE.

IT STARTED IN 1892

AS A PLACE FOR FARMERS \hTO SELL THEIR PRODUCE

\h\h\h\h\h\hAND TO PROMOTE THE STATE’S FAVORITE CROP.

THE ELABORATE MURALS \h\h\h\hON ITS WALLS

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hARE MADE FROM, NOT SURPRISINGLY, CORNHUSKS,

AND ARE RE-CREATED FRESH \h\h\h\h\h\h\hEVERY YEAR.

\h\h\hBUT YOU WON’T FIND ANY CORN PALACE IN NORTH DAKOTA.

THAT’S BECAUSE, UP HERE, \h\h\h\h\h\hWHEAT RULES.

NORTH DAKOTA GROWS MORE WHEAT THAN ALMOST ANY OTHER STATE,

ALONG WITH MORE BARLEY, \h\h\h\h\h\h\hFLAXSEED,

AND ONE OF THE MOST COLORFUL \h\hCROPS THERE IS: CANOLA.

SOAR OVER NORTHERN NORTH DAKOTA ON ANY DAY IN JULY,

\hAND OCEANS OF CANOLA STRETCH TO THE HORIZON.

THESE YELLOW PLANTS ARE ACTUALLY A KIND OF RAPESEED,

\h\h\hWHICH WAS DEVELOPED OVER THE BORDER IN CANADA

AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MANITOBA.

\h"CANOLA" IS ACTUALLY SHORT FOR "CANADA OLA" OR "OIL"--

AND IT THRIVES HERE \hIN NORTH DAKOTA,

WHICH ALONE PRODUCES ALMOST 90% OF ALL CANOLA GROWN IN THE U.S.

ONCE IT’S PRESSED INTO OIL,

IT’S USED FOR COOKING, LIVESTOCK FEED, AND BIODIESEL.

IT’S CONSIDERED TO BE \h\h\h\hA HEALTHY OIL,

\h\hSINCE IT’S LOW IN SATURATED FATS.

\h\h\h\hFINDING WAYS TO KEEP THESE FIELDS OF GOLD THRIVING

AND MAXIMIZING PRODUCTION OF CANOLA AND OTHER CROPS

FOR NORTH DAKOTA FARMERS

IS THE JOB OF STUDENTS \h\h\hAND FACULTY ALIKE

AT NORTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY IN FARGO.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hIT WAS FOUNDED AS AN AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE IN 1890,

THE YEAR AFTER NORTH DAKOTA \h\h\h\h\h\hBECAME A STATE.

\h\hMANY KNOW NDSU FOR ITS FARGO DOME,

THE HOME OF THE UNIVERSITY’S \h\h\h\hBISON FOOTBALL TEAM,

\h\h\hWHICH HAS ONE OF THE BEST RECORDS IN DIVISION I FOOTBALL.

\h\h\h\hIT’S KNOWN TO BE ONE OF THE LOUDEST INDOOR ARENAS

\h\hIN THE NATION, THANKS TO ITS DOME,

WHICH IS SAID TO AMPLIFY \h\h\h\h\h\hCROWD NOISE--

EARNING IT THE NICKNAME \h\h"THE THUNDERDOME."

\h\h\hBUT THE REAL HEART OF THIS CAMPUS LIES HERE

IN THESE GREENHOUSES AND FIELDS,

WHERE NDSU RESEARCHERS \h\h\hSTUDY EVERYTHING

FROM HOW DEEP IN THE GROUND \hSEEDS SHOULD BE PLANTED,

\h\h\h\h\hTO THE BEST WAYS TO STORE HARVESTED CROPS,

\h\h\h\h\h\hTO THE IMPACTS OF FLOODING AND DROUGHT...

NOT TO MENTION THE BEST WAYS \h\h\h\h\hTO HEAT YOUR BARN

\hAND KEEP YOUR COWS WARM WHEN WINTER ROLLS AROUND.

\hMODERN SCIENCE THAT HELPS FARMERS ACROSS THE DAKOTAS,

AND THE NATION, THRIVE.

BUT WITH SO MUCH FARMLAND \h\h\h\h\h\h\hTO CARE FOR

IN NORTH AND SOUTH DAKOTA,

\h\h\h\h\h\hIT’S NOT SURPRISING THAT MANY FARMERS ALSO GET HELP

FROM THE SKY.

EVERY SUMMER, CROP DUSTERS \hLIKE THIS ONE CAN BE SEEN

\hBUZZING FIELDS ACROSS NORTH AND SOUTH DAKOTA,

\h\hSPRAYING PESTICIDE AND OTHER AG CHEMICALS

TO HELP FARMERS WARD OFF BUGS \h\h\h\h\hAND OTHER THREATS.

\hTHESE DAYS AG PILOTS USE SOPHISTICATED TOOLS

TO GET THE JOB DONE,

\h\h\hLIKE GPS TECHNOLOGY THAT HELPS THEM MAKE SURE

THEY DON’T MISS ANY PART \h\h\h\h\hOF THE FIELD--

OR SPRAY A NEIGHBOR’S CROPS \h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hBY MISTAKE,

WHICH CAN LEAD TO HARSH WORDS

AND SOMETIMES EVEN \h\hNASTY LAWSUITS.

AG PILOTS FLY SO LOW

\h\h\h\h\hTHEY RARELY NEED TO BE IN TOUCH WITH ANY CONTROL TOWER.

\hAND MOST DO IT BECAUSE THEY SIMPLY LOVE TO FLY.

AND WHO CAN BLAME THEM?

THERE’S NOTHING LIKE SOARING \hOVER THE GREAT LANDSCAPES

OF NORTH AND SOUTH DAKOTA...

AND DISCOVERING THE BEAUTY, \h\h\h\h\h\hSTUNNING SIGHTS,

\hAND RICH HISTORY OF THESE TWO GREAT PLAINS STATES...

ALL FROM THE AIR.