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(wind whooshing)
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(emphatic percussion music)
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(dramatic orchestral music)
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- [Narrator] Our journey begins
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in the Northwest of the state on a ranch
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before heading south towards Spearfish.
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Then it's on to the Black
Hills National Forest
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and the cowboy town of Deadwood
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with its surrounding gold mines.
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At Sturgis we look at the
National Military Cemetery
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as well as Fort Meade,
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which has a history stretching back
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to the early 19th century.
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To the south is Rapid City,
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the second largest
conurbation in South Dakota
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and a center for tourism,
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because nearby is one of
the most popular attractions
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in the whole of the United
States, Mount Rushmore,
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with its four presidents faces carved
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into the mountain top.
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South Dakota takes it's
name from the Lakota
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and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes,
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and became the 40th state
in the Union in 1889.
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Much of the Northwest of
the state is open grassland.
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Cattle ranches have carved out a living
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since the 19th century.
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Some of them now have herds of animals
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that once roamed freely
across the state, buffalo.
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They are also known as American bison
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and they are the largest
living land animal
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in the United States.
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200 years ago vast herds of buffalo
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freely migrated across the open grassland
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of the Great Plains,
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but gradually they were
hunted to near extinction
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both by the Indian tribes
as well as the new settlers.
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By the mid-1880s there were
only a few hundred left.
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Today the image of two
young riders herding
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these majestic beasts brings back the days
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of the Wild West and the
age of cowboys and cowgirls,
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and they are only able to do this
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due to a rancher in South
Dakota, James Philip,
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who bought five buffalo in 1899
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to preserve the species from extinction,
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and by the time he died in 1911,
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the herd had grown to over 1,000.
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He had almost single-handedly
saved the buffalo
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for the nation.
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In this flat landscape are
isolated hills with steep sides
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which are known as buttes.
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The name comes from the
days of French settlers
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and means small hill.
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They have been formed by erosion
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where the surrounding softer
rock has gradually worn away,
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leaving the small section of hard stone.
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This one is called Haystack Butte,
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and all across the state
these outcrops can be seen.
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Close by is another called Castle Rock.
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Spearfish is the largest local town
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with a population of
just over 10,000 people.
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It came into existence as a result
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of the Black Hills Gold Rush of 1876.
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The town grew as a supplier of provisions
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to the mining camps in the nearby hills.
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In 1906 Matthews Opera House opened
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as a center for
entertainment in Spearfish.
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It's been used for everything
from motion picture shows
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to basketball practice and
even a shooting gallery.
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After extensive restoration in the 1980s,
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it is still in use as a theater
as well as an art center.
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(dramatic orchestral music)
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To the south of town is Spearfish Canyon
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at the northern end of the
Black Hills National Forest.
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Many tourists drive
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through the Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway,
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drawn by the dramatic beauty
of the steep-sided valley.
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The great American architect,
Frank Lloyd Wright,
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visited the canyon in
1935 and called it unique
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and unparalleled elsewhere in the country,
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and wondered how is it that
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I've heard so little of this miracle,
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and we toward the Atlantic
have heard so much
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of the Grand Canyon when
this is even more miraculous.
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Off the main canyon are smaller valleys
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and a series of waterfalls.
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These are the Roughlock Falls,
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and one of the most
photogenic in the Black Hills.
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It also featured in the final scenes
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of the film "Dances with Wolves."
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Alongside the Spearfish
Canyon Scenic Byway
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on Highway 14 are the Spearfish Falls
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which drop into little Spearfish Creek.
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To get a good view there
are numerous trails
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for those on foot as well as cyclists,
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which take the visitor through some
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of the most dramatic parts of the canyon,
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and the canyon is part of the
Black Hills National Forest,
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which covers an area of
over a million acres.
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It was founded back in 1897
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after a series of devastating fires
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which probably started as a result
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of a prospector's campfire,
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and nowhere is more associated
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with this activity than Deadwood,
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a name that has become
synonymous with the Wild West.
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The town came into being in the 1870s
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as a result of the Black Hills Gold Rush,
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but its creation was also
said to have been illegal
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as the land had been promised
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to the Lakota tribe of Native
Americans by a treaty in 1868.
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It's ownership has been
in dispute ever since,
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and these disputes have
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even reached the United
States Supreme Court.
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The town had a rough and rowdy character
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and became a center for
gambling and prostitution,
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but all that nearly came to the end
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when a devastating fire destroyed
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over 300 buildings in 1879.
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Many of the inhabitants left
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and the town went into a gradual decline
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which continued in the 20th century.
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In order to revive Deadwood's fortune,
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gambling was legalized in 1989
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and it immediately revived
the town's fortunes.
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One event for which the town
is most famous is the killing
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of Wild Bill Hickok in 1876.
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He was shot while playing poker.
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He is buried in the Mount Moriah Cemetery,
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00:08:01,234 --> 00:08:06,174
but in 1903 Calamity Jane,
a well-known frontierswoman,
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was buried next to him at her request.
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In the same year that Wild
Bill Hickok was killed,
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a cry went up, "there was
gold in them thar hills,"
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when it was found a few miles away
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around what is now the town of Lead.
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Fabulous fortunes were
made in the first few years
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until one man bought up
most of the promising claims
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and created the Homestake Mining Company.
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The open cut was once a solid mountain.
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Over the years around 48 million tons
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of ore have been removed
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to create this half-mile
wide and 1000-foot deep hole.
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The word Homestake came
about when a prospector
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had claimed sufficient gold
to make a man rich enough
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to make his home stake,
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meaning to make enough money
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to return home and live comfortably.
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Over the years mining expanded
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and new shafts were dug around the town,
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and Homestake Mine was to
become the biggest, deepest,
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and most productive gold mine
in the Western Hemisphere
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until it closed in 2002.
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00:09:22,685 --> 00:09:25,745
Since 1876 gold mining at Lead
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had produced more than 40
million ounces of gold,
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or just over 1,000 tons.
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It also produced nine million
ounces of silver as well.
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In earlier days mining gold
was a labor intensive business
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as a ton of ore had to be blasted
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or hacked out of the ground
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and then sifted to produce
just one ounce of gold.
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Mining today still carries
on in another big pit,
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but helped by modern machinery.
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This mechanized style
of mining is a far cry
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from the early days of prospecting
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when men just wielded a pickax and shovel
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and dreamed of becoming rich.
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East of Lead is the town of
Sturgis which is famous for one
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of the largest annual
motorcycle events in the world.
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It was first held in 1938
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and for one week in August
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over half a million motorcycles meet here.
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To the south of Sturgis is a
reminder of the Indian Wars
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at the Black Hills National Cemetery.
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This hundred-acre site
has nearly 20,000 graves.
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Most of the original
internments were soldiers
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who fell in battle fighting
against the Lakota Indians
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during the 19th century.
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The Black Hills had been
granted to the Indians
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in the Treaty of Fort Laramie,
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also known as the Sioux Treaty of 1868.
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However, once gold was found in the hills,
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it was impossible to stop
the settlers moving in
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and the army was helpless to stop it.
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Indeed it was the famous US
General George Armstrong Custer,
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who also announced the discovery
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which started the Indian Wars.
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The cemetery is a stark reminder
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of a broken treaty and
the powerful lure of gold.
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Close by is the Fort
Meade National Cemetery
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which was established
by the surviving members
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of General Custer's 7th Cavalry
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after their defeat at the
Battle of Little Bighorn
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where Custer was killed.
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Fort Meade itself was built in response
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to appeals from settlers
in the Black Hills
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for protection against Indian attacks.
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The Fort is perhaps most famous
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as the place where the
"Star-Spangled Banner"
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first became the official music
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for the military retreat ceremony in 1892,
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long before it was adopted
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as the United States national anthem.
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Fort Meade is close to Bear Butte
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which lies a few miles to the north.
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(Native American chant music)
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It has been a religious site
for the Plains Indian tribes
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long before European settlers
arrived in South Dakota.
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This is where God imparted
to Sweet Medicine,
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a Cheyenne prophet, the knowledge
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from which the Cheyenne Indians derive
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00:12:50,390 --> 00:12:54,550
their religious, political,
social, and economic customs.
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The mountain is sacred,
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00:12:57,030 --> 00:12:59,350
and many Native Americans make pilgrimages
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to the top to leave prayer cloths
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and bundles tied to the
branches of the trees.
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00:13:06,145 --> 00:13:09,975
(Native American chant music)
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During the year various
religious ceremonies take place
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on the mountain which
is a place of prayer,
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00:13:21,540 --> 00:13:23,320
meditation, and peace.
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Rapid City is the second largest
conurbation in South Dakota
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with a population of 70,000 people.
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It began life back in the
days of the gold rush,
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00:13:42,760 --> 00:13:45,470
when some unsuccessful miners decided
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00:13:45,470 --> 00:13:48,980
that given the massive influx
of prospectors to the area,
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they would probably do better
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00:13:50,720 --> 00:13:51,950
if they were to put their efforts
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00:13:51,950 --> 00:13:53,960
into building and running a new city.
227
00:13:54,860 --> 00:13:57,950
By 1900 it had established itself
228
00:13:57,950 --> 00:14:00,130
as a growing tourist destination
229
00:14:00,130 --> 00:14:02,090
for visitors to the Black Hills.
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00:14:03,010 --> 00:14:06,330
In the 1940s the population nearly doubled
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00:14:06,330 --> 00:14:08,490
when the Ellsworth Air
Force Base was opened
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00:14:08,490 --> 00:14:09,860
to the east of the city.
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00:14:11,470 --> 00:14:14,260
Today it is home to the 28th Bomb Wing
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00:14:14,260 --> 00:14:17,280
and the B-1B Lancer aircraft,
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00:14:17,280 --> 00:14:20,390
which is a variable-sweep
wing strategic bomber.
236
00:14:22,730 --> 00:14:26,830
Next to the Air Force base is
Rapid City Regional Airport.
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00:14:26,830 --> 00:14:29,510
Most towns in the state have an airfield
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00:14:29,510 --> 00:14:33,300
as flying is the best way to
get about in such a large area,
239
00:14:34,210 --> 00:14:37,350
and in fact over 50% of aircraft movements
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at Rapid City are private flights.
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00:14:40,620 --> 00:14:45,230
Scheduled commercial flights
only account for around 5%.
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To capitalize on the
growing number of tourists
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00:14:49,660 --> 00:14:52,830
who were coming to see
Mount Rushmore in the 1930s,
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00:14:52,830 --> 00:14:56,130
it was decided to
construct the Dinosaur Park
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00:14:56,130 --> 00:14:58,800
on a hill overlooking the city.
246
00:14:58,800 --> 00:15:02,130
The creatures were also floodlit at night.
247
00:15:02,130 --> 00:15:04,600
Today it all seems a little tame
248
00:15:04,600 --> 00:15:06,760
with these ancient creatures now created
249
00:15:06,760 --> 00:15:10,770
on films using CGI and animatronics,
250
00:15:10,770 --> 00:15:14,180
but back at the time it
was immensely popular,
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00:15:14,180 --> 00:15:16,420
and the park has now been listed
252
00:15:16,420 --> 00:15:19,420
on the National Register
of Historic Places.
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00:15:21,800 --> 00:15:23,810
On the western edge of Rapid City
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00:15:23,810 --> 00:15:27,120
in the foothills of the
Black Hills is a reproduction
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00:15:27,120 --> 00:15:29,650
of a Norwegian wooden stave church.
256
00:15:30,860 --> 00:15:33,810
It was built in this
style during the 1960s
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to honor the Norwegian settlers
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00:15:35,770 --> 00:15:38,850
who had come to South Dakota
during the 19th century.
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This Lutheran church is an exact replica
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of one built in Norway
over 800 years earlier,
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the Borgund stavkyrkje.
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00:15:50,750 --> 00:15:53,490
The Norwegian Department
of Antiquities agreed
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to supply blueprints and
a Norwegian woodcarver
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00:15:56,690 --> 00:16:00,020
across the Atlantic to create
some of the fine detail.
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00:16:02,060 --> 00:16:05,000
A generous local couple provided the land
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and covered all the cost of construction.
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All they asked for in return
was to dedicate the chapel
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to the memory of his parents
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as his father was a
pioneering Lutheran Pastor.
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The church is an unexpected
and wonderful site
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to find in the middle of South Dakota.
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00:16:26,748 --> 00:16:30,088
(soft instrumental music)
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Further west is Rapid Creek
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which gave it's name to the city.
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For much of it's length the creek runs
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through a steep-sided canyon.
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00:16:39,910 --> 00:16:42,930
It's hard to believe looking
at this beautiful landscape
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that it was a scene of
devastation 40 years ago.
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In 1972 the creek truly did become rapid,
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00:16:52,390 --> 00:16:55,120
as floodwater cascaded down the canyon
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00:16:55,120 --> 00:16:58,360
following torrential
rain in the Black Hills.
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00:16:58,360 --> 00:17:01,370
Nearly 250 people lost their lives
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00:17:01,370 --> 00:17:03,840
and over 3,000 were injured.
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00:17:03,840 --> 00:17:07,070
Homes were destroyed and cars swept away.
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00:17:11,450 --> 00:17:13,200
As a result of the flood,
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00:17:13,200 --> 00:17:16,430
the dam across rapid creek was enlarged,
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00:17:16,430 --> 00:17:20,170
making Pactola Reservoir the
biggest in the Black Hills.
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00:17:21,290 --> 00:17:24,640
When the dam had first
been built in the 1950s,
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00:17:24,640 --> 00:17:26,750
the new reservoir swallowed up
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00:17:26,750 --> 00:17:29,710
not only the old mining camp of Pactola,
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00:17:29,710 --> 00:17:32,850
but also a military camp of the 1870s.
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00:17:38,470 --> 00:17:41,270
The reservoir supplies
water for Rapid City
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00:17:41,270 --> 00:17:45,000
and is also a base for all
sorts of outdoor activities,
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including water sports.
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00:17:48,711 --> 00:17:51,631
(soft piano music)
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00:17:56,253 --> 00:17:58,053
(acoustic guitar music)
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00:17:58,050 --> 00:18:00,030
The main route south out of Rapid City
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00:18:00,027 --> 00:18:03,417
and into the Black Hills is Highway 16
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00:18:03,420 --> 00:18:07,100
which winds its way through
some spectacular scenery,
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00:18:07,100 --> 00:18:10,200
and along its route are
various tourist attractions
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00:18:10,200 --> 00:18:12,280
including Bear Country.
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00:18:14,090 --> 00:18:17,800
Opened in 1972 with 11 black bears
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00:18:17,800 --> 00:18:22,420
it now boasts over 200
as well as other animals.
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00:18:22,420 --> 00:18:23,790
It is the largest collection
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00:18:23,790 --> 00:18:26,810
of privately-owned black
bears in the world.
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00:18:30,320 --> 00:18:34,740
Further along Highway 16
is the turn to Hill City,
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00:18:34,740 --> 00:18:36,630
and once again it was gold
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00:18:36,630 --> 00:18:40,320
that brought about its
existence in the 1870s,
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00:18:40,320 --> 00:18:42,030
and when that had been exhausted,
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00:18:42,030 --> 00:18:44,380
tin mining and forestry took over.
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00:18:45,270 --> 00:18:47,980
Surrounded by the Black
Hills National Forest,
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00:18:47,980 --> 00:18:51,370
the city has become known
as the heart of the hills,
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00:18:51,370 --> 00:18:54,610
and when nearby Mount Rushmore
began attracting visitors
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00:18:54,610 --> 00:18:58,890
in large numbers, Hill City's
economy changed to tourism,
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00:18:58,890 --> 00:19:01,290
with Main Street devoted to hotels,
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00:19:01,290 --> 00:19:04,030
restaurants, and souvenir shops.
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00:19:04,027 --> 00:19:07,357
(acoustic guitar music)
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00:19:08,210 --> 00:19:10,200
One of the most popular attractions
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00:19:10,200 --> 00:19:13,470
is the 19th century Black
Hills Central Railroad,
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00:19:13,470 --> 00:19:16,860
which was restored and reopened in 1957.
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00:19:17,972 --> 00:19:21,312
(train whistle blowing)
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00:19:22,422 --> 00:19:25,422
(lively folk music)
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00:19:27,550 --> 00:19:29,570
The railway line was originally built
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00:19:29,570 --> 00:19:33,300
between Hill City and
Keystone in the 1890s
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00:19:33,300 --> 00:19:36,270
as a mining route for
gold in the Black Hills.
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00:19:37,530 --> 00:19:42,530
The steam engine is a 2-6-6-2T
articulated Mallet built
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00:19:42,690 --> 00:19:47,690
in 1928 by The Baldwin
Locomotive Works of Pennsylvania.
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00:19:47,940 --> 00:19:51,030
The carriages date from the early 1900s.
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00:19:52,608 --> 00:19:55,608
(lively folk music)
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00:20:03,600 --> 00:20:05,580
The journey ends at Keystone
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00:20:05,580 --> 00:20:08,300
which is a resort town for
the millions of visitors
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00:20:08,300 --> 00:20:11,200
who come to the Black Hills each year.
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00:20:11,200 --> 00:20:14,320
Once a small mining
community like Hill City,
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00:20:14,320 --> 00:20:16,710
it is now also full of hotels,
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00:20:16,710 --> 00:20:18,890
restaurants, and souvenir shops.
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00:20:23,530 --> 00:20:26,670
Leading out of Keystone is Highway 16
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00:20:26,670 --> 00:20:29,560
where two great carved
monuments can be seen.
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00:20:30,410 --> 00:20:31,790
The first is of one
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00:20:31,790 --> 00:20:36,490
of the most iconic Native
American leaders, Crazy Horse.
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00:20:36,490 --> 00:20:39,130
(Native American chanting music)
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00:20:39,130 --> 00:20:43,190
It was in 1939 that a
Lakota Indian elder wrote
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00:20:43,190 --> 00:20:46,830
to the sculptor, Korczak
Ziolkowski, saying,
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00:20:46,827 --> 00:20:49,297
"My fellow chiefs and I
would like the White man
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00:20:49,297 --> 00:20:53,407
"to know that the Red man
has great heroes too."
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00:20:53,410 --> 00:20:56,070
The idea of the Crazy
Horse monument was born
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00:20:56,070 --> 00:20:58,220
and the Polish American sculptor,
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00:20:58,220 --> 00:20:59,920
who had worked on Mount Rushmore,
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00:20:59,920 --> 00:21:01,860
which we will see a little later,
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00:21:01,860 --> 00:21:05,210
eventually began in 1948,
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00:21:05,210 --> 00:21:07,820
and it's been going on ever since.
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00:21:09,140 --> 00:21:12,100
The finished monument will
reveal Crazy Horse sitting
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00:21:12,100 --> 00:21:14,780
astride his horse pointing forwards.
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00:21:15,800 --> 00:21:18,210
The sculptor died in 1982
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00:21:18,210 --> 00:21:21,300
and his family continue to work on it.
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00:21:21,300 --> 00:21:23,450
The powerful face of the great chief
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00:21:23,450 --> 00:21:26,210
was finally revealed in 1998.
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00:21:27,860 --> 00:21:30,500
The task is truly monumental
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00:21:30,500 --> 00:21:34,050
and it may well take decades
before it's finally finished.
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00:21:36,680 --> 00:21:40,660
Not far from the Crazy Horse
monument is Sylvan Lake,
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00:21:40,660 --> 00:21:45,540
which was created in 1881
by damming Sunday Gulch.
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00:21:45,540 --> 00:21:49,440
The lake is known as the crown
jewel of Custer State Park,
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00:21:49,440 --> 00:21:51,580
and offers swimming, rock climbing,
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00:21:51,580 --> 00:21:54,000
boating, and hiking trails.
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00:21:54,000 --> 00:21:56,420
The lake is also used as an entry point
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00:21:56,420 --> 00:22:00,480
for hikers going on to
the spectacular Needles.
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00:22:00,475 --> 00:22:03,805
(majestic violin music)
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00:22:07,720 --> 00:22:08,780
These are a large group
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00:22:08,780 --> 00:22:13,140
of fantastically-eroded granite
pillars, towers, and spires.
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00:22:13,140 --> 00:22:17,070
Indeed one group is known
as Cathedral Spires.
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00:22:17,074 --> 00:22:19,794
(soft piano music)
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00:22:19,790 --> 00:22:22,050
It's a very popular place for climbers
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00:22:22,050 --> 00:22:24,690
and these two are on top
of Little Devil's Tower,
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00:22:25,600 --> 00:22:27,130
and from the top it's possible
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00:22:27,130 --> 00:22:29,280
to look across to Mount Rushmore,
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00:22:29,280 --> 00:22:32,480
and in fact the Needles
were the first proposed site
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00:22:32,480 --> 00:22:34,970
for the monument but rejected because
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00:22:34,970 --> 00:22:37,980
they were too thin to
support the sculptures.
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00:22:37,980 --> 00:22:39,100
The final site picked
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00:22:39,100 --> 00:22:42,300
for Mount Rushmore is
three miles to the east.
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00:22:43,207 --> 00:22:46,537
(soft orchestral music)
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00:23:00,400 --> 00:23:04,620
Mount Rushmore features four
18 meter high sculptures
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00:23:04,620 --> 00:23:08,210
of former presidents of the
United States of America.
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00:23:08,210 --> 00:23:11,290
It was conceived in 1924.
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00:23:11,290 --> 00:23:14,200
Construction began in 1927
385
00:23:14,200 --> 00:23:17,360
and ended in 1941.
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00:23:17,360 --> 00:23:21,380
On the left is George
Washington, the first president.
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00:23:21,380 --> 00:23:25,770
Next to him is the third
president, Thomas Jefferson.
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00:23:25,770 --> 00:23:28,880
Set back in the rock
is Theodore Roosevelt,
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00:23:28,880 --> 00:23:31,090
the 26th president,
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00:23:31,090 --> 00:23:35,520
and on the far right is Abraham
Lincoln, the 16th President.
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00:23:36,777 --> 00:23:40,107
(soft orchestral music)
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00:23:43,260 --> 00:23:46,300
Mount Rushmore is the most
popular tourist attraction
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00:23:46,300 --> 00:23:48,650
in South Dakota, and regularly gets
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00:23:48,650 --> 00:23:51,500
over two million visitors a year.
395
00:23:51,500 --> 00:23:53,840
Indeed it was conceived as a way
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00:23:53,840 --> 00:23:56,890
of boosting tourism back in 1924.
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00:23:59,230 --> 00:24:01,230
One of the most spectacular times
398
00:24:01,230 --> 00:24:03,800
to see the monument is at dawn
399
00:24:03,800 --> 00:24:07,370
just as the sun rises above the horizon.
400
00:24:07,367 --> 00:24:11,027
(dramatic orchestral music)
401
00:24:23,350 --> 00:24:24,770
For about 10 minutes,
402
00:24:24,770 --> 00:24:29,770
the rising sun casts a glorious
pink glow over the monument
403
00:24:29,820 --> 00:24:32,300
before the power of the daylight turns it
404
00:24:32,300 --> 00:24:34,660
into its natural color of white granite.
405
00:24:35,690 --> 00:24:38,300
It's certainly a site
worth getting up for.
406
00:24:39,803 --> 00:24:43,303
(soft instrumental music)
407
00:24:45,410 --> 00:24:47,750
Mount Rushmore was chosen by the creator
408
00:24:47,750 --> 00:24:50,380
and sculptor Gutzon Borglum because
409
00:24:50,380 --> 00:24:54,430
it was the highest mountain in
the region, faced southeast,
410
00:24:54,430 --> 00:24:56,550
and the granite was fine-grained
411
00:24:56,550 --> 00:24:58,800
and sturdy enough to support sculpting.
412
00:24:59,730 --> 00:25:01,600
He was quoted as saying
413
00:25:01,600 --> 00:25:04,710
that America will march
along that skyline.
414
00:25:05,760 --> 00:25:08,070
It was originally planned that the figures
415
00:25:08,070 --> 00:25:10,450
would be carved from head to waist,
416
00:25:10,450 --> 00:25:14,880
but lack of funds forced
the carving to end in 1941.
417
00:25:15,880 --> 00:25:18,990
Since then new visitor
facilities have been built
418
00:25:18,990 --> 00:25:23,140
for the millions of people who
often drive from far afield
419
00:25:23,140 --> 00:25:26,490
to see one of the truly
iconic sights in America,
420
00:25:27,530 --> 00:25:30,020
a perfect place to end this journey.
421
00:25:37,605 --> 00:25:41,265
(soothing orchestral music)
422
00:26:00,977 --> 00:26:04,477
(strong percussion music)
31847
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