Sights in South Dakota
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Mount Rushmore
Looking like they're either emerging from or being absorbed by the mountain, the stony faces of past presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt - carved 60ft tall in the granite of a Black Hills outcrop - are one of the most famous images in the USA and the top attraction in the state; the monument gets nearly three million visitors each year. You can't help but be impressed by its sheer scale and the massive physical effort of the team (led by sculptor Gutzon Borglum) that created it between 1927 and 1941.
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Deadwood History & Information Center
Deadwood History & Information Center, Like Vegas meets Bonanza, Deadwood juxtaposes the bright neon jangling of slot machines with Wild West storefronts, reenacted gunfights and eternal devotion to Wild Bill Hickock, who was shot in the back of the head here in 1876 while gambling. Settled illegally by eager gold rushers in the 1870s, Deadwood (inspiration for the hit HBO series) is now a National Historic Landmark. Its Main Street is lined with restored gold rush-era buildings. The town's hell-raisin' days are long gone, replaced by a gentler crowd of tour-bus poker players taking advantage of limited-stakes gambling, which jump-started the town's tourist appeal in the …
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Jewel Cave National Monument
)Another of the Black Hills' many fascinating caves is Jewel Cave, 13 miles west of Custer on US 16; so named because calcite crystals line nearly all of its walls. Currently 139 miles have been explored, making it the second longest known cave in the world, but it is presumed to be the longest. Tours range in length and difficulty; reservations are recommended. Make arrangements at the visitor center. If you'll only visit one Black Hills cave, this would be a good choice.
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Custer State Park
The only reason 111-sq-mile Custer State Park isn't a national park is that the state grabbed it first. It boasts one of the largest free-roaming bison herds in the world (about 1500), the famous 'begging burros' (donkeys seeking handouts) and more than 200 species of bird. Other wildlife include elk, pronghorns, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, coyotes, prairie dogs, mountain lions and bobcats.
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Crazy Horse Memorial
The world's largest monument, the Crazy Horse Memorial is, as author Ian Frazier describes, 'a ruin, only in reverse.' Onlookers at the 563ft-tall work-in-progress can gawk at what will be the Sioux leader astride his horse, pointing to the horizon saying, 'My lands are where my dead lie buried.'
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High Plains Western Heritage Center
The church-like building overlooking the interstate east of downtown Spearfish is the High Plains Western Heritage Center. Displays are a tad scattershot, but include many on cowboys and a big barbed wire collection.
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Mount Moriah Cemetery
- Black Hills, USA
- Sights › Dark
Calamity Jane (born Martha Canary) and Wild Bill Hickok rest side by side up on Boot Hill at Mount Moriah Cemetery. Actors stage old-style shootouts (three times daily) on Main Street during the summer.
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Corn Palace
The all-time-ultimate roadside attraction is the Corn Palace. Close to 300,000 ears of corn are used each year to create a tableaux of murals on the outside of the building.
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Mammoth Site
The remarkable Mammoth Site is the country's largest left-as-found mammoth fossil display. Hundreds of animals perished in a sinkhole here about 26,000 years ago.
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Sturgis Motorcycle Museum
The Sturgis Motorcycle Museum houses dozens of bikes, including many classics. A 'freedom fighters' exhibit honors those who have fought for the rights of bikers.
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Museum of Geology
You can see some classy dinosaur bones, including a plesiosaur skeleton, and piles of very old rocks in the Museum of Geology at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology.
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Journey Museum
The fortress-like Journey Museum takes you on a trip through 2½ billion years of the history of the Black Hills with lots of space given to the Lakota Sioux and dinosaurs.
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Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center
The excellent Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center at St Joseph's Indian School has Lakota cultural displays and contemporary art from numerous tribes.
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1880 Train
Keystone is the eastern terminus of the 1880 Train, a classic steam train running through rugged country to Hill City - there are more round-trip options from that end.
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Silo
The silo can be viewed without a reservation through a glass cover. Note that from here west, Mountain Time is used, which is one hour earlier.
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Red Cloud Heritage Center
Red Cloud Heritage Centeris a well-curated art museum with traditional and contemporary work and a craft shop.
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Homestake Gold Mine
Peek at the 1250ft-deep Homestake gold mine to see what open-pit mining can do to a mountain.
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