The Black Hills of South Dakota - History and Attractions

SOUTH DAKOTA LEGENDS

The Black Hills

The fabled Black Hills of South Dakota are an uplifted island of pine-clad mountains rising from the Great Plains. With their impressive pinnacles, mysterious geologic formations, and dense forests, the area provides a number of picturesque views, hiking opportunities, ghost towns, National Parks and state parks, and a wealth of history in this region of stark contrasts.

This small isolated mountain range in southwestern South Dakota, formed in the time between the dinosaurs’ extinction and the beginning of the most recent ice age, is marked by Mother Nature’s restless winds, erosion and volcanic activity.

The region has been inhabited by Native Americans for almost 10,000 years. The Arikara arrived in the Black Hills by about 1500 A.D., followed by the Cheyenne, Crow, Kiowa and Pawnee.

Black Hills map, courtesy Black Hills.com

Signal Rock in Elk Canyon, Black Hills, South Dakota.

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However, when the Lakota arrived in the eighteenth century, they drove out the other tribes and claimed the land for themselves. The lands soon became sacred to the Lakota (Sioux,) who called them Paha Sapa, which mean "hills that are black.”

When George Armstrong Custer led an expedition into the Black Hills in 1874, gold was "officially” discovered which soon led to thousands of miners encroaching upon the Sioux lands in violation of the treaty and Federal law. Control over the land sparked the last major Indian War on the Great Plains – the Black Hills War (1776-1877), which included several famous battles including the Battle of Rosebud, Battle of the Little Bighorn, the Dull Knife Fight, and the Battle of Slim Buttes.

In the fall of 1876, the U.S. Army defeated the Lakota, forced them onto reservations and formed yet another treaty, which gave the U.S. title to the Black Hills and legalized gold mining in the territory.

Before long, several boomtowns were established including Custer City, Deadwood, and Lead.

Today, the Black Hills, which extends into Wyoming, offer a number of sites for travelers including the Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Jewel Cave National Monument, Wind Cave National Park, Devils Tower National Monument, Black Hills National Forest, Custer State Park, Bear Butte State Park and the Crazy Horse Memorial.

Numerous trails abound throughout the parks for hiking, biking and cross-country skiing, through forests and grasslands where the nature lover will find an abundance of wildlife including buffalo, deer, antelope, big-horn sheep, prairie dogs, and more.

Though today, most of the mining has been replaced by ranching, signs of the past can still be seen in a number of ghost towns including Central City, Addie Camp, Addie Creek and more. The one time gold camp of Deadwood is now a well-preserved gambling mecca and its twin city of Lead features tours of the now-closed Homestake Mine.

In Sturgis, the annual motorcycle rally draws more than a half a million visitors to the Black Hills each August.

All in all, the Black Hills offers something for everyone, from the historian to the naturalist, as it combines a flavor of the Old West with quaint attractions, rodeos, and outdoor recreation.

Contact Information:

Black Hills Badlands Information Center
Interstate 90 at Exit 61
605-355-3700

Also See:

Badlands National Park

Banshee Of The Bad Lands

Lakota, Dakota, Nakota - The Great Sioux Nation

Rough & Tumble Deadwood

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Homestake Mine in 1889.

This image available for photographic prints

and downloads HERE!

From the Rocky Mountain General Store

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