THIS IS A SUNDAY REPEAT ABOUT A PLACE WE LOVED VISITING. We were last at Crazy Horse in June of 2008; there is a link in the original post that takes you to the monument's official home page where you can read what is happening there today.
Click on the blue link for Sunday favorites by CHERI to see other old favorites (or to add your own) and here for Margot at JOYFULLY RETIRED who posts Favorite Places on Sundays.
Here is our original post.
We are a little obsessed with this monument. It's kind of odd to feel that way, because when you think about it, carving up mountains doesn't seem like something nature lovers would necessarily applaud. (I hope this admission doesn't get me on the Patriot Act list of suspicious persons, but Mount Rushmore, which is nearby, kind of left us cold. We went to see it the first time we were in South Dakota. We were glad we saw it, but it looks better in the movies or on stamps or license plates than it does "in person" and we don't especially want to go to see it again.)
On the other hand, this was our third visit to Crazy Horse and we'd definitely go again whenever we're in our adopted home state.
There are so many facets to the amazing story of this monument. It isn't hard to see why it is so fascinating. One of the main reasons it's so interesting is that you are seeing a work in progress. This is a current picture of the unfinished monument from the viewing veranda in the visitor center. In the foreground is a 1/34 scale model. Chief Crazy Horse is pointing to the lands that once belonged to his tribe. He said "My lands are where my dead lie buried."
Millions of tons of rock have been removed from the mountain. The face of Chief Crazy Horse is nine-stories high. Right now, the work is on the horse's head, which is 22 stories. The whole sculpture is being built in the round. This poster (click on it to enlarge) gives the actual measurements.
The statue's creator was Korzak Ziolkowski. A respected marble sculptor, he had assisted Gutzon Borglum in creating Mount Rushmore. Some time after that monument was dedicated, Lakota Chief Standing Bear asked Korzak to the Black Hills to carve Crazy Horse. He said: "My fellow chiefs and I would like the white man to know that the red man has great heroes, too." Korzak (he is always referred to by his first name) accepted the challenge and began to design a monument that he knew would take generations to complete. He began work in 1948, without much money and without very good working tools.
I think the monument does a good job of honoring the Native Americans who inhabited this area. Korzak's family has established the Indian Museum of North America on the grounds of the monument. In the Visitor Center, there is a huge collection of Native American artifacts, a collection of Edward Curtis photos of Native Americans, and a cultural center for Native Americans of all tribes.
In this picture, you can see where they are going to blast out the horse's head.
The Ziolkowski family story is fascinating. Korzak married Ruth after he began work on the monument. They had ten children who were raised with the project. Korzak died in 1982. Work continues from detailed plans that he left, because he always knew that it would take more than a lifetime. His widow, Ruth, heads the foundation. Seven of their children, as well as some grandchildren, have an active role working on the monument. You can tour part of their original home.
The Mountain is a private foundation and they have never accepted any public funding. At the beginning, Korzak supported the family by running a lumber mill and a dairy farm at the same time as he worked on the carving. His motto was "Never forget your dreams."
The visitor center was established pretty early in the process and it is very active now. Of course these days they get private donations. All of the buildings were built made from stone fragments blasted off the mountain.
On a previous visit to the Monument, we got to see a night blast. These take place twice a year, on Korzak's birthday (which date he shares with Chief Crazy Horse) and on Ruth's birthday. We just arrived by chance on the right day that time.
Here is a link to the Crazy Horse website: http://www.crazyhorse.org . Never forget your dreams!
Posted at 07:31 PM in South Dakota | Permalink













This is, I think, the difference:
Crazy Horse is a fantastic, beyond-belief story of a man struggling against insane odds. And accomplishing an amazing amount. Way more than you'd expect.
Mt Rushmore is the story of the federal government putting everything they had into a sculpture. And getting about what you'd expect.
The Rushmore story just isn't as neat.
Posted by: Geoff | July 10, 2008 at 10:13 PM