Forests, Fields, and Sites of South Dakota Quiz

Answer: Mount Rushmore

Gutzon Borglum and his son, Lincoln Borglum, enjoyed a labor of love carving the faces of four American presidents into the cliffs of this mountain. The project ran from October 4, 1927 to October 31, 1941. The edifice attracts about three million visitors a year. It is now called Mount Rushmore after Charles E. Rushmore, an nineteenth century explorer in the area.

Answer: Badlands National Park

Badlands National Park consists of 242,756 acres or 379.306 square miles of wilderness. It encloses the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. There are buttes, pinnacles, and spires, and the largest undisturbed grass prairie in the United States. The park was authorized in 1939 but not established until 1978. During World War Two, the land was leased for military target practice. About 800,000 people visit each year, as parts of the park are near the famous Wall Drug Store.

Answer: Black Hills

The Black Hills were so named as the forested areas on the hills give a black appearance from a distance. The Lakota took it from the Cheyenne. Later it was declared a native American preserve. That declaration only lasted until gold was found in the Black Hills and the area was reclassified.

The names of towns in the area are fascinating--Spearfish, Lead, Deadwood, and Sturgis, a motorcycle destination. The buffalo are raised now mostly for their meat.

Answer: Crazy Horse

Crazy Horse was a revered person among the Lakota as both a mystic and a warrior. He led the Lakota into many battles and skirmishes both with other tribes and with white settlers. He was the leader of the band made famous at "Custer's Last Stand". He and his followers surrendered to the army with an agreement of peace between them. Crazy Horse still had animosity toward the Nez Perce but this was misinterpreted as a threat to the army and white settlers. He was again arrested and was bayoneted by an army soldier, dying hours later. These are still considered mysterious circumstances today.

Answer: Black Hills Gold

Black Hills Gold jewelry utilizes creative designs with grapes, grape leaves and grape stems. For many years, the state of South Dakota copyrighted the term Black Hills Gold as the gold jewelry was made in the Black Hills with gold mined in South Dakota. With the closing of the Homestake Mine in 2003, most of the gold and alloys are outsourced. If you have ever visited the Black Hills, you will have noticed the multiplicity of Black Hills Gold shops.

Answer: Corn Palace

The first Corn Place was built in 1904 and it was re-built in 1924. What you see today is complete with Russian-style onion domes and Moorish minarets. Each year, its exterior murals are replaced and redesigned with a new theme by local artists using corn plants as materials. So if you saw it last year, it will look different this year.

The Corn Place also serves as a community gathering place for concerts, sports events, exhibits, and other community events.

Answer: Missouri

The Oahe Dam was first conceived in the 1944 Flood Control Act but construction did not begin until 1948. Building lasted until 1962 when it began to generate electricity. A side benefit was the creation of an artificial lake stretching 230 miles and making it a prime recreational area. The sad part is that many native Americans were uprooted from their homes by the Army Corp of Engineers.

The structure is 245 feet high, and was created by a combination of earth fill (92 million cubic yards) and concrete (1.1 million cubic yards). The lake backs up to Bismarck, North Dakota.

Answer: Pheasant

The South Dakota pheasant hunting season lasts from mid-October until the end of the year. Hunting is allowed from noon to sunset. Up to fifteen birds can be harvested, generally restricted to roosters. About 70,000 residents and 100,000 non-residents purchase licenses and harvest between 1.5 to 2.0 million birds. Pheasant hunting season is a great boon for many small town economies in South Dakota.

Answer: Sioux Falls

The Sioux Falls are really cascades of the Big Sioux River. They are believed to have been created 14,000 years ago during the ice age. Numerous Native Americans tribes lived in the area and burial mounds can be found on the high bluffs.

The city of Sioux Falls maintains a public park for the falls. Sioux Falls is the commercial center of South Dakota and 30% of South Dakota's population lives within the city or metro area.

Answer: Wounded Knee

Black Elk (1863-1950) medicine man, Oglala Lakota recalled:

"I did not know then how much was ended. When I look back now from this high hill of my old age, I can still see the butchered women and children lying heaped and scattered all along the crooked gulch as plain as when I saw them with eyes young. And I can see that something else died there in the bloody mud, and was buried in the blizzard. A people's dream died there. It was a beautiful dream ... the nation's hope is broken and scattered. There is no center any longer, and the sacred tree is dead."

The army hired civilians to bury the dead Lakota. They found the dead frozen, and buried them in a mass grave overlooking the encampment. They found four infants alive. In total there were 84 men, 44 women, and 18 children killed at Wounded Knee. General Nelson Miles disapproved of commanding officer Colonel Forsyth's actions and relieved him of command. A court martial later criticized Forsyth for his tactics, but cleared him of responsibility.

Dee Brown recalls this and the history on the native American tribes in "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" (1970).