THE CITY OF PRESIDENTS

Pres. James Monroe
By Presidents Information Center
Note: Gold Railroad Spike

Rapid City, South Dakota is referred to as City of Presidents because one of their tw0 Historic Districts is the old downtown area with unique buildings and the Walking Tour of presidential statues, a remarkable 10-year achievement in of and itself.

In 1972 Rapid City experienced a devastating major flood along Rapid Creek, killing 272 people. Almost like the proverbial phoenix rising from the ashes, these hardy citizens decided to rebuild their city. Fortunately, the flood did not destroy a high percentage of their historic past, which was impetus for the two historic districts.

Central to their recovery was formation of a Flood Plain Development Committee which addressed concerns for any development in the flood plain of Rapid Creek. One result is development of green areas with flowering shrubs and flowers, bike and walking trails, peaceful parks and playgrounds. Yes, such can be destroyed, but are easier to reconstruct than lost businesses and homes. The result is a beautiful city.

I have failed to find the significance of the spike which
looks like a railroad spike. The First Transcontinental
Railroad was not completed during Monroe's terms of
Office. Monroe's primary claim to fame was
the Monroe Doctrine

Despite the devastating destruction, it gave city fathers and citizens, their government and planning commissions a fresh start in laying out an esthetically, lovely city with a population near 68,000. The City serves as a center of area tourism, but also well integrated hub of several industries.

The completion of I-90, the first east to west coast Interstate in 1978, certainly contributed to Rapid City's recovery success.

Rapid City has two historic
districts and touring buses
are available or you may
follow these signs and
map your own tour.
(Husband's Photo)

We viewed the Downtown Tour of Presidents late in the evening and our photos are not the best so I refer you to this link for complete information and pictures. Rapid City claims to be the only location in the world where all 43 presidents are displayed in life size bronze statues.

The seed of germination for a tour of US Presidents was born in a business man Don Perdue. There was a life-size seated Lincoln outside a hotel where the public interacted with statue, having their photos seated on the bench beside him. Sharing his idea with Dallerie Davis, a realtor and activist of the artist community, the two committed to a 10 year time line for the project.

Rapid City Historic Building
(Husband's Photo)

Seven South Dakota artists/sculptors formed the team. Each artist's commission included extensive research into the presidents' lives of their work.

Pres. Harry Truman Holding
Infamous Newspaper
Published Before Final
Electios Results An-
noucing His Opponent
Winner

For example, President Harry Truman is depicted holding a newspaper with the headline that Dewey won the election. President William Taft was a former baseball pitcher and is sculpted in a pitching position with a baseball in his hand behind his back. President Dwight Eisenhower is shown in full military dress with feet planted on a platform with a map of Europe.

There is a historical building downtown that serves as the Presidents Information Center. The center contains biographies of all the Presidents and maquettes (smaller versions of the actual statues), other memorabilia and souvenirs.


Certain events provoke additional activities. Veterans often gather at Eisenhower's statue on D-Day. On International Women's Day, posters of all First Ladies are displayed by each President. And some devotees of the project wrap scarves around their favorite Presidents during the cold North Dakota winters.

Another Historic Building in Rapid City
(Husband's Photo)

Boy Scouts care for the appearance of the statues. In October 2010 when the last four statues were unveiled, the Scouts paid tribute to Mr. Perdue's dream by reciting, "I will follow my dream--because I can."
The Dream was completed in the 10th year as dreamed by its founders. I believe the very friendly lady at the Information Center said a non-profit foundation was formed. $2 million was raised in private donations.

I, as a former city official, am really impressed with this project, which shows what a small core of committed, devoted people can create, be it a significant historic project, or restoring a near destroyed city with economic impact to its public and private sectors.

Again, Rapid City is a place I would have loved to have the stamina and time to explore.

I plan a FLICKR slide show of the Presidents even though it is not even close to good photography and only presentable through heavy use of Adobe Photoshop Elements. If I knew more of the programs features I probably could have done a much better job. We literally took some of these shots after dark (and I forgot to remove my polarizer which cuts out some light).

As a "flicker" of the slide show I present Pres. Taft, the baseball player. As a younger man he was very athletic. Even after his athletic endeavors were abandoned for politics with its many dinners, potlucks etc., he considered himself "in good shape." a delusion many of us portly people maintain. He was and still is the heaviest man to be President.

Pres. William Taft in the Pitcher's Position
Shaking Off the Catcher's Signal
(Husband's Photo)

Pres. William Taft
Different View
Baseball View in Back

Photos by NitWit1,

unless otherwise

attributed

President William Taft
The Pitcher's Grip
Is It Going to Be A
Slider, Sinker,
Fast Ball?

President William Taft
Alternate View of  Baseball
and Hand Grip
(Husband's photo)

CUNNING SPAM

It seems each year around New Year's Day there is a surge of questionable comments, or downright spam. Today I received a new twist.


A seemingly positive comment, perhaps more sarcastic than positive, appeared by a person/site under name of "gclub." Within the comment were two hyperlinks in a foreign, seemingly oriental, language. Not having Google Translate immediately available I clicked on one which lead to a gambling site. I did not click on the other as I am afraid I might get a virus. My fairly rigid BitDefender did not pop and sock the first one.


I did not post the comment and marked it spam. The comment was on the recent blog about Mammoth Site; it referred to the fact I had used an You Tube movie for my information and made an oblique comment I was relying on the info of the movie. I had a several of my own pictures.

Most of these travelogues rely on information gained at visit, my own photos, and brochures received, plus Internet to back up my information and links provided for those seeking more information. The YOU TUBE was simply for your enjoyment and may have contained more information.

This blog is an effort to record my own life experiences; advertising. overt or covert, is never welcome. Subjects of my blog, the places I visited, and other topics might be construed as advertising, but it is a stretch. I certain am not receiving monetary value or collected any vast number of "hits.". In fact, we PAID a fairly expensive package vacation fee which included these sites.

There is also some comments going around using aliases for legitimate bloggers. If it sounds odd, e-mail the blogger.

This criticism is not aimed at those of you who are fortunate to offer gifts and give aways. You are open about  your activities. I am referring to subversive, hidden  activities.

Have any of you received this kind of spam? I wonder why a blog with less than 50 comments per post was singled out?

Be sure to read post before this; I just wanted  to interject this friendly warning.

The Other Mountain of Tribute in South Dakota

Crazy Horse Memorial - face is completed; the white paint designates the 45 ft. ear
and 16 ft. wide eye of the 22 story-high horse. SOOC (straight of the camera)
taken from the parking lot at the Welcome Center.

Welcome Center
Husband's Photo

Prototype with Mountain Carving Progress on Mountain
in Background. Made from Viewing Veranda

I started to name this post: Dueling Mountains, but I have already posted Mount Rushmore, a tribute to four Presidents. This post is about Crazy Horse Memorial, a mountain sculpture tribute to the culture, traditions and heritage of American Indians; in particular the spirit of a legendary Lakota leader, Crazy Horse (Tasunke Witko).The Crazy Horse Memorial, when finished, will stand 641 feet long and 563 feet high, exceeding Mt. Rushmore. In fact it is claimed to be the world's largest carving.

Mt. Rushmore inspired Chief Henry Standing Bear and Lakota leaders, that "red men have great heroes also." They chose sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski to create the statue of Crazy Horse. Korczak had won 1st prize at New York's World Fair for his sculpture: PADEREWSKI: Study of an Immortal in 1939.

Before his death in 1982 Korczak did much more than rough out the contours of the carving, starting in 1948. He established a museum and a scholarship fund for American Indian students. He inspired his wife and 7 of his 10 children to continue the memorial's mission with a non-profit Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation. He twice refused federal funding as he believed the intersted public should build the memorial.

The Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation is the heart not only of completing the sculpture, but starting the university courses, a Cultural center, enlarging the Indian Museum of North America, opened the Indian University of North America and its first student Living and Learning Center in 2010. The Scholarship Fund of the Foundation has awarded more than $1.5 million since Korczak's original $250 in 1978.

Funding is entirely by visitor admissions and donations. No federal or state funds have been given to this massive project! It is a non-profit, education and cultural project financed primarily from an admission fee.

On the grounds of the memorial is Korczak's studio, home and workshop; Indian museums and Native American Cultural Center. There are optimistic plans for a medical training center to diseases peculiar to the Native American.

In an excerpt from an article by Sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski about Crazy Horse, the Indian leader insofar as can be determined never signed a treaty or touched a pen. Crazy Horse was born on Rapid Creek in the Black Hills of South Dakota, about 1842. He died by a stab in the back by an American soldier, Sept. 6, 1877 at approx. age of 35 at Fort Robinson, Nebraska which was under a flag of truce.

The statue depicts Crazy Horse with his left hand thrown out pointing. Someone derisively asked him, after the government agents and army defeated the Lakota tribes, "where are your lands now." He replied , with his outstretched arm is pointing to the plains, "My lands are where my dead lie buried."

He lost his leader Conquering Bear who was exterminated by treachery. A treaty guaranteeing Black Hills (Paha Sapa) would forever be the land of the Sioux was broken. Government agents' promises included meat, clothing tents--all necessities for existence were worthless; the deceit was only realized after they relinquished their lands and retreated to the reservation located in the southern part of the Badlands--near worthless land. His people's lives were ravaged and destroyed.

In 1891 another Lakota, Red Cloud, said, "They made us many promises, more than I can remember--The never kept but one: they promised to take our land, and they took it."

I loved this place, maybe because I have a little native American (Cherokee) in me, but not of the so-called plains tribes. I loved the Indian Museum of North America, The Native American Cultural Center (friendly Native American artists and craftsman plied their trades here) and the sculptor's studio home. I would have loved to spend an entire day here absorbing the culture.

Before I end I must tell the story of the blue beads. There is a huge room of beads on exhibit and to sell. However, there a case enclosing a string of blue beads with a story that only a few were made, and sold. Until all the beads are together again, the monument will never be completed. These beads were used by fur traders doing business with Native Americans. It is said Manhattan was bought with similar beads. However, many consider all of this a legend.

Because of a large number of photos I have created a FLICKR slideshow. Click on FLICKR link in previous sentence and select (click on) slideshow in upper right of screen. Some of photos in this post are also there. But 16 photos a bit much for a post.

Further today Blogger will not let me put the photos on this post where I want them nor can I move them around. And the new composing window is difficult to see and read with stuff scattered all over the web site, not designed for a neophyte like me.


PHOTOS by NitWit1, unless otherwise identified.

Information garnered from our Road Scholar Guide, Exploring The Black Hills and Badlands (The Great American Road Trip), Rapid City Visitors Guide, Crazy Horse Brochure (Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation) and Internet.