The Crazy Horse Memorial is located in the Black Hills in South Dakota. The mountain is the 27th highest mountain in South Dakota with a height of 6,532 feet. This memorial is still under construction. After completion, it will depict Crazy Horse, a Native American war leader from Oglala Lakota, riding a horse.
The purpose of this memorial is to honor the culture of living Native Americans. Lakota Chief Henry Standing Bear and Sculpture Korczak Ziolkowski dedicated the memorial in June, 1948.
Quick Facts: –
- Ziolkowski worked on the memorial until the time of his death in 1982, his foundation continued the work.
- The Crazy Horse Memorial is planned to stand 563 feet high and 641 feet long. The head of the sculpture alone is more than 87 feet high.
- The monument has been under construction since 1948 with lots still to do before completion.
- The Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation does not accept any federal or state funds as it is a non-profit foundation.
- Crazy Horse is best known for fighting against George Armstrong Custer at the Battle of the Little Big Horn.
- This monument was likely inspired by the Mount Rushmore Monument.
- Korczak Ziolkowski had previously worked on the Mount Rushmore monument under Gutzon Borglum.
- The Crazy Horse Memorial is only about 8 miles away from Mount Rushmore.
- The monument is not a true replica of Crazy Horse but it is an artistic expression of him.