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You might know it as Mt. Rushmore, but long before Charles Rushmore stood at it's base and long before settlers came to the area, the Lakota people have been there. They call this particular place the Six Grandfathers, one of many mountains in the mountain range known as the Black Hills in South Dakota.

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In 1868, the United States Government and several Nations, including the Lakota Sioux, signed the Treaty of Fort Laramie. The Nations made many promises to one another in that treaty. And among those promises, the United States Government agreed that the Lakota owned land that included the Black Hills. The Black Hills, and therefore the Six Grandfathers, were not owned by the United States.

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Just eight years after the Treaty was signed, American expeditions found Gold and other metals in the territory of the Black Hills that belonged to the Lakota people.
Even though it was illegal, American people began mining the Black Hills, breaking the Treaty of Fort Laramie.

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In 1980, the United States Supreme Court found that the United Stated Government owed the Sioux Nation money as payment for the Black Hills. The original 120 million is now worth over 1 billion dollars. But, can you put a price on sacred land? The Sioux Nation never accepted the money. The money still sits in the hands of the US government. The Sioux people want their sacred land, the birthplace of their people, returned to their hands.

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The Black Hills have changed a lot since the United States broke the Treaty of Fort Laramie. One of the most obvious changes is the four faces carved into the Six Grandfathers. The idea for Mt. Rushmore started in 1924. It took a few years for lawmakers to gather the approval and funds from South Dakota and from the US government for construction to begin. Though, nobody asked the Native American people for their permission. In 1927, construction of Mt. Rushmore began.

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Some people think of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln as heroes. But, not everyone agrees with that characterization of these former presidents. Each one had policies and views that were negative for Native peoples.
Having those faces carved into the Six Grandfathers forever insults and hurts Native people who find the Black Hills sacred.

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Well, the presidents won't always be there.

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Well, the presidents won't always be there.

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Our landscapes change with weathering and erosion. This mountain in no different. We know that one day, the faces of the president's won't be there anymore. But this process will take thousands of years.

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Importance to the people of the Lakota People

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Importance to the people of the Lakota People

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The Lakota (Sioux) people lived in the black hills long before English settlers colonized the United States. They still live in the surrounding area and around the world.

Watch the brief video below to learn more about the Lakota and the Black Hills

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Sacred Hills: Preserving Lakota Sioux Culture in South Dakota

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Sequoia Crosswhite is dedicated to preserving and passing on the stories of the Lakota people. As a tour guide in Black Hills, South Dakota, he educates others about the 10,000-year-old native culture, taking them on journeys through the sacred lands and ancient petroglyphs.

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If you knew about Mt. Rushmore before, has this changed how you feel about it?

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If you knew about Mt. Rushmore before, has this changed how you feel about it?

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In 1939, Henry Standing Bear, the Lakota Chief at the time, commissioned another sculpture in the Black Hills. He asked a sculptor to design and carve a sculpture of Crazy Horse into another mountain in the Black Hills. Crazy horse was a Lakota warrior and leader who defended the Lakota people, land and way of life. Even now, over 80 years later, work continues on the Crazy Horse memorial.
When the memorial is finished, it will be much larger than the presidents at Mt. Rushmore. But, not everyone agrees with the project. Some people, including some of Crazy Horse's descendants, think that carving into the mountain was not the right choice.

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There is now a Nakota, Lakota and Dakota heritage village at Mt. Rushmore, thanks in large part to the work of Gerard Baker, who is of the Mandan-Hidasta Nation. This village brings some Native perspective into Mt. Rushmore. Is it enough?

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Sitting Bull: Lakota Warrior and Defender of His People

Black Elk's Vision: A Lakota Story

Red Cloud: A Lakota Story of War and Surrender

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Compare the photograph of the Six Grandfathers from before the carving and after the carving of Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln. Which do you prefer and why?

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Compare the photograph of the Six Grandfathers from before the carving and after the carving of Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln. Which do you prefer and why?

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What surprised you the most about the story of the Six Grandfathers?

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What surprised you the most about the story of the Six Grandfathers?