Crazy Horse Memorial

Henry Standing Bear, a Lakota elder, invited the sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski to carve a memorial so that, in his words, the white man would know the red man had great heroes too. Work started in 1948. The face was completed in 1998, fifty years in, and the outstretched arm and horse's head are still being blasted and shaped; there is no completion date. The design would be far larger than the Mount Rushmore heads a few kilometres away. The project has consistently refused federal funding, running instead on admissions and donations, and that choice is part of why it has taken so long. It remains contested among Lakota people themselves, which the site acknowledges.

What you actually see

• A carving begun in 1948 - the face finished in 1998, the rest ongoing.
• No completion date - work continues by blasting and shaping.
• Funded without government money - by admissions and donations.
• A contested memorial - opinion among Lakota people is divided.

When to go

May to September; night blasts and laser shows run in summer. Two to three hours.

Honest expectations

Only the face is finished - visitors expecting a completed monument are often disappointed. The viewing area is a long way from the mountain; the bus to the base costs extra. Admission is charged per car and is not cheap for what is visible.

Nearby

Custer State Park is south-east; Mount Rushmore is north-east.