Some hidden Dakota treasures

We ventured North from Pierre to pursue some less publicized destinations. We drove an hour and a half to Aberdeen to the Brown County Fairgrounds. When we found out that the Whispering Giant given to South Dakota by sculptor Peter Wolf Toth was actually stored in a building on the fairgrounds, we assumed that we could not see that gem.

Luckily, a phone call to the fairgrounds proved us wrong. The folks managing the fairgrounds were more than happy to meet us and let us visit the sculpture. So, at 2 PM on Tuesday the 19^th, we met Casey at the main entrance to the grounds. While a bit damaged, the management is working to find someone who could properly repair this gem. Despite the minor damage, it was well worth the drive.

We set out to find the gravesite of Sitting Bull. After visiting the Little Bighorn Battlefield, Wounded Knee and seeing Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee, we had to. The Army asserts they buried Sitting Bull at Fort Yates on the Missouri River in North Dakota. However, the Lakota and the Standing Rock Sioux don’t hold this opinion themselves.

Fort Yates is on the Standing Rock reservation. The Standing Rock Sioux are descendants of the Lakota, Sitting Bull’s nation. Lakota legend has it that a Lakota woman with a child on her back were turned to stone by the great provider. Believed sacred by the Standing Rock Sioux, this stone has been placed on a monument at the primary administrative offices of the nation.

After being buried at Fort Yates, the family of Sitting Bull assert that they removed his remains and moved them to where he was born, along the Missouri River near Mobridge South Dakota. On a bluff overlooking the Missouri on the Standing Rock Reservation, the view is amazing. While there has never been any scientific verification of the family’s assertions, we chose to believe.

Interestingly the family chose to relocate Sitting Bull in the year I was born, actual a few short 
months after I was born. The monument here is fitting of the great chief, with a sculpture befitting his stature and strength. Sadly, the grounds are not well kept, so visiting is an interesting dichotomy. A powerful monument in a fairly trashy setting.

While we were there some Native American descendants from Minnesota were also visiting the gravesite of Sitting Bull. We hadn’t bumped into them at Fort Yates, so we assume they are believers as we are. I couldn’t help but chuckle when I saw the sticker on the back of their Chevy.

It turns out that Sakakawea is also buried near the Sitting Bull gravesite. Perhaps I should say that the family of Sitting Bull likely chose the location to coincide with the gravesite of Sakakawea. Her monument is not nearly as impressive as that of Sitting Bull, but it was still impressive, and the views nearly as awesome. Sadly, the site of Sakakawea’s grave is even trashier than that of Sitting Bull, if possible.

Finally, as we reached the outskirts of Bismarck, we were able to quickly find the Whispering Giant that Peter Wolf Toth gave to the citizens of North Dakota. Yeah, two Toth sculptures in two days! Sadly, while very visibly displayed and looking oh so awesome, this Whispering Giant is in the parking lot of a liquor store knows as the Stage Stop.

Talk to you soon!