When Laura Ingalls Wilder published her first book,
Little House in the Big Woods
in 1932, she had no idea that she was creating a lasting
fame
for herself and her family.
A large selection of books
on the Ingalls family are available in the Gift Shop at
the Keystone Historical Museum.
Carrie Ingalls, sister of Laura Ingalls Wilder, of "Little
House on the Prairie" fame, moved to Keystone, South
Dakota in 1911. She ultimately resided in Keystone for
36 years. She is buried in the family plot in her hometown
of DeSmet, SD.
Using hand equipment to drill holes in the solid rock, they
then placed the powder in the drill holes to blast the rock
loose. The miners used the drilling process called double
jacking. One miner would hold the steel drilling bit, and
the other would hit it with a sledge hammer. Miners made
a pattern of drill holes on the blast six to eight feet.
The design formed by the series of drill holes was called
a butterfly pattern. This pattern, similar to the shape
of a butterfly with both wings outstretched, allowed the
explosives to make a safe square excavation doing little
to fracture the sides of the tunnel. A properly done blast
would completely fracture the ore without damaging the integrity
of the mine walls.
The "OLD TOWN" Walking Tour
Follow the numbered signs and read about the history of
one of the fastest growing boom towns in the Hills. There
are 19 stations on the walking tour,
each with a sign in description of the location.
The first non-native activity in the Keystone area of the
Black Hills was the discovery of placer gold two miles east
on Battle Creek in 1876, which led to the settlement of
Harney, named after Mount Harney. Placer gold was known
to exist in abundance during the first two years of mining
activity, but the great depth of the deposits made them
difficult and impractical to reach.
Getting this project underway was a challenge all by
itself. Once Robinson and others had found a sculptor,
Gutzon Borglum, they had to get permission to do the carving.
Senator Peter Norbeck and Congressman William Williamson
were instrumental in getting the legislation passed to
allow the carving. Williamson drafted two bills, one each,
to be introduced to Congress and the State Legislature.
The bill requesting permission to use Federal land for
the monument was easily passed. The bill sent to the State
of South Dakota was not going to be so easy. The Mount
Harney National Memorial bill was defeated twice and almost
a third time when on March 5, 1925 Governor Gunderson
signed the bill. The Mount Harney Memorial Association
was established by the Governor later that summer.
Did you know that there is a cave in the mountain behind
the heads on Mount Rushmore? It is called the Hall of
Records. Gutzon Borglum and his workers started the drilling
in July of 1938 and work was halted in July of 1939.
The Keystone Historical Museum is housed in the old Keystone
Schoolhouse building of early Victorian architecture. Built
in 1900, it served as Keystone's full-time school until
1988.
The Museum houses early day mining tools, historic
pictures and photo collections, rock and mineral collections,
and historic displays including Carrie Ingalls memorabilia.
The Keystone Historical Museum
houses marvelous photo collections of Keystone
and her citizens over the years.
An excellent geneological
resource and reference point.
