A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....11-04-03....South Dakota ~ "Great Faces, Great Places".

Mama_Bear

[Mama_Bear]

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in need; and congratulate those deserving. We strive to keep our threads entertaining, fun, and pleasing to look at, and often have guest writers contribute an essay, or a profile of another FReeper.

On Mondays please visit us to see photos of A FEW OF FR'S VETERANS AND ACTIVE MILITARY

If you have a suggestion, or an idea, or if there's a FReeper you would like to see featured, please drop one of us a note in FR mail.

We're having fun and hope you are!
~ Billie, Mama_Bear, dansangel, dutchess, Aquamarine ~

Please join us as we make a cyber-visit to another great state in this Union of ours. As we present each of our 50 states we also salute the proud FReepers who call their state 'home'.

Over the past few months each "Finest" hostess has profiled her home state and I will be presenting the other states in random order. Please FReepMail me if you would like to participate in spotlighting your state. I would love to have your input on what you would like to see highlighted.

These are the states we have presented to date:

05-23-03 Alabama 06-27-03 Maryland 07-11-03 Vermont 07-25-03 Utah 08-05-03 Texas 08-22-03 Nevada 08-26-03 Wash DC

09-05-03 Tennessee 09-17-03 Florida 09-19-03 Minnesota 10-03-03 New Mexico 10-14-03 Georgia 10-17-03 Louisiana 10-22-03 Michigan

Today we are visiting
"The Mount Rushmore State".

The state seal serves as a symbol of life in South Dakota. It depicts the state's diversity of commerce and resources: farming, ranching, industries, lumbering, manufacturing and mining. It bears the motto:

"Under God the People Rule."
The seal was adopted in 1885, four years before the state was admitted to the Union.

More South Dakota symbols...

The earliest people to come into the area which is now South Dakota were ancient mammoth hunters. Much later they were followed by nomadic tribes whose lives centered on bison hunting. Around 1775, the Oglala and Brule bands of the Sioux nation moved into the Bad River territory around the present town of Philip, South Dakota. These Native Americans became the master plains hunters, subsisting on buffalo.

Though the bison-hunting Lakota flourished during the next one hundred years, their dominion on the prairie was short-lived. French fur trappers were the first of many European arrivals who, in time, would supplant the Lakota. Trappers were soon followed by soldiers, miners, cattle farmers and homesteaders who forever changed the face of the prairie.

South Dakota’s history reads like an adventure story. It’s a tale of Plains Indians, explorers and pioneers, and it features names like Crazy Horse, Laura Ingalls Wilder, and Wild Bill Hickok. Lewis and Clark traveled through South Dakota in 1804 and 1806 on their journey to the West Coast. If you have a chance to visit this state, be sure to follow the Lewis and Clark Trail for an interesting glimpse into it's rich history and heritage.

South Dakota is the home of the Dakota, Lakota and Nakota tribes, which make up the Sioux Nation.

Our 40th state was admitted to the Union on November 2, 1889.


For those who would like to learn more about
the history of South Dakota, click HERE.

There is much to see and do in South Dakota!

The four figures carved in stone on Mount Rushmore represent the first 150 years of American history. The birth of our nation was guided by the vision and courage of George Washington. Thomas Jefferson always had dreams of something bigger, first in the words of the Declaration of Independence and later in the expansion of our nation through the Louisiana Purchase.

Preservation of the union was paramount to Abraham Lincoln but a nation where all men were free and equal was destined to be. At the turn of the Twentieth Century Theodore Roosevelt saw that in our nation was the possibility for greatness. Our nation was changing from a rural republic to a world power. The ideals of these presidents laid a foundation for our nation as solid as the rock from which their figures are carved.

Each man possessed great skills and leadership of the brand our nation needed for the times. Today millions of visitors come to see Mount Rushmore and gain inspiration from these four great men.

"Tell me the landscape in which you live and I will tell you who you are." Though seemingly inhospitable at first glance, human occupation of the White River Badlands of South Dakota dates back at least 11,000 years with as many as 101 archaeological sites identified.

Devil's Gulch is an amazing geological curiosity in southeastern South Dakota.

The Outlaw's Big Jump
There is debate about whether or not this is fact, but here's the story as it's been told for ages. In 1876 Jesse James robbed the bank in Northfield, Minnesota, in which two of his partners were killed. Fleeing town, the gang split up, with Jesse and his brother Frank heading west toward Dakota Territory. When the two got to this neighborhood, they went separate ways, trying to shake the posse that was still hot in pursuit. At some point the lawmen were literally right on the heels of Jesse, as he and his horse stood on the precipice of a dizzyingly high bluff; this was Devil's Gulch. A fifteen foot gash in the rocks separated him from the other side and freedom. Supposedly he spurred on his horse and actually leapt across the canyon, evading the posse and eventually linking up with brother Frank in the Palisades State Park area not far away. Some accounts indicate that a bullet fatally struck his horse during the leap.

These are the legendary Black Hills of South Dakota, an oasis of pine-clad mountains on the Great Plains. Home of Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse Memorials. The Black Hills offer everything you expect from a mountain vacation: five national parks, scenic drives, waterfalls, abundant wildlife, acclaimed recreational trails and trout fishing. A place where bison and wild horses still roam free.



In the Black Hills, you can go from one monumental mountain carving to the next. This gigantic statue of the Sioux warrior Crazy Horse has been taking shape for the past fifty years. Nearly eight million tons of rock have already been blasted away, and work continues on this 563-foot-high sculpture. When completed, this statue will be the largest one of its kind in the world.

Read more about this amazing sculpture HERE.

The following websites provided information and graphics:

History of The Badlands
Signs and Symbols of South Dakota
Mount Rushmore National Monument
The Black Hills and Badlands

I am sure I have overlooked many interesting facts and points of interest, so please help us celebrate South Dakota by joining in and posting what you know about this Fine state.

Have a nice day!

THIS WEEK'S THREADS 11-03-03...Military Monday

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' The guy's good, folks!

Thanks, Mixer!

1) Click on the graphic to open the Calendar.
2) Once there you can click on any month and even click to the right to go into next year. Once you are in the month that you joined FR you will need to click on the number in the calendar and then an add item screen will come up.
3) In the next box enter your name in the "Calendar Text" field and then click on submit.
4) If any of the screens fail to load simply click on refresh in your browser and that will usually fix it.
5) If all else fails or simply if you want me to do this for you send me an FReepmail and I will gladly do it for you. ~Mixer

Click on the photo to view the album. To
submit your photo, please contact dansangel or .45MAN danbh59@yahoo.com
and include Freeper Photo Album in
the subject line.

[Pippin]

GRRRRRRRATE!

[Mama_Bear]

Thank you, Colleen.

I would love to visit SD someday. That is part of the country I have never seen. It sounds lovely (the Black Hills) and dramatic (The Badlands) at the same time.

Following the Lewis and Clark trail sounds interesting too. Lots of history there.

[Pippin]

Hmmm!

Sounds like a collecter's item.

[Pippin]

HOWDY BILLIE!

[Mama_Bear]

Hello, Donaeus. I think I was on vacation when you first arrived at the Finest, so I have not had a chance to welcome you.

We are glad you are here. :-)

[MeekOneGOP]

Well, I could call you Cowboy! ;O)

hehe ! Yep. Suits me.

Just as long as I get called to supper. :O)

[Pippin]

I'll leave that to Mrs. Meek! :O)

[Donaeus]

Good mornin' ya'll! :)

[MeekOneGOP]

hehe ! Just an old expression ...

[Mama_Bear]

.....in that way you could control the font and make it be just what you wanted, right?

You got it. PhotoShop magic. :-)

I make a plain graphic with a background pattern that matches the bkgd I am using, then layer a graphic over it, vignette and then fade it into the background. Then I add my text, crop it and...voila! The only problem I have encountered is when I try to use a background with an obvious pattern/design to it. There is no way to line up the graphic and have it blend in. The edges of the graphic should not show, so backgrounds like I used today work out well.

You are right about being able to have the text the way I want it. By adding text to the graphic, everyone will see the font as I want it to be seen.

More than you needed to know, huh? ;-)

[Pippin]

HEHEHEHEHEHEHE!;O)

[Billie]

Hi, ladies. Haven't had a chance to say hello to you in a few days - have scanned the posts though. :)

[Mama_Bear]

Thank you sistah ((((((((aqua))))))))). You say such sweet things. :-)

[Donaeus]

I don't think we'd be able to pick it up at the local Toys 'R Us.

[Donaeus]

Thank you Mama_Bear. I'm very glad to be here. Hope you had a great vacation.

[Mama_Bear]

BTW, the hostess graphic is 100% Billie's creative design. I ran out of time and couldn't make a South Dakota graphic for my opening "ping" post so used Billie's cute Bassett Hound graphic.

Thank you, Billie, for offering your graphics for us to use. This one came in handy today. :-)

[Mama_Bear]

(((((((dutchess)))))))! Thanks for the sweet words.

You have a wonderful day, you hear? :-)

[Billie]

Have to check out for a bit, but wanted to say hello. :)

[Billie]

[Mama_Bear]

Good day to you, Sir Mayor. :-)

We can face any fear when we know the Lord is near.

Yes, indeed!