October 25 Spearfish

Hello Everyone,

A trip to Spearfish, the largest town in the northern Black Hills, with a population of more than 13,500, leads to interesting adventures for those who enjoy art, outdoor recreation, and western heritage. The town is home to Black Hills State University and offers a wide variety of restaurants and lodging. It’s a cross between small town charm and big city amenities.

TERMESPHERE GALLERY®

A must stop is the Termesphere® Gallery of Dick Termes just outside of Spearfish. In a geodesic dome, visitors find incredible globes that he has created. They consist of three-dimensional paintings on spheres created with a technique he calls six point perspective that allows you to look all around a scene. His style was inspired by a desire to “paint the total picture.” Dick calls them Termespheres®.

In the 15th century, Piero della Francesca formulated the basic rules of perspective. It was defined then that if the horizon around you was imagined as 360 degrees, two point perspective drawings and paintings held 90 degrees of the visual world. Most artists paint on a flat surface using a two point perspective. This provides a limited view of what they are actually seeing.

Dick’s method captures 360 degrees. He describes it as placing your head in a transparent globe then copying what you are seeing with paints and a brush. Paint everything to your left, right, behind, and in front. Follow this by painting what is above and below you. Take the globe off your head, move it to a safe ground, and step out to observe your painting. In real life, however, all painting takes place on the outside of the sphere. What you have is a Termesphere®.

Depending upon the day you visit, you’ll see the number of Termespheres® floating from the gallery ceiling varies between 30 and 70. They mostly range in size from 4-1/2 inches to two feet in diameter, though some have been up to 7-1/2 feet. They can take from 90 days to three months to complete. Most are made of Polycarbonate plastic while transparent ones are made from acrylic. Hanging from small chains, most rotate due to the electric ceiling motors to which they are connected. Sometimes they run on solar power. With each rotation, viewers watch one complete world or environment.

Many are for sale. You can also go online on his web site to what also is for sale. Prices range from $5,000 to $24,000, but there are also some silk screened spheres for $160. Dick will email or call a prospective purchaser with the price of a piece. About half of the pieces are done on commission with the prices varying depending on what the purchaser wants.

While some of his more than 500 spheres are realistic, others are geometric, surrealistic, or a mixture of all three. Speaking to Dick, he acknowledges M. C. Escher and Buckminster Fuller were major influences in his work. When Fuller visited Black Hills State University in the 1970's, Dick met him when he was asked by the college to pick Fuller up at the airport. Dick recalls they spent two days together discussing many topics including Fuller’s geodesic dome system.

Some of Dick’s more recent spheres are transparent windows through which you can see into the interior. He paints on these a slightly different inward-face image beneath the outward pointing image.

He appreciates the connections between math and art in his creations and draws largely from geometric patterns. He also likes to work with illusions to make each piece unique. His six point perspective has made him aware that he can take any cubical world and map it onto a sphere.

Dick is fascinated with doing spheres of the interiors of famous buildings around the world. He has done paintings of Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, the Paris Opera House, Notre Dame in Paris, St. Peter’s Cathedral, Stonehenge and the Parthenon. His sphere of the Pantheon is one of his favorites.

MORE ON DICK TERMES

Born November 7, 1941, in San Diego, California, Dick was raised in Spearfish, South Dakota. He was always painting and drawing as a child and decided to pursue his passion, obtaining a bachelor’s degree with majors in education and art in 1964 from Black Hills State University. He taught high school and middle school art and biology for two years in Klamath Falls, Oregon and art for third grade through 12th grade for two years in Sheridan, Wyoming. It was in 1968 that he conceived the idea for six point perspective and created his first sphere. He received a Master’s degree in art in 1969 from the University of Wyoming.

In 1971, he received a full-ride scholarship from Otis Art Institute in Los Angeles where he obtained a Master of Fine Arts with a degree in design. His work on spheres and perspective began to take form at Otis. He started receiving invitations to show his work in galleries and museums all over Southern California even before he received his MFA.

Dick returned to what he has considered his home - just outside of Spearfish. When he finished his Master’s thesis on the Termesphere®, he was an Associate Professor of Art at Black Hills State College for a year and a half. In 1972, he joined the South Dakota Arts Council where he met his wife, Markie Scholz, who is a puppeteer. The couple have two sons, Lang and Kabe. In 1992, he built the Termesphere® Gallery. He has since constructed other domes on the property as living quarters, studio, and a greenhouse.

While with the Council, he worked as an Artist in the Schools which allowed him to paint 25 murals around the state promoting art in different communities. He did some on his own or partnered with high school and college students. On the rest, he did only the finishing touches. Many of these murals such as Man and His Suns at Spearfish High School still exist today.

Dick has received a number of public art commissions including a piece which is now at the Sioux Falls Art Center. His work is also seen in homes, museums, and corporate headquarters worldwide. His one of a kind spherical paintings have been published in books internationally.

He has received lots of acclaim and awards for his work which is found in permanent collections throughout the world. You will find them in such sites as the Glasgow Science Center, the Science Centre Singapore, the Department of Mathematical Sciences at West Point Military Academy, and Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. He has had shows and sales in Japan, France, New York, Australia, and Singapore.

Dick has presented art and math workshops, seminars, and lectures in the U.S. and internationally. In Germany, he did eight years of workshops with the Defense Department schools. He did a 21-part series of drawing classes with South Dakota Public Broadcasting.

In 1999, he received the Governor’s Award for Distinction in Creative Achievement. He was honored as one of Black Hills State University’s 125 Most Distinguished Alumni in 2008 in commemoration of the school’s 125th anniversary. In 2014, Dick was installed in the South Dakota Hall of Fame in Chamberlain, South Dakota.

DETAILS

Termesphere® Gallery is open year round. During the summer, it is open days 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. while winter hours vary. There is no charge to visit the gallery. His phone number is (605) 642-4805. It is best to call ahead before coming to make sure Dick is around that day. The address is 1920 Christensen Drive in Spearfish.

SPEARFISH CANYON SCENIC BYWAY

Touted as the number one tourist attraction in the area, Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway is one of the most beautiful drives in the Black Hills. On this scenic 19-mile route, thousand-foot-high limestone palisades in shades of brown, pink, and grey tower to the right and left of Highway 14A as it twists through the gorge. Frank Lloyd Wright commented about it. He said, “Unique and unparalleled elsewhere in our country.”

Approximately 600 million years ago (Precambrian Era), the area was covered by a sea. Land masses appeared 30 to 60 million years ago (Paleocene and Oligocene Eras) as the sea subsided. As softer rock eroded away, drainages such as the Spearfish Canyon appeared.

The rock you see consists of three types. Deadwood Sandstone at the bottom is identified by its brown color. It ranges from 10 to 400 feet thick and is multi layered. Englewood Limestone in the middle is pink to red in color and 30 to 60 feet thick. The Paha Sapa limestone, the thickest layer (300 to 600 feet) is at the top. It is beige or tan with weathered grey areas in appearance.

Stop to admire Victoria’s Tower. It is located nine miles up the Canyon. It’s a large limestone face towering from the Canyon floor.

The Byway runs from Spearfish to Cheyenne Crossing and has been drawing tourists since 1893. Most people came in the 1890s via horseback or the Grand Island and Wyoming Central Railroad, a subsidiary of the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad. That line later merged into the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad. As early as 1913, automobiles traveled through the canyon on a route known as the “Black and Yellow Trail.”

The current highway follows this railroad grade which was abandoned after a massive flood in 1933 damaged it beyond repair. Much of the road was constructed directly on the old railroad bed. The railroad grade is still visible just below Bridal Falls.

The route includes three waterfalls. Bridal Veil Falls, which is 60-feet high, can be easily reached. It has its own pull-off and observation platform with signs about natural history and the railroad which once came through this area. It is 5.8 miles from the north entrance.

Its name reflects the shape of its water as it falls over the edge. This falls is best viewed during the spring when the winter snow melts. It slows considerably during the summer and fall. During the winter, it is popular with ice climbers. Hiking in this area is prohibited.

Located 15 miles southwest of Spearfish or about 14.5 miles west of Lead, Roughlock Falls is touted as one of the area’s most photographed spots. It consists of Spearfish Creek flowing down a chasm then tumbling off a 50-foot limestone ledge in a series of cascades. It got its name because pioneers traveling down the canyon would lower their wagons down this drop by roughlocking the wheels to prevent them from rolling freely.

The South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, and Parks operates the nature area where the falls is located. They have provided picnic areas, restrooms, and newly-improved, handicapped accessible walkways. The two-mile round trip trail begins near Spearfish Canyon Lodge which has spots for parking. Its one of the few places that birdwatchers can spot the American Dipper, a rare grey bird.

Fishing for trout is enjoyed by those visiting Spearfish Canyon. The trout aren’t native to South Dakota. They were brought to the Hills from Colorado by the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries at the end of the 1800s. They were and are still stocked out of Spearfish’s DC Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery. Feel free to visit the hatchery during the summer. At this 10-acre facility, you can feed trout from above and view them via underwater windows, visit the Von Bayer Museum of Fisheries History, tour the Booth home (first superintendent of the hatchery), and much more. To check out this fine facility, visit their web site.

According to a sign at Bridal Veil Falls, Spearfish Creek is the only place in South Dakota where the reproduction of rainbow trout now occurs naturally. Brown and brook trout also reproduce naturally throughout the Spearfish Creek Watershed.

Spearfish Canyon is a great location for other wildlife as well. The diverse plant life provides home for white-tailed and mule deer, porcupines, raccoons, squirrels, chipmunks, and beavers. Occasionally a bobcat, elk, bighorn sheep, mountain goat, or a yellow-bellied marmot are spotted. Two hundred species of birds reside in the Black Hills. Stay alert and you may view wild turkeys, bluejays, woodpeckers, cliff swallows, chickadees, and golden or bald eagles.

Spearfish Falls, located near the Savoy area, is another area to explore. Since the beginning of the 19th century, it has been a popular destination for tours.

Today’s hikers take a 3/4 mile trek to the 47-foot waterfall from the north side of the Latchstring Restaurant. There are two paths to take. The one to the left is regarded as easy. The one to the right, while more difficult, includes crossing over an old metal walking bridge. Hikers are warned to wear good shoes since the trail can be slippery. Want to skip the hike? Head for the overlook deck on the restaurant’s south side.

In 1917, this waterfall was turned off for a time. It water was diverted into several flumes from Spearfish Creek to a hydroelectric plant that powered operations for Lead’s Homestake Gold Mine until November 17, 2003. The Maurice Hydro Power Plant serves as a reminder of that operation. It’s located midway through the canyon.

Those who want more trails can explore the side canyons like Iron Creek or Eleventh Hour Gulch, so named because it only receives an hour of sunshine a day. Bicyclists like the road’s wide shoulders and uniform 3% grade. Bicycling Magazine named Spearfish Canyon as one of the top 50 scenic bike paths in the country. Rock climbing is also popular.

Touted as one of the most popular Spearfish Canyon hikes is the one mile trek round trip to Devils Bathtub. A waterfall leads into the swimming hole. Swimming is allowed but best to do when water levels aren’t low. The parking area for it is located on Cleopatra Place between Bridal Veil Falls and the curve for parking to hike 11th Hour Gulch.

Stop about three miles upstream from Spearfish Canyon Lodge, on Forest Road 222. Here several scenes from Dances with Wolves were filmed.

You can visit the Latchstring Restaurant and Cheyenne Crossing for meals. For shopping, check out the Cheyenne Crossing Store at one end of the canyon housing a gift shop and café. The store was a historic stage stop and is located about eight miles southwest of Lead at the intersection of U.S. Highways 13A and 85. For lodging, you can stay at Spearfish Canyon Lodge, Rimrock Cabins, Gun and Rod and Timron Campgrounds, and numerous cabins throughout the canyon.

There are more than 500 species of plants in Spearfish Canyon. The indigenous tribes used many of them for food, ceremonies, or medicinal purposes. Ornate plants are plentiful and you will find the Forget-Me-Not growing directly in Spearfish Creek. A sign at Bridal Veil Falls claims that many plants in the Black Hills cannot be found elsewhere for hundreds of miles.

Although the canyon is beautiful during any season, it is spectacular during the Fall when the yellows, golds, and reds of aspens, spruce, oak, and birch trees accent the ponderosa pines which dominate. The action normally peaks during the first week of October. However, with the elevation changing nearly 2,000 feet from one end of the canyon to the other and the weather, this date can vary.

Ever wonder how the name Black Hills ever came about? The needles of the ponderosa pine are flat while their topsides are designed for absorbing light. This makes the Black Hills look dark from a distance. The Sioux Indian Nation had a name for this. They called it Paha meaning hills and Sapa meaning black.

DETAILS

How to get there: At the northern end of the byway, take either Exit 10 or Exit 14 off of Interstate 90 to Spearfish to route 14A. At the southern end, take Highway 85 west from Lead/Deadwood. When you come to the Cheyenne Crossing junction, head north on 14A.

HIGH PLAINS WESTERN HERITAGE CENTER

The High Plains Western Heritage Center in Spearfish was the dream of two South Dakota ranchers, Harry Blair and Edgar (Slim) Gardner, both of whom served in the South Dakota legislature. Their idea was to preserve history - the places, people, times, and artifacts. By using art, photographs, and artifacts, they aimed to honor pioneering, cattle and sheep, rodeos, transportation, American Indians, and mining. They focused on five states: Nebraska, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, and North Dakota. Subjects were arranged by theme instead of by state.

The building is also interesting. At one time, before Oklahoma City became the location for the National Cowboy Hall of Fame, Spearfish was considered as a possible site. Both men were involved with this, too. According to the Museum’s Welcome Video, that facility’s design was inspired by the plans for the High Plains Western Heritage Center.

In 1974, the men organized the High Plains Heritage Society dedicated to preserving the “roots” of the five-state region. It was privately funded and nonprofit. They each contributed $125,000 to the building fund. Another Spearfish rancher, Jim Riggs, was instrumental in acquiring a 40-acre site located southeast of Spearfish for the Heritage Center. It opened September 1, 1989. Unfortunately, Slim never saw the new Center as he died of cancer in 1976.

Visitors find live Texas Longhorns grazing on the grounds. They can take a path to a homesteader’s log cabin, and the Crow Creek one room schoolhouse in use until the 1920's. They also have an opportunity to see several antique farm implements.

THE MAIN FLOOR

The interior housing 20,000 feet of exhibits and art on two floors is much more than a museum. Functioning as a thriving community cultural and education center, visitors find numerous programs take place throughout the year in the building’s Bruce Miller Theater. These range from musical entertainment to historical lectures. For a listing of events and to see the video on your computer, go to their web site.

The theater space is also dedicated to exhibits and a Welcome Movie providing an excellent overview of the museum’s highlights. You will see taxidermied specimens. A forty star flag represents that South Dakota was the 40th state to enter the Union. You can also see the last wolf that was shot in South Dakota. It was found north of Red Helm, South Dakota on the Horizon Ranch on January 27, 1945.

Veterans are considered very important people at this Center. The veteran’s display at the rear of the theater is an important element in this museum. In September, they hosted mostly Army and Navy veterans who had all gone through a select training at Fort Belvoir, Virginia during the “Cold War.” They were involved with The Army Nuclear Power Program (ANPP) that ran from about 1955 to 1977 under the auspices of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. They brought their wives and had many stories to share. In November, the Center will have its annual Veterans Day Tribute.

The transportation room area contains six vehicles including the stagecoach which ran between Spearfish and Deadwood until 1913. It was one of the last U.S. coaches still in use for full paying passengers. Visitors also see two surreys, including one made in 1904 by the Studebaker Company; a horse drawn grain wagon; a hearse; and a tourist wagon. In this area, visitors also discover what is touted as one of the country’s largest barbed wire collections.

The Native American display includes everything from two headdresses to clothing to a large collection of arrowheads. Of particular interest is a Ghost Dance shirt, a buckskin shirt made prior to 1850 adorned with porcupine quill work, and a women’s buckskin dress decorated with elk teeth. The display also includes a 50-70 Sharps rifle confiscated from a Native American following Wounded Knee.

At the fur trade display, one sees variety of tanned hides, old traps, and bullet making equipment. It also has knives and axe heads dating to the 1700s and hunting rifles the Native Americans received in exchange for hides.

A fashion display is in the Main Hall. These are wedding and society dresses from the late 1800s. Paintings by Carol Cox honoring women of the Old West are on view including Annie Oakley, Unsinkable Molly Brown, and Baby Doe Tabor.

Custer Hall relates the story of General George Custer’s expeditions in 1874 and 1876 into the Black Hills. Besides photographs, one sees a large collection of camp artifacts. This includes cutlery, horseshoes, tin cans, nails, and a champagne bottle. Of particular note is the actual Congressional Medal of Honor awarded to Private Peter Thompson for bravery at the Battle of the Little Big Horn. Despite being wounded in the hand and arm, he made trips outside the lines to obtain water for the wounded at the battle.

In the Cowboy Room, you’ll find many historic rifles and shotguns as well as a collection of old saddles. Three displays particularly stood out to me. You can see Tom Selleck’s chaps, saddle, and bridle made by Jerry Croft of Deadwood for the television movie Last Stand at Saber River. Another tells the story of 450 cowboys who, in 1902, drove 40,000 cattle back to western South Dakota from the Missouri River. It was the nation’s largest cattle drive on the High Plains. A hand carved, wooden diorama depicts the Strenuous Life painting by Charles Russell. I was told it took three years to make.

The rodeo is the state sport of South Dakota and the museum has a large room devoted to it. You can learn about rodeo events, the stars of the sport, and even trick riding. You’ll see photos, riggings, championship buckles, and saddles. One exhibit represents women in rodeo including photos of female riding and roping contestants from nearly 100 years ago. Historic items include chaps and a scarf worn by Casey Tibbs. Hailing from Fort Pierre, South Dakota, he was one of the most famous cowboys.

Discover the story of Tipperary. He was the toughest of the bucking broncs and threw 80 men before anyone could make a qualified run on him at a rodeo in 1920.According to the sign about it, a saloon keeper won the horse when he bet a local bronc rider he couldn’t ride Tipperary. The cowboy, who didn’t succeed, sat in the dust singing “It’s a long way to Tipperary.” The name caught on and the horse began a bucking career that lasted until 1928.

In Founders Hall, you can’t miss the spectacular 13 foot statue dedicated to all of the cowboys who worked the trail up from Texas. Its of Tennessee Vaughn, one of the first to drive cattle to the Dakota Territory. He worked for the Driskills, one of the largest outfits in West Texas for 18 years, running approximately 70,000 head of cattle. Vaughn developed a sterling reputation for treating the cowboys who worked for him properly and delivering cattle over the trails in better condition than any other hand.

You will also find bronze busts of the two men who founded this museum- Harry Blair and Edgar Gardner.

The Early Pioneer Room honors those who settled the region. It includes photographs and descriptions of early mining, forestry, farming and ranching, the sheep industry, and tourism. One display features Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane while another honors the Buffalo Soldiers. Learn about the Battle of Slim Buttes. Led by General George Crook on September 9 and 10, 1876, it was the first U.S. Army victory after the Battle of Little Bighorn.

UPPER LEVEL

The balcony showcases many Native American artifacts. These include bows and arrows, several pipes, and beautiful beadwork and leatherwork. Be sure to note the two winter counts. These are drawings on hide which depict the significant events in one year of the history of a band of Native Americans.

In the Shepherd’s Hall and Pioneer Kitchen, notice the pioneer kitchen implements, a loom, and large amount of saddles. The sheep industry is well represented with early shearing equipment and a cloth-covered sheep wagon. The sheep wagon was what the herder would call home. You’ll also see branding irons from many of the local ranches, brand books, and early religious and school related items. Many of the area’s ranching families have documented histories here.

Finally, head for Frontier Street and Hallway. You can walk into the saddle shop, see a representation of an early newspaper office, and view a blacksmith’s shop with its huge bellows. They also have a representation of a cowboy saloon.

DETAILS:

High Plains Western Heritage Center is located at 825 Heritage Drive in Spearfish. Their telephone number is (605) 642-9378. Hours are November through April, Tuesday through Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and Sunday 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Closed Mondays. During May through October, the hours are Monday through Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and Sunday 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. Admission is Adults (16 & older) $10, Ages 6-15 $3, under age 6 free.
The family rate is $22 (2 adults and any number of children under 17). It is a Blue Star Museum meaning military families can visit for no admission fee.