The Dakota Badlands, considered unsuitable for ranching and farming, had been home for Native Americans dating back 11,000 years. The Great Sioux Nation, specifically the Oglala Lakota had lived in the Badlands region for 150 years. The Lakota hunted small game and found the Badlands Wall a convenient lookout, a high ridge to spot their prey. By the late 1800s, the Natives were moved to reservations just to the south.
     Almost a quarter of a million acres were established as a national monument in 1939. The nearby Stronghold District of Badlands National Park was converted to a practice bombing range in 1942, and the Oglala Sioux were moved again. Today the area is littered with corroded shells and unexploded ordnance, giving a new meaning to the word badlands. Clean-up efforts remain an ongoing project.
     This bright Badlands view, found along the Badlands National Park drive, shows off one of the regions many colorful buttes and pinnacles. Sixty-four thousand acres of the park's territory is designated as official wilderness area.