Native Americans | Page 49

Bison jump site at Blue Mounds State Park

Bison jump site at Blue Mounds State Park, 1995.

Scale drawing of the world’s largest peace pipe

Scale drawing of the world’s largest peace pipe, ca. 1998.

Scale drawing of the world’s largest peace pipe installed on the site of the Rock Island Depot

Scale drawing of the world’s largest peace pipe installed on the site of the Rock Island Depot, ca. 1998.

World’s Largest Peace Pipe during installation

The world’s largest peace pipe, photographed during installation next to the Rock Island Depot in Pipestone, 1998.

World’s Largest Peace Pipe

The world’s largest peace pipe, installed next to the Rock Island Depot in Pipestone. Photographed by Flickr user Josh Mattson, August 15, 2009.

The world's largest peace pipe began with a vision shared by three spiritual people: one Lakota and two Anishinaabe. The pipe stands on the grounds of the historic Rock Island Railroad depot near the entrance to the Pipestone National Monument, home to the Keepers of the Sacred Tradition of Pipemakers. The location of the giant peace pipe is significant; the pipestone quarry nearby is known as "the crossroads of the Indian world." The soft red stone from the quarry has been used by American Indians for thousands of years to create ceremonial peace pipes.