Most people who are familiar with the Black Hills have seen – or at the very least – heard of Crazy Horse Memorial, near Custer. The memorial is a work in progress and once finished, will be the largest sculpture in the world.

Crazy Horse Memorial was created by sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski, who died in 1982. His family continues the work on the mountain sculpture today.

Although known primarily for the enormous Crazy Horse Memorial project, Ziolkowski has another sculpture on display in the Black Hills. About an hour north, in downtown Deadwood, is a much smaller work of art by Ziolkowski – a bust of James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok.

Located next to Deadwood Dick’s hotel, between Sherman and Miller Streets, the Wild Bill bust is little-known and easily missed by most visitors. The bust was originally a gift from Ziolkowski to Deadwood businessman George Hunter back in 1951

Hunter and Ziolkowski met shortly after the sculptor arrived in the Black Hills in 1947. Hunter was reportedly one of the earliest supporters of both the idea and the financial needs of Crazy Horse Memorial.

As a gift of thanks for his support, Ziolkowski carved Hunter the large bust of Wild Bill, which Hunter then donated to the city of Deadwood. The site where the bust currently sits was chosen since it is directly below Mount Moriah Cemetary – where the famous lawman is buried. The site of the bust is also argued by some to be the location of Hickok’s original camp when he first arrived in Deadwood.

The sculpture itself is nearly three and a half-feet tall and is mounted on a permanent base that raises it about 8-feet off the ground. It’s certainly no 600-foot mountain carving, but it is a good example of the detailed work that Ziolkowski was capable of.