• Contested territories
  • Claimed by The Sioux Nation and the United States
  • Area 21.824 km²
  • Population 125.000

The Black Hills are the oldest mountain range in the United States, and home to the largest dispute between the US government and Native Americans. The dispute stems from the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie which awarded the Black Hills to the Sioux Nation. Shortly after, gold was discovered and the United States changed the treaty to deny the Sioux rights to the land. In 1980, the US Supreme Court ruled the move to be illegal and awarded the Sioux $106 million. However, the payment, now worth over $1.3 billion, has been blocked by part of the Sioux Nation claiming the land was never for sale. The battle over the Black Hills has been carved into the granite of the mountains themselves. Mount Rushmore displays the heads of four famous US Presidents, the memorial to Native American icon Crazy Horse is still under construction.