WESTERN PANORAMA 1947

Created in 1947 to document the Burks family's trip across the U.S. west, this well made home movie "Western Panorama" features title cards throughout. We don't know anything about the filmmaker or this family -- but the movie is great. The film begins somewhere in Nebraska, and then shows tourist attractions and natural features in South Dakota and Wyoming, including Mt. Rushmore, Yellowstone and the Tetons. The family apparently consisted of a husband, wife, and their son who looks to be a pre-teen. Scenes include: :29 South Dakota State Line 1:18 Mitchell Corn Palace (The Corn Palace, commonly advertised as The World's Only Corn Palace and the Mitchell Corn Palace, is a multi-purpose arena/facility located in Mitchell, South Dakota. ) 1:51 Golden Pheasant Auto Court 2:20 sign for Badlands National Monument, and images of the Badlands 4:00 Black Hills of South Dakota 4:34 entrance sign for Mt. Rushmore National Memorial 5:00 shots of Mt. Rushmore 5:44 Custer State Park, Paradise Gates, Entrance to Needles sign 6:41 Sign for Lead, home of the Homestake Gold Mine (Lead, South Dakota is the home of the Homestake Gold Mine, which was the longest continually operating gold mine in the Western Hemisphere from 1876 to 2001.) 6:50 shots of town of Lead. 7:27 mine tour including elevator dropping tourists into the mine shaft 7:42 Spearfish Canyon (Spearfish Canyon Nature Area includes the Roughlock Falls, Spearfish Falls and the Savoy Pond area. The canyon is considered one of the most beautiful locations in the Black Hills). 7:52 Latchstring Inn and the Latchstring Restaurant, located within walking distance of Spearfish Canyon Lodge 8:37 row boating on a small lake 9:11 Wyoming state line 9:25 Approaching Devil's Tower 9:46 Devil's Tower 10:01 Colony of Prairie Dogs 10:39 Big Horn Mountains in distance 11:07 trying to cool down the family car, a Buick 1938 Special Coupe, which has overheated due to climbing the pass 11:25 Powder River Pass, elevation 9666 feet (The pass is in the Bighorn Mountains in Wyoming traversed by U.S. Highway 16. It is the highest point on US 16. It is between the towns of Buffalo and Ten Sleep.) 12:00 Sign in Shoshone Canyon requesting that visitors respect the land and don't put up advertising signs or billboards 12:57 Shoshone Falls Dam, which diverts water for hydropower generation. 13:20 Yellowstone Park, East Entrance 13:50 Old Faithful Geyser 14:45 Vault Geyser 15:42 Families interact with bears that come up to their automobiles 18:10 Lower Yellowstone Falls 18:26 sign for Mt. Sheridan and the Tetons 18:36 The Teton Range 19:05 Moran, Wyoming gas station 19:26 hiking to Amphitheater Lake, a distance of 7 hours 19:50 sign for the Teton Glacier 21:40 snowball fight on the hike to Amphitheater Lake 22:36 Chapel of the Transfiguration Church. (This is a small log chapel in Grand Teton National Park, in the community of Moose. The chapel was sited and built to frame a view of the Cathedral Group of peaks in a large window behind the altar.) 23:05 the family takes a break to visit horses and go for a ride at the Teton Lodge Saddle Horse corral 23:27 Mrs. Burks meets a mule or donkey 23:37 Mrs. Burks mounts a horse 23:50 Her son also mounts a horse 25:20 a cowboy does some high speed horseback riding and shows off for the family 25:26 log cabin, probably part of the Teton Lodge 26:07 Shoshone Indian Reservation 26:56 wild horses along the road inside the reservation 27:03 small town's main street as viewed from a distance 27:10 sign for the Oregon Trail and the Continental Divide at South Pass 27:40 Independence Rock on the Oregon Trail 28:20 Fort Laramie National Monument 29:09 Nebraska State Line 29:20 Father and son repair a flat tire on the Buick 29:28 Returning home, after 1000 mile trek, the family is greeted by an excited dog, and father pats the hood of the car which performed well except at Powder River Pass 29:50 The End