Keystone

Keystone offers two distinct themes for planning your trip: local history and the nearby Mount Rushmore National Memorial. Keystone is the town closest to the Memorial; the monument is approximately 3.2 km southwest of Keystone in Pennington County. This lets you decide whether to focus your stay on historic sites, museum exhibits, or the Memorial.

Keystone’s mining and local history

The Keystone Historical Museum houses early mining tools, historical photographs, rock and mineral collections, and memorabilia related to Carrie Ingalls. The different collection areas offer insights into various aspects of local history. Keystone’s old schoolhouse offers another historical perspective: it was built in 1899 and served as the town’s main school until 1988.

Those interested in the town’s history can also take a historical walking tour of Keystone with 21 stops, offered by the Keystone Area Historical Society. The Big Thunder Gold Mine was discovered in 1892 by two German immigrants and offers mine tours. The National Presidential Wax Museum displays more than 100 life-size wax figures of notable people from American history.

Mount Rushmore and Borglum’s work

The granite mountain sculpture at Mount Rushmore National Memorial is dedicated to George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. In Keystone, the Rushmore Borglum Story adds to this theme: it opened on September 7, 2026, and shows Gutzon Borglum’s work, from blasting the rock to depicting the “Seated Lincoln.” Visitors can stand next to a life-size, scale replica of Lincoln’s eye from Mount Rushmore.

The historical attractions therefore offer different perspectives: the Keystone Historical Museum focuses on collections about local history, while the Rushmore Borglum Story covers Borglum’s work on Mount Rushmore. The National Presidential Wax Museum, in turn, displays figures from American history as life-size wax figures.

Scenic train ride, seasonal attractions, and mini golf

The 1880 Train offers a narrated, two-hour, 20-mile round trip between Hill City and Keystone. Both the duration and the distance are specified here to help you plan. Seasonal attractions at Rushmore Tramway Adventures include an Aerial Adventure Park with treetop obstacle courses and the 2,000-foot Alpine Slide.

Another activity is Holy Terror Mini Golf in Keystone. The 18-hole course goes more than 50 feet up and back down a steep hillside. The course’s name refers to the last gold mine that was still active in Keystone. The train ride, Alpine Slide, and mini golf are very different activities: a round trip, a toboggan run, and a course with several holes.

The Keystone Historical Museum’s seasonal daily visiting period runs from May 1 through September 15. Before your trip, check whether these dates apply to your travel plans.

Discover more destinations: Hill City, Rapid City.

For the main travel overview: Pennington.