A $425,000 plan to revitalize Chief Plenty Coups State Park will help bring the story of the Chief and the Crow culture alive for Montanans and visitors.
"Public input will be an important part of planning these improvements," said Rich Furber, Plenty Coups State Parks manager.
Three public meetings: in Billings on Feb. 27 at 7 p.m. at the Billings FWP Regional Office, 2300 Lake Elmo Drive; at Crow Agency on Feb. 28 at 1 p.m. at Little Bighorn College; and Feb. 28 at 7 p.m. at Plenty Coups State Park will feature a bilingual presentation on the plan and opportunities to view detailed site plans, the messages and the media proposed for delivering the messages.
"We are working to completely revitalize the Park’s exhibits," Furber said. "The Crow culture past and present, and the powerful legacy of Chief Plenty Coups, will infuse the new exhibits. We’ll make use of cultural objects, historical photographs, interactive maps and multi-media technology." Also included in the new work are a fire suppression system for the Chief’s house and the Visitor Center, a basement exit for the Visitor Center to improve safety and improved restroom facilities.
Chief Plenty Coups State Park, located south of Billings, was designated as a priority State Park by the 1999 Montana State Legislature. Furber and the Parks staff are working with Nancy and John Hanna of Inside Outside, parks interpretation and exhibit planning professionals; the Chief Plenty Coups State Park Advisory Council; and Adrian Heidenreich, historical consultant and professor at Rocky Mountain College. Interviews with numerous educators and Chief Plenty Coups scholars are already underway.
"Since our first meeting last November, we’ve sought out members of the Crow community to participate in what amounts to rethinking our storytelling process," Furber said.
In addition to the Chief Plenty Coups State Park Advisory Council and various cultural leaders and elders, other participants include Kaneeta Redstar Harris, Tourism Coordinator for the Crow Tribe; Kitty Deernose, Museum Curator at the Little Bighorn Battlefield; Mardell Plainfeather, Extension Agent, Tourism, Crow Tribe; and Elias Goes Ahead, of the Crow Tribe; Montana State Parks personnel and Montana Historical Society personnel.
In reinvigorating the Park’s exhibits and public materials, one of the project goals is to record oral history interviews with tribal elders. "Many of the elders who know the old stories and who have knowledge of the cultural traditions are passing on," Furber said. "We are very hopeful we’ll be able to capture some of the elders’ stories on video and CD and to offer them as a feature of the new exhibits."
A second opportunity for public review is set for Aug. 3 during the Chief Plenty Coups Day of Honor, a traditional event held at Plenty Coups State Park. Exhibit plans and designs will be available for public review at that time.
The public may comment at any time on the improvement project throughout the planning process by calling Chief Plenty Coups State Park at 406-252-1289 or by email to plentycoups@plentycoups.org.
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