As she discussed the cultural meanings of Heart Mountain last week, professor and writer Mary Keller made an interesting observation: Residents can be born and raised in the Big Horn Basin without ever knowing the local landmark's significance to American Indians.Their history is intertwined with geographical names in the area —Chief Joseph Highway, Absaroka Mountains, Shoshone National Forest — yet the historical roots of such names often are forgotten.With November comes American Indian Heritage Month, and local, regional and national events will highlight the history of indigenous tribes. Locally, Northwest College and the Park County Library will host educational lectures this week. Parkside Elementary fourth-graders already learned more about American Indian culture when their class welcomed a member of the Crow tribe to speak last week.Year-round, the Buffalo Bill Historical Center offers insight into Native American history through its Plains Indian Museum.In the Big Horn Basin, residents are surrounded with American Indian history.A few years ago, Crow elder Joe Medicine Crow talked to children in the area about his tribe's history with Heart Mountain, encouraging them that “they ought to know something about that mountain, because they were going to live maybe their whole lives near it.”The iconic peak is more than a local landmark —its story runs deep in the cultures of those who have inhabited the Basin throughout the centuries.

As she discussed the cultural meanings of Heart Mountain last week, professor and writer Mary Keller made an interesting observation: Residents can be born and raised in the Big Horn Basin without ever knowing the local landmark's significance to American Indians.

Their history is intertwined with geographical names in the area —Chief Joseph Highway, Absaroka Mountains, Shoshone National Forest — yet the historical roots of such names often are forgotten.

With November comes American Indian Heritage Month, and local, regional and national events will highlight the history of indigenous tribes.

Locally, Northwest College and the Park County Library will host educational lectures this week. Parkside Elementary fourth-graders already learned more about American Indian culture when their class welcomed a member of the Crow tribe to speak last week.

Year-round, the Buffalo Bill Historical Center offers insight into Native American history through its Plains Indian Museum.

In the Big Horn Basin, residents are surrounded with American Indian history.

A few years ago, Crow elder Joe Medicine Crow talked to children in the area about his tribe's history with Heart Mountain, encouraging them that “they ought to know something about that mountain, because they were going to live maybe their whole lives near it.”

The iconic peak is more than a local landmark —its story runs deep in the cultures of those who have inhabited the Basin throughout the centuries.