Borglum was a child of Mormon polygamy. His father, Jens Møller Haugaard Børglum (1839–1909), came from the village of Børglum in northwestern Denmark. He had two wives when he lived in Idaho: Gutzon's mother, Christina Mikkelsen Børglum (1847–1871), and her sister Ida, who was Jens's first wife.
How did Borglum convince the government to fund Mount Rushmore?
Borglum arranged a meeting with the United States Secretary of the Treasury Andrew Mellon to secure his support for the project and the passage of a funding bill, the Mount Rushmore National Memorial Act. Borglum was able to convince Secretary Mellon of the importance of the project and gain his support for funding the entire cost.
Who designed Mount Rushmore and why?
Designing the monument. Senator Peter Norbeck of South Dakota approved the proposal, and federal funding helped the project. Robinson asked architect and sculptor Gutzon Borglum to sculpt and design the monument. Borglum decided to use Mount Rushmore for the sculpture, since it seemed to be the easiest and most stable of the cliffs to work on.
How much did Coolidge spend to build Mount Rushmore?
In 1929, during the last days of his presidency, Coolidge signed legislation appropriating $250,000 in federal funds for the Rushmore project and creating the Mount Rushmore National Memorial Commission to oversee its completion.
How long did it take to build Mount Rushmore?
Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor of the memorial. The construction of Mount Rushmore National Memorial took 14 years, from 1927 to 1941.
Who funded the Mount Rushmore?
Borglum believed that the sculpture should have broader appeal and chose the four presidents. Peter Norbeck, U.S. senator from South Dakota, sponsored the project and secured federal funding. Construction began in 1927; the presidents' faces were completed between 1934 and 1939.
Did the government fund Mount Rushmore?
President Coolidge signed the bill authorizing government matching funds up to $250,000. The bill also called for the creation of a 12 member Mount Rushmore National Memorial Commission, with members appointed by the President.
Where did the money come from for Mt Rushmore?
In 1929, during the last days of his presidency, Coolidge signed legislation appropriating $250,000 in federal funds for the Rushmore project and creating the Mount Rushmore National Memorial Commission to oversee its completion.
How much did it cost to construct Mount Rushmore?
$989,992.3252. Funding ran out and the monument was declared complete on October 31, 1941. 53. Overall, the project cost $989,992.32 and took 14 years to finish.
Is Mount Rushmore on Indian land?
Built on sacred Native American land and sculpted by a man with ties to the Ku Klux Klan, Mount Rushmore National Memorial was fraught with controversy even before it was completed 79 years ago on October 31, 1941.
Who was supposed to be the 5th president on Mount Rushmore?
List of United States Presidents with their years in office and party affiliation:1. George Washington1789 - 17972. John Adams1797 - 1801Federalist3. Thomas Jefferson1801 - 1809Democratic - Republican4. James Madison1809 - 1817Democratic - Republican5. James Monroe1817 - 1825Democratic - Republican41 more rows•May 23, 2022
How many years did it take to build Mount Rushmore?
14 yearsThe 60-foot bust memorial was the vision of sculptor Gutzon Borglum and took 14 years to complete. From 1927 to 1941 men and women worked to blast and carve the faces of Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln into the South Dakota mountain.
Why was Mt Rushmore not finished?
He imagined brass cabinets that would hold the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. His plan never came to fruition even though workers started a 70-foot-long cavern behind Lincoln's head for the Hall of Records. Borglum died mid-project and the money ran out, so the project was abandoned.
Will Mount Rushmore ever be finished?
“Additions are not possible for two reasons. “First, the rock that surrounds the sculpted faces is not suitable for additional carving. When Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor of Mount Rushmore died in 1941, his son Lincoln Borglum closed down the project and stated that no more carvable rock existed.”
Is there a 5th face on Mount Rushmore?
Is there a fifth face on Mount Rushmore? There is no secret fifth face carved into Mount Rushmore. However, for over 20 years, visitors were greeted by Ben Black Elk, unofficially called the fifth face of Mount Rushmore.
What is the problem with Mount Rushmore?
Mount Rushmore's Controversy Continues In the 1920s, the Lakota tribes sued the U.S. government for land theft. This new form of battle lasted for decades. In 1980, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. had unlawfully taken the Black Hills territory from the Lakota. The Court granted them $17.1 million in damages.
Is there a room behind Mount Rushmore?
Mount Rushmore has a secret room that no one can enter. Located behind the facade of Abraham Lincoln, sculptor Gutzon Borglum designed the chamber to hold information for visitors about the monument and information of America's history from 1776 to 1906.
Is the Crazy Horse monument government funded?
“Crazy Horse Memorial does not accept any government funding. We are sustained through admissions and private, charitable gifts.” Native nations provide non-monetary support as well. The Memorial's Tribal Flags Collection, started in 1982 with a flag from the Oglala Sioux Tribe, now numbers 138.
Will Mount Rushmore ever be finished?
“Additions are not possible for two reasons. “First, the rock that surrounds the sculpted faces is not suitable for additional carving. When Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor of Mount Rushmore died in 1941, his son Lincoln Borglum closed down the project and stated that no more carvable rock existed.”
Why were the presidents chosen for Mount Rushmore?
Gutzon Borglum selected these four presidents because from his perspective, they represented the most important events in the history of the United States. Would another artist at that time, or perhaps a modern artist choose differently?
Will Crazy Horse monument ever be finished?
Ultimately, the monument remains incomplete, and is actually not based on any known imagery of Crazy Horse — but an artistic representation of the man. If finished, it will be the second-largest monument in the world — behind only the Statue of Unity in India.
Why was Mount Rushmore built?
Doane Robinson of the South Dakota Historical Society wanted a monument to be built in South Dakota in order to help the economy of the state by attracting tourism. In 1923, he proposed that this monument should be built from the granite cliffs in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Senator Peter Norbeck of South Dakota approved the proposal, and federal funding helped the project. Robinson asked architect and sculptor Gutzon Borglum to sculpt and design the monument. Borglum decided to use Mount Rushmore for the sculpture, since it seemed to be the easiest and most stable of the cliffs to work on.
Why did Borglum choose Mount Rushmore?
Having decided on the location of the sculpture, Borglum decided to make the monument of four presidents of the United States. He chose the two most famous presidents in American history, ...
What tools were used to build Mount Rushmore?
Workers used harnesses attached to steel cables while sculpting. Mount Rushmore before construction around 1905. A few hundred workers, most of whom were miners, sculptors, or rock climbers, used dynamite, jackhammers, and chisels to remove material from the mountain. A stairway was constructed to the top of the mountain, where ropes were fixed.
What were the accommodations for tourists while Theodore Roosevelt was building his head?
While Theodore Roosevelt's head was being constructed, accommodations for tourists were being built, including plumbing, lighting, and a visitor center. Not finding suitable rock, the sculptors cut farther back into the mountain, causing concerns about how far they were cutting.
Where was Lincoln relocated?
Lincoln was relocated to the area where Borglum intended to include an 80-by-100-foot inscription in the shape of the Louisiana Purchase. To replace the inscription, Borglum conceived another grand addition to the monument of similar proportions: the Hall of Records.
Who is the sculptor of the Memorial?
Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor of the memorial.
Where is the Presidential Trail?
The Presidential Trail, a walking trail and boardwalk, starts at Grandview Terrace and travels through the forests to the sculptor's studio, now a museum with information about the construction of the monument and the tools used by workers.
Why was Mount Rushmore created?
Mount Rushmore was conceived with the intention of creating a site to lure tourists , representing "not only the wild grandeur of its local geography but also the triumph of modern civilization over that geography through its anthropomorphic representation.".
Why was Mount Rushmore chosen as the site of the sculpture?
The durable granite erodes only 1 inch (25 mm) every 10,000 years, thus was more than sturdy enough to support the sculpture and its long-term exposure.
How many people were carved on Mount Rushmore?
The carving of Mount Rushmore involved the use of dynamite, followed by the process of "honeycombing", a process where workers drill holes close together, allowing small pieces to be removed by hand. In total, about 450,000 short tons (410,000 t) of rock were blasted off the mountainside. The image of Thomas Jefferson was originally intended to appear in the area at Washington's right, but after the work there was begun, the rock was found to be unsuitable, so the work on the Jefferson figure was dynamited, and a new figure was sculpted to Washington's left.
What are the animals that live on Mount Rushmore?
The flora and fauna of Mount Rushmore are similar to those of the rest of the Black Hills region of South Dakota. Birds including the turkey vulture, golden eagle, bald eagle, red-tailed hawk, swallows and white-throated swifts fly around Mount Rushmore, occasionally making nesting spots in the ledges of the mountain. Smaller birds, including songbirds, nuthatches, woodpeckers and flycatchers inhabit the surrounding pine forests. Terrestrial mammals include the mouse, least chipmunk, red squirrel, skunk, porcupine, raccoon, beaver, badger, coyote, bighorn sheep, bobcat, elk, mule deer, yellow-bellied marmot, and American bison. The striped chorus frog, western chorus frog, and northern leopard frog also inhabit the area, along with several species of snake . Grizzly Bear Brook and Starling Basin Brook, the two streams in the memorial, support fish such as the longnose dace and the brook trout. Mountain goats are not indigenous to the region. Those living near Mount Rushmore are descendants of a tribe that Canada gifted to Custer State Park in 1924, which later escaped.
How much rock was blasted off Mount Rushmore?
In total, about 450,000 short tons (410,000 t) of rock were blasted off the mountainside.
When was the Mount Rushmore Memorial stamp issued?
On August 11, 1952 , the U.S. Post Office issued the Mount Rushmore Memorial 3-cent commemorative stamp on the 25th anniversary of the dedication of the Mount Rushmore National Memorial. On January 2, 1974, a 26-cent airmail stamp depicting the monument was also issued.
When was Mount Rushmore listed on the National Register of Historic Places?
On October 15, 1966 , Mount Rushmore was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
What did Robinson envision Mount Rushmore?
Robinson imagined Mount Rushmore as a thing of value, a means of encouraging a tourist industry and stabilizing the volatile agricultural economy of his state . He cared considerably less about the artistic and interpretative rationale of the project. Roosevelt’s popularity and Norbeck’s conviction that his presence would attract wealthier patrons persuaded Robinson to go along with the plan.
Who supported the two man memorial?
Eventually, Robinson supported only a two-man memorial, with Washington and Lincoln. Borglum then pushed to include Jefferson. “In a flurry of excitement, Borglum even floated the idea of adding Theodore Roosevelt, Grover Cleveland, and William McKinley, a second tier of presidential greats,” writes Cullinane. “If the donations and workload permitted, he hoped to add their faces to the mountain.”
What is the book Theodore Roosevelt's Ghost about?
Michael Patrick Cullinane’s fascinating new book Theodore Roosevelt’s Ghost: The History and Memory of an American Icon contains an interesting and insightful historical anecdote from the mid-1920s about the unavoidable practicalities of fundraising, and that which can result from the necessary concerns about them.
Did the Roosevelt Memorial Association decline?
While the already-inundated Roosevelt Memorial Association actually went on to decline supporting the project – for which substantial federal-government support was then successfully sought – the funding fretting of Robinson, Borglum, and Norbeck, and their project planning on the basis of it, will be quite familiar to those nonprofit board members and directors of development among us today. They should be comforted in knowing they are not, and probably never have been, alone in history. And all of us should perhaps do them the favor of noting the results of such practical concerns.
Who dedicated the head of Mount Rushmore?
Roosevelt. In September 1937, Lincol n’s head was dedicated, while the fourth and final head–that of FDR’s fifth cousin, Theodore Roosevelt–was dedicated in July 1939. Gutzon Borglum died in March 1941, and it was left to his son Lincoln to complete the final details of Mount Rushmore in time for its dedication ceremony on October 31 of that year.
When did Borglum visit Mount Rushmore?
During a second visit to the Black Hills in August 1925 , Borglum identified Mount Rushmore as the desired site of the sculpture. Local Native Americans and environmentalists voiced their opposition to the project, deeming it a desecration of Sioux heritage as well as the natural landscape.
What is the name of the mountain that Rushmore climbed?
When Rushmore asked a local man the name of a nearby mountain, he reportedly replied that it never had a name before, but from now on would be known as Rushmore Peak (later Rushmore Mountain or Mount Rushmore).
What are the faces of the Presidents on Mount Rushmore?
Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt. The 60-foot high faces were shaped from the granite rock face between 1927 and 1941, and represent one of the world’s largest pieces of sculpture, as well as one of America’s most popular tourist attractions. To many Native Americans, however, Mount Rushmore represents a desecration of lands considered sacred by the Lakota Sioux, the original residents of the Black Hills region who were displaced by white settlers and gold miners in the late 19th century.
How many people visit Mount Rushmore every year?
The National Park Service, which maintains Mount Rushmore, records upwards of 2 million visitors every year. Meanwhile, many Sioux activists have called for the monument to be taken down, even as they continue to protest what they view as illegal U.S. possession of their ancestral lands.
How much rock was removed from Mount Rushmore?
Some 400 workers removed around 450,000 tons of rock from Mount Rushmore, which still remains in a heap near the base of the mountain. Though it was arduous and dangerous work, no lives were lost during the completion of the carved heads.
Where is Mount Rushmore?
Mount Rushmore, located just north of what is now Custer State Park in theBlack Hills National Forest, was named for the New York lawyer Charles E. Rushmore, who traveled to the Black Hills in 1885 to inspect mining claims in the region. When Rushmore asked a local man the name of a nearby mountain, he reportedly replied that it never had a name before, but from now on would be known as Rushmore Peak (later Rushmore Mountain or Mount Rushmore).
How much of Mount Rushmore was carved?
The 70th anniversary of the completion of the South Dakota monument prompts a look back at what it took to create it. Ninety percent of Mount Rushmore was carved using dynamite. (Paul A. Souders / Corbis) smithsonianmag.com. October 30, 2011.
Why did Borglum sculpt his portraits into the granite of Mount Rushmore?
Borglum was of the mindset that American art should be “…built into, cut into, the crust of this earth so that those records would have to melt or by wind be worn to dust before the record…could, as Lincoln said, ‘perish from the earth.’” When he carved his presidential portraits into the stable granite of Mount Rushmore, he fully intended for the memorial to endure, like Stonehenge, long past people’s understanding of it.
What mountain did Borglum explore?
A year later, in 1925, Borglum scouted the area surrounding Harney Peak for a mountain or piece of granite that was solid enough to hold a figure. “As an artist, he was very interested in light and making sure that the morning sunrise hit the face of the granite,” says Bracewell. A state forester led Borglum on horseback to three mountains he thought would be appropriate—Old Baldy, Sugarloaf and finally Mount Rushmore.
How often does Mount Rushmore erode?
At its going rate, Mount Rushmore erodes only one inch every 10,000 years. Borglum was the work’s sculptor and its first conservator. He and his crew sealed natural cracks in the mountain with a mixture of linseed oil and granite dust. Today, a repair crew on staff at Mount Rushmore patches cracks with a silicone-based caulking material on an annual basis.
How tall is Mount Rushmore?
From all accounts, it seems that Borglum fell for Mount Rushmore at first sight. Its 400-foot high and 500-foot wide east-facing wall would serve as the perfect carving block, according to the sculptor. Hours after he laid eyes on it, Borglum told the Rapid City Journal that there was “no piece of granite comparable to it in the United States.”
How did Borglum make the statue of Confederate leaders?
But at Mount Rushmore, Borglum mounted a flat-panel protractor on each of the presidents’ heads with a large boom and a plumb bomb dangling from the boom. He had a similar device on a model. “His crew took thousands of measurements on the model and then went up to the mountain and translated it times 12 to recreate those measurements on the mountain,” says Bracewell. In red paint, they marked off certain facial features, what needed to be carved and how deep. To remove the remaining three to five inches of granite, the carvers used a honeycomb method. They pounded small holes into the stone using jackhammers and with a hammer and chisel broke off the honeycomb pieces. “They would just kind of pop off because the holes were close together,” says Bracewell. Then, the crew used a bumper tool with a rotating, multi-diamond drill bit head to buff the presidents’ skin smooth. When all was said and done, 800 million pounds of rock had been removed.
What was the name of the land that the Lakota occupied?
The Treaty of Fort Laramie, hashed out between the United States and the Lakota in 1868, declared the Black Hills to be Lakota land. But, in the 1870s, at the behest of President Ulysses S. Grant, a small army led by Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer occupied the region. Gold was struck, and a rush of panhandlers began to illegally settle the area. The Great Sioux War erupted in 1876, and by 1877, an act of Congress forced the defeated Lakota to surrender their land.
Who built Mount Rushmore?
Mount Rushmore is built on Native American land and was sculpted by someone with ties to the KKK. Despite it being an incredible human achievement, should it be removed?
Why did Borglum choose Mount Rushmore?
He chose Mount Rushmore, a grander location, partly because it faced southeast and enjoyed maximum exposure to the sun. Borglum said upon seeing Mount Rushmore, "America will march along that skyline.".
Was Borglum hired by the UDC?
No, you’re thinking of Stone Mountain, which was originally commissioned to the same sculptor. Borglum was a Klanner and hired by the UDC for a commemoration of the Confederacy and the Klan, but that was for Stone Mountain, not “Rushmore”.
Did the sculptures of the KKK have ties to the KKK?
NO, and stop with all the silliness. The gentleman who sculptured it had ties to the KKK but that’s about it.
Did the Klan want to see Abraham Lincoln honored?
Yes, because the Klan ADORED Abraham Lincoln, and wanted nothing more than to see him honored and acclaimed by millions of tourists.
Did the US keep the land after all the gold was gone?
After all he Gold was gone, US still kept the land. In the 20th Century, South Dakota want a tourist trap to bring people in.
Did we kick them out of the land?
No, we kicked them of the land because there was gold there. And one thing about Americans of 1800, they would dig up their own mothers if they though there was gold.
Who was the chief sculptor of Mount Rushmore?
Rushmore’s chief sculptor was John Gutzon de la Mothe Borglum, better known as Gutzon Borglum. Borglum was evidently extremely friendly with deeply unsavory people. For example, the “Mount Rushmore” project was funded in part by the Ku Klux Klan:
Who took pictures of Mount Rushmore?
In 2015 , LIFE ‘s sibling publication TIME profiled Bill Groethe, who has been taking photographs of the stone face that became Mount Rushmore since its inception. Posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Reddit showed “Mount Rushmore before carving,” typically eliciting claims that native lands had been defaced for the monument.
What is Mount Rushmore before carving?
Images labeled “Mount Rushmore before carving” seemed to follow a conversational pattern on social media, in which the latter caption and image was shared and sparked claims that the image showed a natural rock formation that had been called Six Grandfathers, it was sacred to the Lakota people, and that it was originally preserved for indigenous Americans under perpetual treaty.
Why were the Six Grandfathers destroyed?
The Six Grandfathers was destroyed to create a monument to colonizers after the Black Hills were stolen when gold was found. https://t.co/2VXLfeFe8X.
When was Mount Rushmore stolen?
The underlying history is both far more detailed and nuanced, but no less reflective of that claim. In fact, the Supreme Court ruled in 1980 that the lands on which Mount Rushmore stands were stolen illegally from the Lakota peoples when an 1868 treaty was violated.
What is the rock that the Six Grandfathers carved into?
A photograph shows "Six Grandfathers," a natural rock formation later stolen from indigenous Americans and carved into what is now known as "Mount Rushmore.".
When was the Black Hills bill defeated?
The bill was defeated in 1987. In 1990 further legislation over the Black Hills claim was defeated on Capitol Hill. South Dakota Senator Tom Daschle (Dem.) established the Open Hills Association in his home state, an organization dedicated to fighting future attempts by the Sioux to regain the Paha Sapa.
What is the significance of Mount Rushmore?
What is the Mountain’s Significance for Native Americans? Mount Rushmore is part of the Black Hills mountain range in South Dakota. Sculptor Gutzon Borglum started work on the monument in 1927 and completed it in 1941. The structure shows the faces of American presidents George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Theodore Roosevelt.
Why did Grant push the Lakota into a corner?
Grant began with rough diplomacy, pushing Lakota chiefs into a corner in 1875 when they came to the White House to protest shortages of government rations for their people, while miners poured into the hills at the same time.
Why is it called Six Grandfathers Mountain?
Before it was called Six Grandfathers Mountain, it was called Cougar Mountain (Igmu Tanka Paha) because of many cougars or mountain lions living in the vicinity. Then around the early part of 1870, an experience by a Lakota medicine man changed the name to Six Grandfathers because of the six outcrops of the mountain and a dream or a vision.
What did the Lakota see in the Black Hills?
Douville described how the Lakota also view a section of the Black Hills as the “center of our world,” where they conduct their worship, especially during the summer solstice to “welcome back all life.” It was also a place that sustained life, and a game reserve they tapped in times of hunger.
Why did Grant order the army not to protect local tribes?
The meme’s claim that Grant “secretly ordered the Army not to protect local tribes” could be referring to the Army’s halfhearted efforts in stopping prospectors for gold. While the Army initially tried to enforce the 1868 treaty, soldiers eventually “ [threw] up their hands” according to John Taliaferro, author of “Great White Fathers: The Story of the Obsessive Quest to Create Mount Rushmore.”
When did the monuments in Minneapolis get taken down?
Amid nationwide protests after the May 25, 2020, killing of a Black man, George Floyd, in the custody of a white police officer in Minneapolis, Confederate monuments were taken down ...
Who named the mountain in the Lakota?
Victor Douville, history and culture coordinator in the Lakota Studies Department in Sinte Gleska University, described the story of the mountain’s naming by Hehaka Sapa, or Black Elk, a medicine man:
Overview
The construction of Mount Rushmore National Memorial began on October 4, 1927 and took 14 years to complete. The sculptor of the memorial was Gutzon Borglum, the son of Danish immigrants. He chose the two most famous presidents, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, and chose Thomas Jefferson because of the 1803 Louisiana Purchase (which included the land tha…
Designing the monument
Doane Robinson of the South Dakota Historical Society wanted a monument to be built in South Dakota in order to help the economy of the state by attracting tourism. In 1923, he proposed that this monument should be built from the granite cliffs in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Senator Peter Norbeck of South Dakota approved the proposal, and federal funding helped the project. Robinson asked architect and sculptor Gutzon Borglum to sculpt and design the monument. Borg…
Construction
A few hundred workers, most of whom were miners, sculptors, or rock climbers, used dynamite, jackhammers, and chisels to remove material from the mountain. A stairway was constructed to the top of the mountain, where ropes were fixed. Workers were supported by harnesses attached to the ropes.
The irises of the eyes were sculpted as holes. A cube of granite was left in eac…
George Washington
George Washington's head was started first. Due to the economic instability of the United States caused by the Great Depression, it was completed in seven years, and dedicated to the public on Independence Day 1934. A large American flag was placed over Washington's head before it was revealed, and this became a tradition for each of the presidents' heads.
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson's head was started next, to the right of Washington. Before the head was complete, Borglum requested that he be blasted off due to poor rock quality. Jefferson's head was restarted on Washington's left. Jefferson's head was dedicated in 1936.
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln's head was the most challenging because of his beard, but his head was completed on the far right of the cliff. Lincoln's face was finally dedicated on September 17, 1937, which was the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Constitution of the United States in 1787.
Theodore Roosevelt
While Theodore Roosevelt's head was being constructed, accommodations for tourists were being built, including plumbing, lighting, and a visitor center. Not finding suitable rock, the sculptors cut farther back into the mountain, causing concerns about how far they were cutting. Roosevelt's head was dedicated on July 2, 1939.
Hall of Records
Due to unforeseen vulnerabilities in the granite, Lincoln and Jefferson were relocated from the positions in Borglum's original design. Lincoln was relocated to the area where Borglum intended to include an 80-by-100-foot inscription in the shape of the Louisiana Purchase.
To replace the inscription, Borglum conceived another grand addition to the monument of similar proportions: the Hall of Records. The Hall of Records was to include a grand entrance to an 80-b…
Overview
Mount Rushmore National Memorial is centered on a colossal sculpture carved into the granite face of Mount Rushmore (Lakota: Tȟuŋkášila Šákpe, or Six Grandfathers ) in the Black Hills near Keystone, South Dakota. Sculptor Gutzon Borglum created the sculpture's design and oversaw the project's execution from 1927 to 1941 with the help of his son, Lincoln Borglum. The sculpture features …
History
Mount Rushmore was conceived with the intention of creating a site to lure tourists, representing "not only the wild grandeur of its local geography but also the triumph of western civilization over that geography through its anthropomorphic representation." Though for the latest occupants of the land at the time, the Lakota Sioux, as well as other tribes, the monument in their view "…
Tourism
Tourism is South Dakota's second-largest industry, and Mount Rushmore is the state's top tourist attraction. In 2012, 2,185,447 people visited the park.
The popularity of the location, as with many other national monuments, derives from its immediate recognizability; "there are no substitutes for iconic resources such as the Statue of Liberty, the Lincoln Memorial, or Mount Rushmore. These locations are one of a kind places". Ho…
Conservation
The ongoing conservation of the site is overseen by the National Park Service. Physical efforts to conserve the monument have included replacement of the sealant applied originally to cracks in the stone by Gutzon Borglum, which had proved ineffective at providing water resistance. The components of Borglum's sealant included linseed oil, granite dust, and white lead, but a modern silicone replacement for the cracks is now used, disguised with granite dust.
Ecology
The flora and fauna of Mount Rushmore are similar to those of the rest of the Black Hills region of South Dakota. Birds including the turkey vulture, golden eagle, bald eagle, red-tailed hawk, swallows and white-throated swifts fly around Mount Rushmore, occasionally making nesting spots in the ledges of the mountain. Smaller birds, including songbirds, nuthatches, woodpeckers and flyc…
Geography
Mount Rushmore is largely composed of granite. The memorial is carved on the northwest margin of the Black Elk Peak granite batholith in the Black Hills of South Dakota, so the geologic formations of the heart of the Black Hills region are also evident at Mount Rushmore. The batholith magma intruded into the pre-existing mica schist rocks during the Proterozoic, 1.6 billion years ago. Coarse grained p…
In popular culture
Mount Rushmore has been depicted in multiple films, comic books, and television series. Its functions vary from settings for action scenes to the site of hidden locations. Its most famous appearance is as the location of the final chase scene in the 1959 film North by Northwest. It is used as a secret base of operations by the protagonists in the 2004 film Team America: World Police, a…
Controversies
The Treaty of Fort Laramie (1868) had granted the Black Hills to the Lakota people in perpetuity, but the United States took the area from the tribe after the Great Sioux War of 1876. Members of the American Indian Movement led an occupation of the monument in 1971, naming it "Mount Crazy Horse", and Lakota holy man John Fire Lame Deer planted a prayer staff on top of the mountain. Lame Deer said that the staff formed a symbolic shroud over the presidents' faces "which shall r…