Mt. Rushmore is one
of the most patriotic, historic, and well-crafted sites in America. The history of the monument and its creation
is fascinating, especially since it was completed during the great depression.
You can see Mt.
Rushmore from many vantage points in the Black Hills, but the best way to see
it is to get up close and personal by visiting the national park and walking
the trail that runs under the monument.
It is marked in yellow on the national park’s map. My photos are arranged is this post in the
order they would appear on the trail, to the best of my ability.
You
begin at the avenue of flags. The flag
of each of the fifty states are on display here. They are arranged in alphabetical order, so
it is easy to find yours. There is also
a nice view of the monument above the flags.
This is a wench that
was used by two workers (by hand) to lower works, tools, and equipment in bosun
chairs to the work site.
This is one of the
most unique views on the trail—looking up through the rocks.
Mt. Rushmore was
named, in the late 1800s—well before it was carved, for Charles E.
Rushmore. Rushmore was an attorney for a
mining company and spent a lot of time in Black Hills, where he was very well
liked. The story goes that he was
interested in the mountain and asked the name of it. It didn’t have one, so the guide said it was
Rushmore.
Doane Robinson had
the idea for the carving in 1923. His
idea gained the support of South Dakota Senator Peter Norbeck. They enlisted sculptor Gutzon Borglum to make
it happen. The group agreed to sculpt
the presidents and Borglum began sketching.
The first and obvious choice for the sculpture was George
Washington. Abraham Lincoln and Thomas
Jefferson were also easy choices. The
final choice, helped along by President Coolidge during his 1927 visit, was
Theodore Roosevelt.
Drilling began on
August 10, 1927, after President Coolidge’s dedication speech (see below). Washington’s head was unveiled July 4, 1930.
In the fall of 1931
work had to be stopped for a lack of funds.
In 1934, they removed the original Jefferson head on Washington’s right,
and started on the current one, due to problems with the rock. It was unveiled on August 30, 1936. The Lincoln head was unveiled on September
17, 1937. July 2, 1939 the Roosevelt
head was unveiled. Gutzon Borglum died
on March 6, 1941. His son Lincoln, who
had worked on the project from the beginning, replaced him as head sculptor. He completed the heads as much as possible
and had them sealed, but was unable to remove the broken rock at the bottom or carve
the rest of the figures. (They were
planned to be sculpted to the waist). The
hall of records was not completed, either, though a modified version was
finally added in 1998 (see below). Work
was completed in 1941.
To carve the
mountain, Borglum first had to blast off the out rock because it was full of
cracks. Stairs and tramway cars were
built to carry supplies to the top.
Borglum used pointing to translate the measurements of his models to the
mountain. He put a metal pole in the
center of the place Washington’s head would be.
Then he used a protractor for direction, placed perpendicularly through
the pole and using the scale of the model.
Finally he dropped a plumb line past the protractor. The plumb line could be used for measurement
and location by moving it up and down and right and left. After pointing determined where the blasting
should be done, holes were drilled into the rock and filled with small amounts
of dynamite. The drillers sat in bosun chairs
that were lowered down the mountain.
They were so accurate
with the drilling and blasting that they could do it within inches. After the blasting, honeycombing was used to
add more detail. Holes were drilled
again, but this time a hammer was used to knock off chunks of rock. Finally, faces were smoothed by bumping—using
pneumatic hammers with steel bits.
The trail is
helpfully marked with signs like this to show you where you are.
In the sculptors
studio you will see models and tools that Borglum used before and during
construction.
This picture shows a
drill that was used for making the holes for blasting and honeycombing. The wench was used to raise and lower workers
on the mountain.
Plaster masks of the
presidents were used by the workers for visual comparisons. They were hung down the mountain on cables.
This is a model of
the legendary hall of records. Borglum
began constructing the hall of records behind Lincoln’s head, planning to fill
it with important documents, statues, and inscriptions. Despite the conspiracy theories, it was not
completed. It would have been 100 feet
by 80 feet. In 1998, a small vault was
created in the unfinished hall of records and porcelain panels containing
information about the project and
documents such as the Constitution were sealed in.
Mt. Rushmore above
the sculptor’s studio.
Borglum View Terrace
After 14 years and $989,992.32,
the monument was complete.
The amphitheater below
the monument.
Honeycombed rock in
the museum.
An example of
pointing in the museum.
In the evenings, Mt.
Rushmore is illuminated. Check the
schedule here.
I don’t usually want
pictures of myself, but I had to have one here!
Bonus: The National Presidential Wax Museum in
Keystone, South Dakota (the town outside Mt. Rushmore) has a tableau of
President Coolidge giving a speech at the dedication ceremony in 1927. The museum is much more fun than it
sounds. You should check it out if you
have the chance. The website is here.
The background,
though pretty, is a little historically inaccurate because carving had not yet
begun:
