Mount Rushmore, the President’s Mountain, is located in the Black Hills of South Dakota. It was designed by Doane Robinson, known as the “Father of Mount Rushmore.” His goal was to create an attraction that draws people from all over the country to his state. Robinson contacted Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor who worked on the monument Stone Mountain, Georgia. Borglum met Robinson between 1924 and 1925. He was the one who identified the Mount Rushmore as a great place for a large monument. Robinson has worked with John Boland, President Calvin Coolidge, the MP William Williamson, and Senator Peter Norbeck for congressional support and funding to continue.

Congress has agreed to pay up to $ 250,000 of funding for the project and created the Mount Rushmore National Memorial Commission. Work began on the project. In 1933, Mount Rushmore project became part of the National Park Service. Borglum disliked NPS oversee construction. However, he continued to work on the project until his death in 1941. The monument was deemed complete and ready for its dedication to October 31, 1941.

Facts about Mount Rushmore

The four presidents carved into the mountain are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln.
Thomas Jefferson was originally started on the right of George Washington. However, after 18 months, they realized that it did not work. Jefferson’s face was blown off and engraved on the other side.
It took 14 years to complete Mount Rushmore.
No one died during the construction of Mount Rushmore.
The sculpture cost $ 989,992.32 to build.
There is a cave behind the sculpture called the “Hall of Records”. It was intended to house the history of Mount Rushmore, but was never completed due to lack of funding.

There are many interesting facts behind the faces of Mount Rushmore National Memorial, and some are more well known than others. Most of us know when and why behind the monument: sculpture began in 1927 and finally was completed in 1941. Obviously, the sculptor, Gutzon Borglum wanted to create a lasting tribute to this great form of four former presidents, who is also a logical reason that the whole reason why it was built. It is believed that Borglum created the monument not only as a tribute to the four men depicted on it, but also to the high ideals they brought to America and represented themselves. They were chosen because they “commemorate the founding, growth, preservation and development in the United States.”
But what is known about the “behind the scenes” of the construction of this monumental creation? implementation of the project has been anything but easy, as you can imagine. Once Borglum was hired as a sculptor, permission should be granted. Senator Peter Norbeck and MP William Williamson contributed to getting legislation passed sculpture. Two bills have been introduced in Congress and the State Legislature by Williamson. Was easily passed the bill requesting permission to use federal lands for the monument. The bill sent to the State of South Dakota has been an uphill battle. He was beaten twice and almost a third of the time, when finally, March 5, 1925, she was signed by the Governor and adopted Gunderson. Established later that summer was Haney Memorial Association Mont.

The project has reached a collapse when President Hoover took office. Although it quickly name the last two members of the Commission organized Mount Rushmore National Memorial (created by President Coolidge to allow federal funding for the project), Hoover never met the commission. Borlgum grew frustrated by the delay, and tried to get in to see the president, however, after a violent quarrel with the Secretary to the President, his appoinment was canceled. Finally, Borglum was able to meet Hoover and convinced of the importance of the project, and voila, the first meeting of the commission was created! Soon, the Commission organized the financing completed so that work can start.

In 1933, a major change came as furious Borglum. President Franklin Roosevelt signed the 6166 executive order, putting Mount Rushmore under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service. Borglum hated the idea of ​​being under “the watchful eye of the government.”

In 1939, the project was threatened because of the potential loss of funding due to “creative differences.” The son of borglum was in charge of Lincoln project for the past two years. In 1941, Borglum died just before seeing the final dedication in March 1941, which is ironic, to say the least.

Here are some Mount Rushmore facts for curious minds

Borglum was 60 years old when he began to work on the monument.
The granite Rushmore face tower over 5,500 feet above sea level.
The sculptures are reduced to men who would like to be 465 feet tall.
The head of each president is as tall as a six-storey building.
More than 800 million pounds of stone was removed from Mount Rushmore during construction.
Imagine climbing 506 stairs to reach the top of Mount Rushmore, it was the number of steps of the workers had to climb every day!
The nose of the President are 20 feet long, 18 feet in their mouths wide, and their eyes are 11 feet in diameter!
Did you know that Gutzon Borglum was a student of the famous French artist Auguste Rodin, and was one of the most successful American artists before you even consider Mount Rushmore? His mares of Diomedes was the first American work purchased by the Metropolitan Museum of Art New York. It also has five statues exposed to the U.S. Capitol Building.
Here’s an amazing fact: no deaths occurred during the duration of the sculpture, with minor injuries.
Can you imagine that with all the dynamite used?

Photos Of Mount Rushmore