Facts about Mount Rushmore

"A monument's dimensions should be determined by the importance to civilization of the events commemorated. We are not here trying to carve an epic, portray a moonlight scene, or write a sonnet; neither are we dealing with mystery or tragedy, but rather the constructive and dramatic moments or crises in our amazing history." – So said Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor who created Mount Rushmore.

Located near Keystone, Mount Rushmore is a mountain in the Black Hills of South Dakota, on which is carved a massive granite sculpture, and it is situated in the United States Presidential Memorial. It is representative of the first 150 years of U.S. history, containing the 18 m, or 60-foot, sculpted heads of some of the previous presidents of the United States, namely: George Washington, who was in office from 1789 to 1797; Thomas Jefferson, who was president from 1801 to 1809; Theodore Roosevelt, from 1901 to 1909; and Abraham Lincoln, from 1861 to 1865. These are considered four of the most notable presidents of the United States. Given below are some more interesting facts about Mount Rushmore.

It took more than 14 years for Gutzon Borglum, along with about 400 workers, to carve out the 60-foot sculpted heads of the four presidents. And during the construction, the workers climbed 506 steps in order to get to the top. And yet, although the work was dangerous, not a single life was lost.

Gutzon Borglum was 60 years of age when he started this project in the year 1927. And although it took that much time to finish the sculpture, it ended up costing just 1 million dollars.

The sculpted faces rise up to 5,500 feet above the level of the sea. If the torso had been attached to scale, the whole would have measured 465 feet. Each of the sculptured heads is as high as a 6-story building.

When measured from the top of the head to the chin, each sculpture is as high as the Great Sphinx of Egypt. The eyes measure 11 feet across, the mouth of each is 18 feet in width, and each President’s nose measures 20 feet in length.

It was not easy to finish the construction of the monument. It required great expertise and craftsmanship. Dynamite was used to clear large sized rocks. The workers first created an egg-shaped mass of the rock as the base of the heads. Then, the rocks were blasted by specialists to within a few inches of the actual measurements. Then they used tools like air powered hammers, hammers, wedges, and nails to carve out the finished heads. During the process, about 800 million pounds of rock was removed.

The reason that the Mount Rushmore project was undertaken was Gutzon Borglum’s wish to create something grand in order to pay tribute to the four presidents. But apart from that, he also wanted to commemorate the high ideals that they each had brought to the United States as well as exemplified in themselves. As he said himself that they were picked because they "commemorate the founding, growth, preservation, and development to the United States."

Hence, George Washington was chosen because he was the one who led the nation to democracy; Thomas Jefferson, because he authored the Declaration of Independence; Abraham Lincoln because he brought to an end slavery in the U.S.; and Theodore Roosevelt, who was chosen by Borglum himself, because he was the one who advanced the cause of the construction of the Panama Canal as well as promoted the causes of conservation and business.

The entire Mount Rushmore National Memorial lies over 1,278 acres, which is managed by the National Park Service. It attracts about 2 million visitors annually.