Summary of Mt. Rushmore National Monument
Mt. Rushmore National Monument
13000 Hwy 244 Bldg 31 Suite 1
Keystone, SD 57751
Mt Rushmore stands as the gateway to the West, 25 miles southwest of Rapid City. It is surrounded by the Black Hills National Forest, Custer State Park, the Wind Cave National Park, and the Black Elk Wilderness Area.
It took sculptor Gutzon Borglum and his crew 14 years to carve the 60-foot-tall faces of the four presidents. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln are exposed on granite to embody the spirit of the foundation, preservation, and expansion of the United States. Visitors can see the sculptor’s studio and learn about the construction of the monument.
Presidential Trail leads to the base of the mountain where visitors are treated to spectacular views of the faces. It is open daily, depending on weather conditions.
Borglum had to change the sculptures nine times because of fractures in the granite. Then the nearly completed face of Thomas Jefferson had to be blasted off the right side of Washington, because of insufficient granite, and recarved to the left. Almost 90 percent of the carving was done with dynamite. Gutzon made several other works in his lifetime, including the remodeled torch for the Statue of Liberty, a seated Lincoln in Newark, and an oversize Lincoln bust for the US Capitol. President Calvin Coolidge dedicated the memorial in 1927. The Washington head was formally dedicated in 1930, Jefferson was dedicated in 1936, Lincoln in 1937 and Roosevelt in 1939. Borglum died in March 1941.
Borglum’s son, Lincoln, supervised the completion of the heads after his father’s death. All carving ceased in October 1941, on the eve of the United States’ entry into World War II. All federal funds went to the war fund and the carvings were never completed.
The best time to to view the giant faces is in the warm light of early day. Besides the Presidential Trail and Borglum’s Studio, during the summer the Mt Rushmore Memorial Amphitheater hosts a monument-lighting ceremony. The visitor center and the information center have films and tours.
Major airlines and bus routes service nearby Rapid City.
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