One of the most famous landmarks in the United States of America is Mount Rushmore National Memorial. This monument, which bears the heads of four US presidents, has been featured in many movies, ads, and spoofs. This memorial is located in South Dakota and attracts around three million people every year. The structure is remarkable in its own right, but there are many interesting facts about Mount Rushmore. These Mount Rushmore facts will be of interest to anyone who has ever visited the memorial or simply enjoyed looking at the photos.
These are some of the most amazing facts about Mount Rushmore.
* Mount Rushmore was named after Charles E. Rushmore (a New York lawyer), who asked about the name of the mountain while visiting Keystone’s Black Hills. The guide named it Mount Rushmore because the mountain didn’t have a name. It is now known as Presidents’ Mountain.
* Doane Robinson, a historian, came up with the idea to create a sculpture in Black Hills to draw tourists to South Dakota.
*The four American presidents featured on Mount Rushmore are Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson and Theodore Roosevelt. These four presidents were selected for their contributions to the founding, expansion, preservation, and unification of the USA.
Mount Rushmore is a mountain that stands at a height of 575 ft. It was chosen because of its magnificent location. Because granite is of high quality, presidents’ sculptures have been carved onto granite mountains. This was to ensure that they would last a long time.
* This project was undertaken by Gutzon Borglum, a well-known Dutch-American sculptor, and Lincoln Borglum, his son.
* The work took 14 years. The construction of the mountain range began in October 1927, and was completed on October 31, 1941. Gutzon Borglum, unfortunately, died six months prior to the completion of this project. His son was the one who brought the project to life.
This massive project involved nearly 400 workers. Despite the dangers of high altitude and the hazardous conditions, it was surprising that no one died or suffered major injuries.
* The majority of the granite, which was almost 8 million pounds in weight, was removed with a powder monkey dynamite. The process was called honeycombing. Borglim’s pointer machine was used to mark images of Presidents on the mountain.
* The President’s face is the same height as a six-story building. Their noses measure 20 feet in length, but their eyes measure 11 feet across. Their mouths are approximately 18 feet in width.
* Nine changes were made to the original plan before it was finally completed. From the head down, the original plan featured the image of the presidents. Due to a lack of funds, the only heads of the presidents were carved onto the mountain.
* The position of President Jefferson’s sculpture was another major change during construction of the memorial. Thomas Jefferson was supposed be to be right behind George Washington. After months of hard work, it was determined that the rock was too thin and not suitable. It was therefore dynamited, and a new sculpture was created to George Washington’s left.
* A few inscriptions were carved by the sculptor to go with the image of the presidents. This plan was canceled due to two factors. The first was lack of funding. The second was the inability to be seen from far away. Gutzon called these inscriptions Entablature.
* Gutzon Borglum also had a Hall of Records in mind, just behind Abraham Lincoln. He wanted 16 enamel panels to house the most important historical documents and artifacts from America. He began the work, and a tunnel measuring 70 feet was dug in the stone. Insufficient funds prevented work from continuing. However, work was continued to finish the project in 1998. Today you can find biographical and historical information about Mount Rushmore as well as the Presidents along with other documents and texts within the hall. All of them are kept in a teakwood box and inside a titanium vault.
* In 1937, a bill was introduced to Congress that mentioned the need to include the image of Susan B. Anthony as a women’s rights leader. It was rejected and Congress remained faithful to its original plan.
* The memorial today includes a museum and a visitor center. The Grand View Terrace is located above the museum and offers the best view of all four presidents.
* The memorial’s top would be lost by erosion every 10,000 years.