A nation’s memorials are a record of its civilization and the artist who builds them is the instrument of his time. He is inspired by the same forces that influence the nation’s destiny—the greater the period, the greater the art. The artist cannot escape his destiny. Like the “Hound of Heaven” it “pursues him down the years,” forces him to leave his home, to go into exile, to combat mountains even, to accomplish what must be.
How else can we explain why a man should abandon a comfortable way of life, among pleasant surroundings, to hurl himself against a gigantic rock, to cling like a human fly to a perpendicular peak, to struggle with hostile human nature, in order to carve against the sky a record of the great experiment in democracy on this continent—a record which will live on and be an inspiration to future generations, a shrine to be visited, even after the thing it commemorated may have passed.
This is the history of Rushmore told in a few words. The contributing factors are of interest and should be related but two outstanding facts are that a few kindred souls, giants in their day, fostered a form of democratic government and established a great nation and that a hundred and fifty years later another group of Americans realized the importance of making a record in the granite for all time of what manner of men they were and what they achieved.
The initial step in this great enterprise was taken by Doane Robinson, state historian of South Dakota, who had heard of the monument being carved in Georgia by Gutzon Borglum to honor the heroes of the South in the war between the states and thought it would be a fine idea to have a similar patriotic shrine in South Dakota to bring that state to the attention of the nation.
Mr. Robinson invited Mr. Borglum in 1924 to visit the Black Hills to see what could be done. The first thought was to carve the likeness of Washington and perhaps of Lincoln in one of the granite upthrusts known as the Needles. The stone, however, was not suitable and there was no special reason for memorializing Washington and Lincoln as individual presidents in South Dakota. Then Mr. Robinson told the sculptor of a lead tablet discovered by children playing near old Fort Pierre, which had been planted there in 1743 by Verendrye, an emissary of Louis of France, sent to establish French territory behind the English. This fired his imagination. Here was a subject for the great memorial he wanted to carve in the Hills.
South Dakota lies in the heart of the old Louisiana Territory, purchased by Jefferson in 1803, in order to control the mouth of the Mississippi, which marked the first step away from the Atlantic seaboard colonies in the expansion of the little republic. That step led to the establishment of Texas, the conquest of California, the acquisition of Oregon and Alaska and the spanning of the continent from ocean to ocean by the empire nation called the United States. This was a subject worthy of a mountain—a monument to a nation, to its philosophy of government, its ideals and aspirations, its great leaders. Here in this remote spot, protected by its inaccessibility from the vandalism of succeeding generations, would be carved a Shrine of Democracy, as an imperishable record of a great people.
Here is Mt. Rushmore as it stood for countless ages before the poetic and patriotic idea of the great national memorial was born in the mind of Gutzon Borglum.
Mr. Borglum paid a second and third visit to the Hills 10 and camped among them for two weeks, exploring and examining every rock large enough to suggest a monument, with the result that the huge granite upthrust called Mount Rushmore was selected as the only stone sound enough to be suitable for carving. Another reason for choosing Rushmore was the important consideration of lighting. It was imperative that the cliff on which the figures were to be carved should face the east in order to get the maximum amount of sunlight all the day long. Washington’s face is so placed that it catches the first rays of light in the morning and reflects the last ruddy glow in the evening. Many beautiful works of art are made insignificant by poor lighting.
Senator Peter Norbeck, who had created the park system of South Dakota and played an important part in the creation of the Rushmore Memorial, also agreed that, in spite of its remote position with only riding trails leading to it, there was no other location possible.
Ranging downward like spiders swinging on fine threads, workmen made the strokes on the granite mountainside which now bears the features of George Washington.
Scaffolding suspended from cables enabled the workmen to reach down from the brow of the mountain in order to carry on their courageous and difficult labors.
That autumn a group of Rapid City women put on a pageant of flags, designed by Mr. Borglum, on the top of the cliff to show the different epochs through which the territory had passed. The French flag was first hoisted, then the Spanish, then the flag of Napoleon, next the colonial flag and finally the present flag of the United States. Thus was Mount Rushmore officially dedicated to the Memorial. Mr Borglum then returned to his temporary studio in San Antonio, Texas, to make the models and decide what characters best illustrated the idea to which he was trying to give form.
George Washington’s presence in the group was inevitable. He was the rock on which the republic was founded—the plumb line to establish its direction. So on Mount Rushmore his head is exactly perpendicular, facing the east, unaffected by the others in the group, the measuring rod determining the position of the others. Equally important with Washington was Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Independence. By the purchase of the Louisiana Territory, as stated above, he had taken the first step westward in the course of the nation’s growth. He is represented on the mountain as a young man. He was only 33 when he wrote the Declaration of Independence.
Abraham Lincoln, the saviour of the republic, was inevitable in any record of the country’s history and finally 11 Theodore Roosevelt was selected because, by cutting the Panama Canal, he had accomplished the dream of Columbus and opened a Sea-way from Europe to Asia and his name was closely linked with the territorial expansion following the war with Spain. He was also the first president to attempt the curbing of big business interests and the only president who had been familiar with the west. He had close associations with South Dakota.
Models in the studio at the foot of the mountain which guided construction of the actual figures (seen through window).
The Mount Harney Memorial Association was authorized in 1925 by the state legislature to undertake the project on Mount Rushmore. No funds were voted for the purpose. Contributions were obtained from the three railroads serving the state, from the Homestake Mine and from private individuals, among them Mr. Charles Rushmore, a New York lawyer, after whom, quite accidentally, the cliff had been named. The work went on slowly, with considerable opposition, until President Coolidge’s visit to the Black Hills in 1927. He made a splendid speech at a picturesque ceremony held at Rushmore, immediately following which he took Mr. Borglum aside, inquired about the financing and urged him to come to Washington for help. It is doubtful whether, without this impetus given by President Coolidge, the carving would ever have been accomplished.
The Mount Rushmore National Memorial Commission came into existence as the result of a Congressional Bill, passed on Washington’s Birthday in 1929. The act carried an appropriation of $250,000 for the memorial, which was to be matched on a fifty-fifty basis by private subscriptions; it designated Gutzon Borglum as the sculptor and designer of the four figures and provided also for an inscription on the mountain.
The first ascent of the mountain was made up the canyon where the present wooden stairway now is. After the initial survey was made, pine trees with branches cut off and cleats nailed at right angles to the trees were laid in the crevices to serve as ladders. Heavy ropes were then carried by hand to the top and a small winch was carried as far as possible by pack horse and then carried to the top by hand. After this winch was fastened on the top of the mountain, it in turn was used to pull up the 12 heavy cable that became the tramway from the ground to the mountain top. Building material was pulled up and shelters built for the men. A small studio was also built to house the plaster reproductions of the master models that were in the studio at the foot of the mountain. These reproductions were used for measurements to save time required to go to the studio 1500 feet away and 500 feet below. In some cases these models were hung over the side of the mountain so that they could be consulted and compared with the measurements as the actual stone work progressed. By this method it was possible to save considerable time and labor.
Roughing out the face of Theodore Roosevelt. The strong chin and the mouth are already visible. The mass of stone at the top will be carved away to form the mustache.
The work of fitting the figures into the cracked granite upthrust called Mt. Rushmore has been a constant struggle between composition and finding solid stone for each of the four heads.
Close-up of Lincoln. Note the shafts of granite in the eyes of Lincoln. The light reflected by these shafts gives the eyes their lifelike glint when seen from a distance.
In the first design Jefferson was placed at the right of Washington and Lincoln on his left, and Theodore Roosevelt occupied the position now occupied by Lincoln. However serious flaws developed in the stone on this side of Washington; and it therefore became necessary to change our design and place Jefferson to Washington’s left. This made it necessary to place Theodore Roosevelt between Jefferson and Lincoln, and the stone had to be removed to a depth of approximately 120 feet from the original surface to get back far enough for the Roosevelt face. The heads were finally relegated to their approximate position (being moved several times as new conditions of the stone developed), that is they were tilted or dropped or made to look more to the right or left as the case might have been, to meet the composition or avoid flaws in the stone. This movement being made simply by moving the respective heads on the model and cutting the stone accordingly. It was not possible to fit the heads so that they would be entirely free from fissures, but it was possible to place them so that none of these fissures would be unsupported from below and that removes the danger of some vital part dropping off. As each head was started its center was located, and at this center point on the top of the head a plate was located. This was graduated in degrees 0 to 360 degrees, and at its center a horizontal arm was located that traversed this horizontal are. This arm was about 30 feet long, in effect a giant protractor laid on top of the head. The arm was graduated in feet and inches so that at any point we could drop a plumb bob from this arm, and by measuring the vertical distance on this plumb line determine exactly the amount of stone to be removed. After determining this master center point on the mountain, we set a smaller arc and arm on our model in the same relative position. With this small device we would make all our measurements on our model and then enlarge them twelve times and transfer them to the large measuring device on the mountain. Thru this system every face had a measurement made every six inches both vertically and horizontally. These 13 measurements were then painted on the stone and it was thru this means that men totally unfamiliar with sculptural form were able to do this undertaking. In fact all the men employed on the work were local men trained by the sculptor.
Pneumatic drills are used for drilling and the compressed air is provided by large compressors located on the ground and driven by electricity. The air is forced or conveyed to the top of the mountain by a 3″ pipe and then by the use of smaller pipes and rubber hoses is conveyed to the drills.
Over 400,000 tons of granite have been removed from the mountain in carving the figures, at a total expense of slightly more than $900,000. This includes all building, stairways and machinery.
Workmen putting the finishing touches on the strong face of the Rough-rider President.
The men are let down over the face of the stone in leather swings similar to bos’n chairs used on ships. These swings are fastened on to ?″ steel cables which are in turn fastened on to winches located on the top of the heads. These winches are operated by hand. There are about seven winches on the top of each head. The men are lowered to their place of work by these winches, taking with them their jackhammers or pneumatic tools and other necessary equipment. One man is located in a position where he can see all the men at work, and is “The Callboy,” and has a microphone with a loud speaker at each of the winches and when any of the men working in the swings wants to be raised or lowered they signal this call-boy and he relays the message thru the loud speakers to the winchman. He also keeps the workmen supplied with new drills as they need them, by relaying their requests to the steelman who carries the steel to the men in the swings as it is needed. This steel is used over and over again; as it is dulled it is taken to the blacksmith shop on the ground via the cable car, heated, sharpened, re-heated and tempered and sent back to the mountain again. About 400 of these drills are dulled each day. They drill on an average about four feet before being sharpened. In some places the stone is so hard they will only last or drill about six inches and in other places they will last seven or eight feet before being re-sharpened.
The work in process as it appeared from an odd angle ... from the road running along the side of the mountain. Not many have seen the Memorial from this point of view.
The problem of finance has always been acute in connection with the work of the Rushmore Memorial. The economic hardships of the country made it increasingly difficult to match the Federal appropriation, without which the carving could not go on. The sculptor made repeated trips through the state and beyond its borders to arouse interest in the undertaking. He succeeded in raising some money by publishing a small book about Rushmore. There were never enough funds for as much power or as many men as he would have liked to use. There were long months when the work was stopped altogether. Finally the government took over the whole burden of financing and the work continued regularly, after 1938, being halted only by weather conditions. 14 The sculptor was at last able to employ one or two trained stone carvers to do the finer work of finishing.
The Washington head was unveiled in 1930, with Mr. Cullinan, first chairman of the Rushmore Commission presiding. President Franklin D. Roosevelt came for the unveiling of the Jefferson head in 1936. His unfailing interest and support have insured the finishing of the Memorial. At the unveiling of the face of Abraham Lincoln in 1937, a nation wide radio hookup carried the speeches to all parts of the country and again in 1939, when Governor Bushfield of South Dakota conducted ceremonies celebrating the Golden Jubilee of the State of South Dakota at Mount Rushmore, the radio carried the speeches and music all over the United States. The upper part of the face of Theodore Roosevelt was uncovered at that time.
The face of Jefferson begins to take form. The nose and the forehead are already plainly visible, but many tons of stone must be removed before the picture is complete.
Mr. Borglum was always scrupulously careful to protect his men from harm and it was his boast that in all his years of hazardous mountain carving no worker was seriously injured. He took no care of himself, however, and physicians said that undoubtedly the strenuous work of carving at that altitude weakened his heart and in March, 1941, it stopped beating. The carving was practically finished; there remained only the finishing of the hands and hair of the four figures and the Rushmore National Memorial Commission entrusted that work to the sculptor’s son, Lincoln Borglum, who had been with his father from the beginning of the work.
A blast is set off. The handling of powder and dynamite was an especially delicate problem, since a single badly placed charge might easily spoil the work of many months.
The faces of the four presidents, as carved on Mount Rushmore, are approximately 60 feet from chin to forehead; if completed from head to foot the figures would be 465 feet high. The entire head of the sphinx in Egypt is not quite as long as Washington’s nose. The entire cost of the Memorial, including all expenses of carving, buildings and salaries, is $900,000. This is at the rate of less than two dollars for every ton of stone removed, which is a cost incredibly low considering the hardness of the granite and that every piece must be removed in such a way as not to injure the surface behind. On this investment the Federal Government has received from tourists from the one cent gas tax on the increased sale of gas during the years since the work started over two million dollars and the income to South Dakota is over twenty million dollars annually.