How was Mount Rushmore constructed?

Gutzon Borglum observes two workers carving Jefferson's eye on Mount Rushmore. Charles D'Emery. October 4, 1927 - October 31, 1941. Mount Rushmore is a project of colossal proportion, colossal ambition and colossal achievement. ... During the 14 years of construction not one fatality occurred. read more

Mount Rushmore is a project of colossal proportion, colossal ambition and colossal achievement. It involved the efforts of nearly 400 men and women. The duties involved varied greatly from the call boy to drillers to the blacksmith to the housekeepers. read more

Construction on the George Washington portrait at Mount Rushmore, c. 1932. George Washington's head was started first. Due to the economic instability of the United States caused by the Great Depression, it was completed in seven years, and dedicated to the public on Independence Day 1934. read more

The construction of Mount Rushmore National Memorial took about 14 years, from 1927 to 1941. A few hundred workers, who were usually miners, sculptors, or rock climbers, used dynamite, jack hammering, and chiseling to sculpt the model from the mountain. A stairway was constructed to the top of the mountain first and ropes fixed. read more

Doane Robinson of the South Dakota Historical Society wanted a monument to be built in South Dakota in order to help the economy of the state by attracting tourism. In 1923, he proposed that this monument should be built from the granite cliffs in the Black Hills of South Dakota. read more

From 1927 to 1941 the 400 workers at Mount Rushmore were doing more than operating a jackhammer, they were doing more than earning $8.00 a day, they were building a Memorial that people from across the nation and around the world would come to see for generations. read more

Mount Rushmore, located just north of Custer State Park in South Dakota’s Black Hills National Forest, was named for the New York lawyer Charles E. Rushmore, who traveled to the Black Hills in 1884 to inspect mining claims in the region. read more