Rushmore, Mount

Mount Rushmore National Memorial in the Black Hills National Forest, South Dakota, USA. The sculptor Gutzon Borglum worked on the giant heads during the last 14 years of his life (1927–41); the work was completed by his son Lincoln.

Mountain in the Black Hills, South Dakota, USA, 40 km/25 mi southwest of Rapid City; height 1,890 m/6,203 ft. It was named after a New York lawyer, Charles Rushmore. Four giant heads portraying presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt, have been carved from the granite face. Towering about 15 m–20 m/50–70 ft high, the portraits took a total six and a half years to complete. The US sculptor Gutzon Borglum carried out the project between 1927 and 1941.

Around 90% of the carving was achieved with dynamite, after which the faces were drilled and chiselled. The heads are visible for 97 km/60 mi.

Borglum's idea was ‘the formal rendering of the philosophy of our government into granite on a mountain peak’. Washington represented the American political philosophy; Jefferson, the expansion of America to the west; Lincoln, the preservation of the Union; and Roosevelt – Borglum's particular hero – progressive causes such as business reform and conservation.

The site is a National Memorial and popular tourist attraction.