Mount Rushmore

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For the 1960s rock band, see Mount Rushmore (band).

Mount Rushmore National Memorial, near Keystone, South Dakota, is a United States Presidential Memorial that represents the first 150 years of the history of the United States of America with the 60-foot (18.3 m) sculptures of former U.S. Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln.<ref>Mount Rushmore National Memorial. December 6, 2005.60 SD Web Traveler, Inc. URL accessed on April 7, 2006.</ref> The entire memorial covers 1,278 acres (518 hectares),<ref>McGeveran, William A. Jr. et al (2004). The Word Almanac and Book of Facts 2004. New York: World Almanac Education Group, Inc. ISBN 0-88687-910-8.</ref> and is 5,725 ft (1,745 m) above sea level.<ref name=peakbagger>Mount Rushmore, South Dakota (November 1, 2004). Peakbagger.com. URL accessed on March 13, 2006.</ref> It is managed by the National Park Service, a bureau of the United States Department of the Interior. The memorial attracts around 2 million people annually.<ref name=NPSfacts>Mount Rushmore facts, National Park Service.</ref>

The mountain was named after Charles E. Rushmore, a prominent New York lawyer, in 1885.<ref>Belanger, Ian A. et al. Mt. Rushmore- presidents on the rocks. URL accessed on March 13, 2006.</ref> The project of carving Mount Rushmore originally started with the purpose of increasing tourism in the Black Hills region of South Dakota. After long negotiations involving a Congressional delegation and president Calvin Coolidge, the project received Congressional approval. The carving started in 1927 and ended in 1941.

1 History
2 Ecology
3 Geology
4 Tourism
5 Appearances in popular culture
6 See also
7 Notes and references
8 Further reading
9 External links

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History

Image:Mountrushmore.jpg Image:MtRushmore sculpting.jpg Doane Robinson, a historian, conceived of the idea for Mount Rushmore in 1923 in order to attract greater tourism to South Dakota. In 1924, Robinson convinced sculptor Gutzon Borglum to go to the Black Hills region to ensure that the carving could be accomplished. The original plan was to do the carvings in the Needles, several granite pillars. However, Borglum realized that that plan could not be carried out because the Needles, worn down by erosion, were too thin to support sculpting. Mount Rushmore turned out to be a good spot. Borglum said upon seeing Mount Rushmore, "America will march along that skyline."<ref name=NPS>Carving History (October 2, 2004). National Park Service.</ref> Congress authorized the Mount Rushmore National Memorial Commission on March 3, 1925.<ref name=NPS>Carving History (October 2, 2004). National Park Service.</ref> President Coolidge insisted that along with Washington two Republicans and one Democrat be portrayed.<ref name=Fite>Fite, Gilbert C. Mount Rushmore (May 2003). ISBN 096467985X, the standard scholarly study.</ref>

Between October 4, 1927 and October 31, 1941, Gutzon Borglum and 400 workers sculpted the 60 ft (18 m) colossal carvings of Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln to represent the first 150 years of American history. These presidents were selected by Borglum because of their national focus.<ref name=NPS>Carving History (October 2, 2004). National Park Service.</ref>

In 1933, the National Park Service took Mount Rushmore under its jurisdiction. Engineer Julian Spotts helped with the project by improving its infrastructure. For example, he had the tram upgraded such that it could reach the top of Mount Rushmore for the ease of workers. By July 4, 1934, Washington's face had been completed and was dedicated. The face of Thomas Jefferson was dedicated in 1936, and the face of Abraham Lincoln was dedicated on September 17, 1937. In 1937, a bill was introduced in Congress to add the head of civil rights leader Susan B. Anthony, but a rider was passed on an appropriations bill requiring that federal funds be used to finish only those heads that had already been started at that time.<ref name=timeline>American Experience "Timeline: Mount Rushmore" (2002). URL accessed on March 20, 2006</ref> In 1939, the face of Theodore Roosevelt was dedicated.

The Sculptor's Studio was built in 1939 under the direction of Gutzon Borglum. Unique plaster models and tools related to the sculpting process are displayed there. Borglum died from an embolism in March of 1941. His son, Lincoln Borglum, continued the project, but insufficient funding forced the carving to end.<ref name=NPS>Carving History (October 2, 2004). National Park Service.</ref> Originally, it was planned that the sculpture would be carved from head to waist.<ref>Mount Rushmore National Memorial. A Sightseer's Guide to Engineering. National Society of Professional Engineers. URL accessed on March 18, 2006.</ref> The entire project had cost $989,992.32.<ref name=SDTourism>Mount Rushmore National Memorial. Tourism in South Dakota. Laura R. Ahmann. URL accessed on March 19, 2006.</ref>

On October 15, 1966, Mount Rushmore was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. An essay from Nebraska student William Andrew Burkett was placed on the Entablature on a bronze plate in 1973. It had been selected as the winner for the college-age group in 1934.<ref name=timeline>See above</ref> In 1991, President George Bush officially dedicated Mount Rushmore.

Local tribes of Native Americans hold the Black Hills sacred. This belief had led to the 19th century conflict that included the Battle of the Little Bighorn when U.S. Army troops protected gold miners against Native Americans protecting their religious beliefs. The Monument continues to be a subject of controversy among Indians, even after the appointment of the first Native American superintendant of the park in 2004.<ref name=Native>First American Indian heads shrine to democracy, Indian Country Today. Accessed on April 3, 2006 </ref> The Crazy Horse Memorial is being built elsewhere in the Black Hills to commemorate a famous Indian leader and as a reponse to Mount Rushmore. It is intended to be larger than Mount Rushmore and has the support of Lakota chiefs, though the monument is not being financed with federal funds for the most part.

Ten years of redevelopment work culminated with the completion of extensive visitor facilities and sidewalks in 1998. These include a Visitor Center, Museum, and the Presidential Trail. Maintenance of the memorial presents a unique challenge for conservators, often requiring mountain climbing to remove lichens and generally clean the memorial. On July 8, 2005, Kärcher GmbH, a German manufacturer of cleaning machines, conducted a cleanup operation of the faces by pressure washing for free. The washing used pressurized water that was 200 degrees Fahrenheit (90 degrees Celsius).<ref>Mount Rushmore faces finally washed (July 30, 2005). CNN. URL accessed on March 20, 2006.</ref>

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Ecology

The flora and fauna of Mount Rushmore are similar to those of the rest of the Black Hills region of South Dakota. The memorial serves as home to many animals and plants representative of the Black Hills. Several birds like the turkey vulture, bald eagle, hawk, and meadowlark fly around Mount Rushmore, occasionally making nesting spots in the ledges of the mountain. Smaller birds, including songbirds, nuthatches, and woodpeckers, inhabit the surrounding pine forests. Terrestrial mammals include the mouse, chipmunk, squirrel, skunk, porcupine, raccoon, beaver, badger, coyote, bighorn sheep and bobcat. In addition, several species of frogs and snakes inhabit the region. The two brooks in the memorial, the Grizzly Bear and Starling Basin brooks, support fish like the longnose dace and the brook trout.<ref name=animal>Nature & Science- Animals National Park Service. URL accessed on April 1, 2006.</ref> Some endemic animals are not indigenous to the area; the mountain goat are descended from goats which were a gift from Canada to Custer State Park in 1924 but later escaped.<ref name=FloraFauna>Mount Rushmore- Flora and Fauna. American Park Network. URL accessed on March 16, 2006.</ref>

At lower elevations, coniferous trees, mainly the Ponderosa pine, surround most of the monument, providing much shade from the sun. Other trees include the bur oak, the Black Hills spruce, and the cottonwood. Nine species of shrubs live near Mount Rushmore. There is also a wide variety of wildflowers, including especially the snapdragon, sunflower, and violet. Towards higher elevations, plant life becomes sparser.<ref name=FloraFauna>Mount Rushmore- Flora and Fauna. American Park Network. URL accessed on March 16, 2006.</ref> However, only approximately 5% of the plant species found in the Black Hills were indigenous to the region.<ref>Nature & Science- Mount Rushmore. National Park Service. URL accessed on March 13, 2006.</ref>

Though the area receives about 18 in (46 cm) of precipitation on average per year, alone it is not enough to support the abundant animal and plant life. Trees and other plants help to control surface runoff. Dikes, seeps, and springs help to dam up water that is flowing downhill, providing watering spots for animals. In addition, stones like sandstone and limestone help to hold groundwater, creating aquifers.<ref>Nature & Science- Groundwater. National Park Service. URL accessed on April 1, 2006.</ref>

Forest fires occur in the Ponderosa forests surrounding Mount Rushmore around every 27 years. This was determined from fire scars in tree core samples. These help to clean forest debris located on the ground. Large conflagrations are rare, but have occurred in the past.<ref>Nature & Science- Forests. National Park Service. URL accessed on April 1, 2006.</ref>

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Geology

Image:Mt rushmore 07 27 2005.jpg Mount Rushmore is largely composed of granite. The memorial is carved on the northwest margin of the Harney Peak granite batholith in the Black Hills of South Dakota, so the geologic formations of the heart of the Black Hills region are also evident at Mount Rushmore. The batholith magma intruded into the pre-existing mica schist rocks during the Precambrian period about 1.6 billion years ago.<ref name=NPSgeology>Geologic Activity. National Park Service.</ref> However, the uneven cooling of the molten rock caused the formation of both fine and coarse-grained minerals, including quartz, feldspar, muscovite, and biotite. Fractures in the granite were sealed by pegmatite dikes. The light colored streaks in the presidents' foreheads are due to these dikes.

The Black Hills granites were exposed to erosion during the late Precambrian, but were buried by sandstones and other sediments during the Cambrian Period. The area remained buried throughout the Paleozoic Era, but was exposed again to erosion during the tectonic uplift about 70 million years ago.<ref name=NPSgeology>Geologic Activity. National Park Service.</ref> The Black Hills area was uplifted as an elongated geologic dome which towered some 20,000 ft (6 km) above sea level, but erosion wore the area down to only 4,000 ft (1.2 km).<ref>Irvin, James R. Great Plains Gallery (2001). URL accessed on March 16, 2006.</ref> The subsequent natural erosion of this mountain range allowed the carvings by stripping the granite of the overlying sediments and the softer adjacent schists. The contact between the granite and darker schist is viewable just below the sculpture of Washington.

Borglum selected Mount Rushmore as the site of carving for several reasons. The rock of the mountain was composed of smooth, fine-grained granite. The granite was very resistant, eroding only 1 in (2.5 cm) every 10,000 years, indicated that it was sturdy enough to support sculpting.<ref name=NPS>Carving History (October 2, 2004). National Park Service.</ref> In addition, it was the tallest mountain in the surrounding terrain, looming to a height of 5,725 ft (1,745 m) above sea level.<ref name=peakbagger>Mount Rushmore, South Dakota (November 1, 2004). Peakbagger.com. URL accessed on March 13, 2006.</ref> Because the mountain faces the southeast, the workers also had the advantage of having the sunlight for most of the day.

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Tourism

Image:MtRushmore at night.jpg Tourism accounts for South Dakota's second largest industry. Mount Rushmore is the number one tourist attraction of South Dakota. In 2004, over 2 million visitors traveled to the memorial.<ref name=NPSfacts>Mount Rushmore facts, National Park Service.</ref>

The Lincoln Borglum Museum is located in the memorial. It features two 125-seat theaters that feature a 13 minute movie about Mount Rushmore. One of the best viewpoints is located at Grandview Terrace, above the Lincolon Borglum Museum. The Presidential Trail, a walking trail and boardwalk, starts at Grandview Terrace and winds through the Ponderosa pine forests to the Sculptor's Studio, providing close-up views of the memorial. The Sculptor's studio was built by Gutzon Borglum, and features discussion about the construction of the monument as well as the tools used. The ampitheater also has a 30 minute program at dusk that describes the construction of the memorial. Following that, the mountain is illuminated for two hours.<ref>Park Overview American Park Network. URL accessed on April 1, 2006.</ref>

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Appearances in popular culture

Because Mount Rushmore has large carved faces, appearances of Mount Rushmore in the media often include a replacement of one or more of the four presidents' faces with other people or characters. In Superman II, General Zod and his criminal partners use their superpowers to replace three of the carvings with their own faces and wipe out the fourth. Similarily, in Mars Attacks!, the Martians in a UFO carve their faces into Mount Rushmore, replacing the Presidents' heads. Deep Purple's album, In Rock, has the cover inspired by Mount Rushmore: it depicts the five members' faces instead of the four presidents. The Chipmunks' album, Chipmunk Rock, has the cover inspired by Mount Rushmore: it depicts the faces of James Young of Styx, Joey Ramone, Alvin Chipmunk and Frank Zappa instead of the four presidents. In the Red Dwarf novel Better Than Life, Dave Lister finds Mount Rushmore half-buried underneath garbage, which causes him to realizes he is back on Earth. The mountain has had a fifth face carved into it, that of fictional president Elaine Salinger.

Because the mountain is an important historical landmark, it is often used as a base for various action-themed movies and books by protagonists. Mount Rushmore is featured in Team America: World Police as the Team America headquarters. However, it was destroyed by Michael Moore's suicide bomb. In Wildstorm Comics, the alien superhero Mr. Majestic has his secret base inside Mount Rushmore. In DC Universe, the All Purpose Enforcement Squad has its secret base in Mount Rushmore.

The memorial was famously used as the location of the final chase scene in Alfred Hitchcock's movie North by Northwest. However, it was not actually filmed at the monument, since permission to shoot an attempted killing on the face of a national monument was refused by the Park Service. Closeups were shot on a set. In the Family Guy episode "North by North Quahog", Peter and Lois are chased down the monument by Mel Gibson after stealing a copy of his new movie, "Passion Of The Christ 2: Crucify This" in a spoof of the chase scene from North by Northwest.

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