Mount Rushmore

I have always wanted to visit Mount Rushmore.  Seeing the faces of the four presidents carved into the granite face of the mountain is quite an impressive sight.  How did such a monumental event even come to be?

Mount Rushmore got its name quite innocently.  A lawyer from New York, Charles E. Rushmore, was visiting a local tin mine in the Black Hills when he asked a friend what the name of the mountain was.  His friend laughed and said it had no name – and then gave it Rushmore’s name.  Ever since, it has been called Mount Rushmore.  Amazingly, the mountain was officially given the name in 1930, some 45 years after Charles E. Rushmore made his visit to South Dakota in 1885.  Perhaps out of a sense of responsibility, Rushmore actually gave the largest donation to the project of sculpting the mountain.  He gave $5000.  It may not seem like much, but back in the 1920s and 30s, this was a small fortune. (Remember the Stock Market Crash of 1929? Most people had lost all their money then).

Doane Robinson was the main person responsible for this monument called the Shrine of Democracy.  He wanted to create a reason for tourists to come visit South Dakota and the Black Hills.  He learned about the sculptor, Gutzon Borglum, who was working on a similar project in Georgia.  When that project fell through, he convinced Borglum to come to South Dakota to come see the area.  Robinson was the main person responsible for collecting funds to complete the project.

Gutzon Borglum was the sculptor.  He was nearly 60 years old when he began working on the Shrine of Democracy.  Born in March of 1867, Borglum started his own studio in California.  His first memorable sculpture was of General John C. Fremont.  He then traveled to Europe for many years.  In 1901, he returned to the United States.  Other works of his include the bronze equestrian sculpture of General Phil Sheridan in Washington, DC, and the Bust of Lincoln in the Rotunda of the Capitol.  He was asked to sculpt a statue of Lee, Jackson, and Davis on the Stone Mountain in Georgia.  Far too many problems arose and the project was scrapped after he finished Lee’s face.  The project was never finished and Lee’s face was destroyed.  It was Doane Robinson who brought Borglum to South Dakota.


Many people do not read about the chief stone carver under Borglum.  His name was Luigi Del Bianco.  He met Borglum early on in the design process of Mount Rushmore.  He assisted Borglum with the Governor Hancock Memorial in South Carolina, the Stone Mountain in Georgia (before Borglum stopped working on it), and the Wars of America Memorial in Newark, New Jersey.   His job was to carve the main features of the presidents.  He did Lincoln's eyes and Jefferson's face.  He worked on the monument until the funds ran out. 

The project was agreed upon in 1924 and received the backing of Congress with the help of Congressman William Williamson and Senator Peter Norbeck.  Finally, after getting Congress to agree to allocate funds, the sculpture was started in 1927.  Mount Rushmore took 14 years to complete, and even then it was not finished the way Borglum wanted.  He wanted the figures to be from the waist to the head, but after his death in 1941, funding was not forthcoming.  His son put on the finishing touches, but the rest of the bodies were never completed.

Calvin Coolidge was president at the time and insisted on having two Democrats and one more Republican in addition to George Washington.  So, why the other three?  Of course we all understand why George Washington – he was the father of our country; our first president; and he was the commander-in-chief of the American forces during the Revolutionary War.  Thomas Jefferson was the main author of the Declaration of Independence – the document which guides countries to this day in setting up their own democracy.  He was also instrumental in the Louisiana Purchase, the parcel of land that doubled the size of our country.  Abraham Lincoln was chosen because he helped mend a broken country and keep it from self-destructing.  He abolished slavery so all men were free.  Finally, Theodore Roosevelt was chosen because his influence helped our country move into the 20^th century.  He helped construct the Panama Canal which linked the east coast of our country to west coast.  Finally, he was known as a trust buster – keeping companies from gaining too much power.

Some final quick facts:

Mount Rushmore cost $989 million to construct.

The granite was chosen because it only erodes one inch every 10,000 years.

George Washington’s head was completed and dedicated on July 4, 1934.

Thomas Jefferson was supposed to be on the other side but the granite was not good enough.  His head was completed in 1936.

Abraham Lincoln’s head was completed on September 17, 1937.

Theodore Roosevelt’s head was finished in 1939.

Did you know there was a campaign to add Susan B. Anthony’s head to the group?  They could never raise the funds to do so.

The sculpture took 14 years to complete.

The statues are 60 feet high.  Each nose is 20 feet long.  The mouths are 18 feet wide, and the eyes are 11 feet across.
Once World War II broke out in 1942, funds were scarce and the memorial could not be finished.

A great link for Mount Rushmore is run by the National Park Services. 

Henry Knox

If you are like me, you have heard about Fort Knox.  Have you ever wondered who it was named after?  I have.  So, when we were in Philadelphia and I saw a portrait of Henry Knox, I decided to look him up.

Henry Knox (1750-1806)  

Henry Knox was born in Boston, the 7th of 10 children.  His father was a shipmaster who had difficulty supporting his large family.  Once embargoes began, he could not continue in his line of work.  Unfortunately, Henry's father died at the age of 50 and Henry had to leave school to take care of his mother and his siblings.  His career started as a shop clerk in a bookstore.  Years later, he would own his own bookstore.  His education began at the Latin School but he was mostly self-taught since he had to leave school at an early age.

He would read every day, and once he began working at a bookstore, his love of reading continued.  His favorite topic was British military history, strategy, and tactics.  This knowledge would be stored in his brain and used during the most important war in history - the Revolutionary War.

In 1772, he became a member of the Boston Grenadier Corps.  A grenadier is a soldier who carries and throws grenades. Yes, even back in the 1700s there were grenades.

In 1775, he volunteered to fight at Bunker Hill.  When George Washington arrived in Boston that same year, Knox met him.  They became good friends and Washington was intrigued with the young man's knowledge of artillery.  Artillery is the weapons such as bows, slings, and catapults, that discharge missiles.  Knox advised Washington on how best to beat the British, having read all about their strategies while working in the bookstore.

He was made a colonel and put in charge of the artillery.  His first task was to bring a confiscated cannon from Fort Ticonderoga.  He brought 50 cannons on oxsleds back to Boston.  He placed cannons in different cities, strategically placing them to best help those cities defend themselves against a British invasion or attack.

Knox advised Washington to cross the Delaware, that fateful Christmas evening, and helped defeat the Hessiams.  Because of his bravery, he was promoted to Brigadier General.  The troops confiscated important stores and supplies from the Hessians that evening and ferried them all back across the Delaware.

While Washington's troops waited out the difficult winter at Valley Forge, Knox was in charge of raising a battalion for artillery.  A battalion is a body of troops who are organized to act together.  He helped General von Steuben train the soldiers during that winter.  He constructed an arsenal in Springfield, Pennsylvania, (just outside of Philadelphia) where arms were made and repaired.

The Continental Congress was going to replace Knox with a Frenchman, Ducondray, but Washington wrote to Congress on Knox's behalf.  his appeal was successful and Knox remained in charge of his troops.

Knox continued to excel and fought at Brandywine and Germantown.  He helped erect forts to keep the men safe during their winter encampments.  Whatever was asked of him, he did and more.

During the Battle of Yorktown, Knox placed the cannons in strategic locations which helped win the battle and the war.  After Cornwallis surrendered on October 19, 1781, Knox was promoted to Major-General.

In 1782, he was stationed at West Point to oversee the withdrawal of British troops from New York.  In 1783, he followed the last British troops  as they departed New York.  When the officers gathered at Fraunces Tavern in New York to be relieved of their duties by General Washington, he returned to Boston.

In 1785, when he was only 35, he was elected Secretary of War by the Congress.  And in 1789, when Washington was elected President, Knox was elected our first Secretary of War and was made a member of Washington's cabinet.  He remained in his job until 1794, when he officially resigned.

He moved to Thomaston, Maine in 1796, where he lived for the remainder of his days.  He died in 1806, quite unexpectedly.

As I stated at the beginning of this post - Fort Knox was named after him.  At first, the fort was called Fort Duffield when it was erected in 1861.  In 1918, the fort was renamed after him, in honor of his duty during the Revolutionary War and as his position as our first Secretary of War.