Mount Rushmore Coloring Page: Free Printable PDF for Kids

Mount Rushmore: Four Presidents Carved in Stone

The Vision Behind the Monument

Mount Rushmore was conceived in the 1920s by South Dakota historian Doane Robinson, who wanted to attract tourists to the Black Hills by creating a monumental sculpture. Robinson initially imagined carvings of Western legends such as Lewis and Clark, but sculptor Gutzon Borglum, who took on the project, insisted on national figures of enduring importance. Borglum chose George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt — representing, in his view, the nation's founding, its expansion, preservation, and its emergence as a world power.

Borglum selected Mount Rushmore specifically because of its southeast-facing orientation, which gives it maximum sunlight throughout the day for visibility and for the work of carving. The granite of the Black Hills is among the hardest stone types in the United States, which Borglum knew would resist weathering and preserve the carvings for thousands of years. Work began in 1927 and continued until Borglum's death in March 1941. His son Lincoln Borglum supervised the final months of work. The memorial was never fully completed according to the original plan, which included a large hall of records carved into the mountain behind the faces.

How the Faces Were Carved

Carving Mount Rushmore required a workforce of nearly 400 men who used dynamite to remove approximately 90 percent of the rock and hand-operated jackhammers for the detailed finishing. Workers descended the 500-foot cliff face in wooden seats attached to winches, drilling and blasting in conditions that were loud, dusty, and cold at that elevation. Despite the scale and danger of the work — which took 14 years — not a single worker died from a work-related accident, a remarkable safety record for a construction project of that era.

The carving technique involved a system called pointing, where measurements taken from a scale model were multiplied by 12 to determine where each feature should be cut on the mountain. Workers drilled closely spaced holes to the correct depth, then knocked out the remaining rock in a process called honeycombing. The final surface was finished with fine pneumatic chisels, giving the faces their smooth stone appearance. Each face is approximately 60 feet tall from chin to crown — roughly the height of a six-story building.

The Four Presidents and Their Roles

George Washington, the first president, represents the founding of the nation. Washington led the Continental Army to victory in the Revolutionary War and served two terms as president, establishing precedents that shaped the presidency for generations. He is positioned at the far left of the monument, traditionally the place of honor in a row of figures.

Thomas Jefferson, the third president, drafted the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and is positioned second from the left. Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president, preserved the Union during the Civil War and signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. He stands third from left. Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th president, expanded the national park system, completed the Panama Canal, and strengthened antitrust legislation; he stands at the far right. Each face was chosen to represent a distinct chapter of American history, making the monument a visual timeline of the country's first 150 years.

The Lakota Sioux and the Black Hills

The Black Hills were sacred to the Lakota Sioux people long before European settlers arrived in the region. The 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie guaranteed the Black Hills to the Lakota, but the discovery of gold in 1874 led to an influx of miners and eventually to the federal government seizing the land. The Lakota refer to the Black Hills as Paha Sapa and consider the area the center of the world in their cosmology. The legal dispute over the Black Hills was not resolved by the Supreme Court until 1980, when the Court ruled that the land had been taken illegally and awarded the Lakota more than $100 million in compensation. The Lakota refused the money, stating that the land itself — not payment — was what they wanted returned. The funds have remained in a federal account, now worth over a billion dollars, while the legal and cultural debate continues.

For this reason, Mount Rushmore carries a complicated legacy. For many Americans it represents national pride and the ideals associated with the four presidents. For the Lakota, the carving of European-American leaders into their sacred mountain represents the history of colonial displacement. Understanding both perspectives gives a fuller picture of what the monument means in American history.

Visiting Mount Rushmore Today

Mount Rushmore National Memorial in the Black Hills of South Dakota draws approximately 2 to 3 million visitors per year, making it one of the most-visited national parks in the United States. The visitor center includes exhibits on the carving process, the tools and workers involved, and the history of the four presidents. The Avenue of Flags, which lines the entrance path with the flags of all 50 states plus U.S. territories, creates a patriotic approach to the viewing terrace directly below the faces.

An evening lighting ceremony illuminates the monument after dark during the summer months, allowing visitors to see the faces under floodlights against the night sky. The ceremony has been held since 1998 and includes a ranger program and a presentation of the colors. Mount Rushmore is a popular destination for Independence Day celebrations, as the patriotic imagery of the four founding-era or preservation-era presidents connects naturally with the July 4th holiday.