Mount Rushmore

 

Mount Rushmore was created by the Danish-American sculptor Gutzon Borglum. He died in the final year of its construction. His son, Lincoln, finished the monument. The sculptures are made of granite, a very hard rock. It took 14 years to complete the sculptures. Miners used dynamite to make the heads. They used drills and chisels to sculpt the faces.

  

Mount Rushmore National Memorial  is in the Black Hills in South Dakota, USA. It shows the heads of four former  US presidents.

 

 NUMBER 1

George Washington, the first president of the USA. He represents America’s  

Independence from Great Britain.  

(1732-1799)

   NUMBER 2

 Thomas Jefferson was the third American President. He wrote the Declaration of Independence.

(1743-1826)

 NUMBER 3

 

Theodore Roosevelt (“Teddy”) was the 26th president of USA.

(1858-1919)

 NUMBER 4

 

 Abraham Lincoln abolished slavery. He was the 16th  US president.
He ended the Civil War between the North and the South.
(1800-1865)

Introduction
Mount Rushmore is a famous mountain and memorial near Keystone, South Dakota in the United States. It has the heads of four of America's presidents carved on it: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. The Mount Rushmore Memorial is a part of the United States Presidential Memorial, which covers 1,278.45 acres (5.17 km2) and is 5,725 feet (1,745 m) above sea level (altitude).
 

History
Before the memorial was carved, the native Lakota Indian Tribes called the mountain "Six Grandfathers". The mountain looked like six human faces and they thought they were their ancestors. Later, the mountain was named after Charles E. Rushmore, a well-known lawyer, after an expedition in 1885. The memorial was carved to help increase tourism in the Black Hills, where the mountain was. Doane Robinson first formed the idea in 1923. Robinson convinced many influential people in the United States government to build the memorial. Congress soon allowed construction to begin.
After gaining Congress's approval, Gutzon Borglum, a famous American sculptor, was hired to begin the project. Mount Rushmore is largely composed of granite, and therefore, the famous sculptures are carved on that material.
 

Facts
Tourism is South Dakota's second-largest industry, and Mount Rushmore is the state's top tourist attraction. The memorial hosts nearly three million visitors a year.

  

Questions

a.    Name the four presidents carved on the memorial
b.    Where is the memorial?
c.    Height of the memorial (above sea level)
d.    How did the native Lakota Indian Tribes call the mountain? Why?
e.    Why the mountain was named Rushmore afterwards?
f.    How did Doane Robinson contribute to the project?
g.    What was the name of the sculptor?
h.    What is the material used?



Link to the official web page