Mount Rushmore National Memorial
Mount Rushmore is a giant sculpture carved right into the granite of the Black Hills, showing the faces of four American presidents. Each face is about 60 feet tall, which is taller than a six-story building.
It is famous because artists spent 14 years carving these enormous faces out of a whole mountain. People from all over the world come to gaze up at George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln.
How It Was Made
Workers used dynamite and special drills to shape the rock, and most of the mountain was carved by carefully blasting away small pieces. It took from 1927 to 1941 to finish the four faces.
The Evening Lighting
On summer nights there is a special ceremony where the faces are lit up with big lights and the whole mountain glows. Families sit in an outdoor amphitheater to watch.
Wildlife Nearby
The forest around the memorial is home to mountain goats, deer, and chirpy little chipmunks. Visitors often spot goats climbing on the rocks below the faces.