Mount Rushmore Q&A
Part 3

Q: Can a person go inside Mount Rushmore? L.L.
A: No. Some people think that you can enter the nostrils and peek out the eyes. This would be a lot of fun. However, there are no openings into the figures on Mount Rushmore. The mountain is made of solid granite.
Q: Why was South Dakota chosen to be the place to carve Mount Rushmore? S.M.
A: South Dakota wasn't chosen for the location. Rather, South Dakota was where the idea for the carving developed.
The person who had the first idea for the carving was a 67-year-old Doane Robinson. At first, he wanted to create a carving in the "Needles" area of the Black Hills. But when Gutzon Borglum came to South Dakota to do the carving, he had a different idea. He saw the cliff known as Mount Rushmore and believed that it would be the best place to carve the presidents.
Q: What was the inspiration for Mount Rushmore? P.J.
A: There are two answers to your question:
Tourism: Originally, Doane Robinson wanted to carve western heroes (Buffalo Bill, Red Cloud, etc.) on the tall rocks called the Needles. He believed that this would encourage tourists to travel across the state of South Dakota to the Black Hills. However, sculptor Gutzon Borglum believed that the faces of the presidents would be more likely to attract visitors.
Patriotism: Borglum loved the United States of America. He believed that the four presidents would be a long-lasting symbol of the United States, its history, and its ideals of freedom and democracy.
Q: Why did he pick these four particular presidents? C.M.
A: Gutzon Borglum believed that these presidents represented the history of the United States. George Washington represented the birth of the United States. Thomas Jefferson represented the growth of the United States. Abraham Lincoln represented the preservation of the United States, despite the horror of the Civil War. Theodore Roosevelt represented the development of the nation.
A: No. Some people think that you can enter the nostrils and peek out the eyes. This would be a lot of fun. However, there are no openings into the figures on Mount Rushmore. The mountain is made of solid granite.
Q: Why was South Dakota chosen to be the place to carve Mount Rushmore? S.M.
A: South Dakota wasn't chosen for the location. Rather, South Dakota was where the idea for the carving developed.
The person who had the first idea for the carving was a 67-year-old Doane Robinson. At first, he wanted to create a carving in the "Needles" area of the Black Hills. But when Gutzon Borglum came to South Dakota to do the carving, he had a different idea. He saw the cliff known as Mount Rushmore and believed that it would be the best place to carve the presidents.
Q: What was the inspiration for Mount Rushmore? P.J.
A: There are two answers to your question:
Tourism: Originally, Doane Robinson wanted to carve western heroes (Buffalo Bill, Red Cloud, etc.) on the tall rocks called the Needles. He believed that this would encourage tourists to travel across the state of South Dakota to the Black Hills. However, sculptor Gutzon Borglum believed that the faces of the presidents would be more likely to attract visitors.
Patriotism: Borglum loved the United States of America. He believed that the four presidents would be a long-lasting symbol of the United States, its history, and its ideals of freedom and democracy.
Q: Why did he pick these four particular presidents? C.M.
A: Gutzon Borglum believed that these presidents represented the history of the United States. George Washington represented the birth of the United States. Thomas Jefferson represented the growth of the United States. Abraham Lincoln represented the preservation of the United States, despite the horror of the Civil War. Theodore Roosevelt represented the development of the nation.

Q: How many people were involved in carving Mount Rushmore? T.A.
A: Approximately 400 men and women used their abilities to create the carving on Mount Rushmore. Some worked only a few days. Others worked for years.
Q: Did anyone ever get fired?
A: Yes! Gutzon Borglum often fired and rehired his workers. One worker was fired for yodeling.
Q: What are the names of the people who built Mount Rushmore? J.B.
A: There were over 400 men and women who worked together to create the faces on Mount Rushmore. I don't know all of their names. However, Jack Payne was the name of the worker who was fired for yodeling.
Q: Did they ever mess up and start over? M.G.
A: Yes. In fact, part of Thomas Jefferson was originally carved on the OTHER side of George Washington. When the workers realized that the rock was not strong, Gutzon Borglum asked them to blast Jefferson's head off the mountain. After that, they began to carve Jefferson in the place where he is now.
Q: Why is Washington first? T.K.
A: Gutzon Borglum started with Washington because he wanted him to be the main figure. He carved Washington on the highest part of the mountain.
A: Approximately 400 men and women used their abilities to create the carving on Mount Rushmore. Some worked only a few days. Others worked for years.
Q: Did anyone ever get fired?
A: Yes! Gutzon Borglum often fired and rehired his workers. One worker was fired for yodeling.
Q: What are the names of the people who built Mount Rushmore? J.B.
A: There were over 400 men and women who worked together to create the faces on Mount Rushmore. I don't know all of their names. However, Jack Payne was the name of the worker who was fired for yodeling.
Q: Did they ever mess up and start over? M.G.
A: Yes. In fact, part of Thomas Jefferson was originally carved on the OTHER side of George Washington. When the workers realized that the rock was not strong, Gutzon Borglum asked them to blast Jefferson's head off the mountain. After that, they began to carve Jefferson in the place where he is now.
Q: Why is Washington first? T.K.
A: Gutzon Borglum started with Washington because he wanted him to be the main figure. He carved Washington on the highest part of the mountain.

Q: How did you see with your glasses off?
A: Are you looking at my photograph on the book jacket of Who Carved the Mountain? This is one of my favorite pictures. Even though my glasses are off, I can still see quite well. (My glasses help me to see things that are up close.)
Q: Do any of the heads have initials on them? E.H.
A: Hmmm. I don't know if the workers carved their initials on the heads. If you were a worker, would you have carved your initials? What do you think Gutzon Borglum would have done if he found out?
Q: Why did they decide to carve only four faces? M.N.
A: There was not enough carvable rock to add more faces. But here's an interesting fact -- Some people did want a fifth face to be carved. In 1935, many people thought that the face of Susan B. Anthony should be added to Mount Rushmore. Gutzon Borglum wasn't against the idea of a woman. Rather, he explained that not enough rock remained that was strong enough to be carved.
Q: How tall are the faces?
A: 60 feet tall.
Q: How tall is Mount Rushmore? T.A.
A: 5,725 feet above sea level.
Q: Why did Gutzon Borglum carve Mount Rushmore?
A: He wanted the presidents' faces to represent the history and the ideals of the United States.
Q: What was the purpose of writing the Mount Rushmore book? A.K.
A: The idea for the book came from the Mount Rushmore History Association. They asked me to write a picture book about how and why Mount Rushmore was carved. I didn't think it would take much time to write the book. However, Who Carved the Mountain? The Story of Mount Rushmore took almost 18 months to research, write, and revise.
When this book was done, they asked me to write a book that would help older kids and adults think about Mount Rushmore and its meaning. This book is called Face to Face with Mount Rushmore. Since then, I've also written Mount Rushmore Memories and Four Famous Faces.
Q: Is this story real?
A: Yes, this story about the carving of Mount Rushmore is true. I love to write nonfiction (true stories) about things that are unusual and exciting. These were the kind of books I liked to read when I was a kid. I think that's why I like to write them now.
If you have more questions about Mount Rushmore, please visit the other Q&A pages or take a look at my books. If you have a question that hasn't been answered, please send it to me in an email. Thanks!
A: Are you looking at my photograph on the book jacket of Who Carved the Mountain? This is one of my favorite pictures. Even though my glasses are off, I can still see quite well. (My glasses help me to see things that are up close.)
Q: Do any of the heads have initials on them? E.H.
A: Hmmm. I don't know if the workers carved their initials on the heads. If you were a worker, would you have carved your initials? What do you think Gutzon Borglum would have done if he found out?
Q: Why did they decide to carve only four faces? M.N.
A: There was not enough carvable rock to add more faces. But here's an interesting fact -- Some people did want a fifth face to be carved. In 1935, many people thought that the face of Susan B. Anthony should be added to Mount Rushmore. Gutzon Borglum wasn't against the idea of a woman. Rather, he explained that not enough rock remained that was strong enough to be carved.
Q: How tall are the faces?
A: 60 feet tall.
Q: How tall is Mount Rushmore? T.A.
A: 5,725 feet above sea level.
Q: Why did Gutzon Borglum carve Mount Rushmore?
A: He wanted the presidents' faces to represent the history and the ideals of the United States.
Q: What was the purpose of writing the Mount Rushmore book? A.K.
A: The idea for the book came from the Mount Rushmore History Association. They asked me to write a picture book about how and why Mount Rushmore was carved. I didn't think it would take much time to write the book. However, Who Carved the Mountain? The Story of Mount Rushmore took almost 18 months to research, write, and revise.
When this book was done, they asked me to write a book that would help older kids and adults think about Mount Rushmore and its meaning. This book is called Face to Face with Mount Rushmore. Since then, I've also written Mount Rushmore Memories and Four Famous Faces.
Q: Is this story real?
A: Yes, this story about the carving of Mount Rushmore is true. I love to write nonfiction (true stories) about things that are unusual and exciting. These were the kind of books I liked to read when I was a kid. I think that's why I like to write them now.
If you have more questions about Mount Rushmore, please visit the other Q&A pages or take a look at my books. If you have a question that hasn't been answered, please send it to me in an email. Thanks!