You've probably seen the postcard. Four massive, stoic faces staring out over the Black Hills of South Dakota. It's one of those images that’s basically burned into the collective American brain from the time we're in kindergarten. But honestly, if you stood at the viewing platform today and someone asked you to name all four—and more importantly, why those specific guys are up there—would you pass the test?
Most people nail the big three: Washington, Lincoln, and Jefferson. But that fourth guy? People stumble. They guess Teddy Roosevelt (correct), but then they can’t tell you why he’s sharing a mountain with the literal "Father of his Country."
The story of who's on Mt Rushmore isn't just a list of names. It’s a wild, slightly chaotic tale involving a prickly sculptor with a massive ego, a mountain that was literally stolen, and a secret room that most tourists never even see.
The Mount Rushmore Lineup: The Four Faces
Let's get the names out of the way first. From left to right, you’re looking at George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln.
Gutzon Borglum, the lead sculptor, didn't just pick these guys because they were popular. He wanted the monument to represent the first 150 years of American history. He called it the "Shrine of Democracy." Each president was chosen to symbolize a specific "phase" of the country's growth.
George Washington: The Foundation
Washington is the obvious choice. He represents the birth of the United States. He’s the anchor of the whole sculpture, which makes sense because without him, there’s no country to carve into a mountain in the first place.
Thomas Jefferson: The Expansion
Jefferson is there because he doubled the size of the country. Think: The Louisiana Purchase. Interestingly, Jefferson wasn't always meant to be to Washington's left. Borglum originally started carving Jefferson on Washington’s right. But after 18 months of work, they realized the granite was too weak. They had to literally blast Jefferson’s face off the mountain with dynamite and start over on the other side.
Theodore Roosevelt: The Development
This is the one that trips people up. Why Teddy? Well, Borglum was a huge fan of him personally, but officially, Roosevelt represents the "development" of the nation. He provided the muscle for the Panama Canal and was a massive conservationist. He’s the 20th-century representative on the hill.
Abraham Lincoln: The Preservation
Lincoln is the closer. He represents the preservation of the Union. His presence is meant to show that the United States survived its greatest internal threat—the Civil War—and came out as a unified nation.
The Sculptor with a Massive Ego
Gutzon Borglum was not an easy man to work with. That’s an understatement. He was a perfectionist, he was notoriously "difficult," and he had some pretty ugly personal beliefs.
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Before he ever touched South Dakota soil, Borglum was working on a massive Confederate memorial at Stone Mountain in Georgia. He got fired from that job after a huge falling out with the project’s backers. In a fit of rage, he smashed his clay models so they couldn't use his designs.
He brought that same intensity to the Black Hills.
Borglum was also deeply involved with the Ku Klux Klan during his time in Georgia. While historians debate whether he truly believed in their "cause" or was just using them for funding and political connections, it’s a dark stain on the history of the monument that you won't find on the official brochures.
It’s Actually a Stolen Mountain
Here is something they don't always mention in history books: the land wasn't exactly "available."
The Black Hills, where Mt Rushmore sits, are sacred to the Lakota Sioux. They call the mountain Tunkasila Sakpe Paha, or the Six Grandfathers.
Under the Treaty of 1868, the U.S. government promised the Lakota that this land would belong to them "in perpetuity." But "perpetuity" lasted about six years. Once gold was discovered in the hills in 1874, the government did a total 180 and seized the land back.
To many Indigenous people, seeing the faces of four white men—some of whom presided over the displacement of Native tribes—carved into their most sacred mountain feels less like a "Shrine of Democracy" and more like a permanent insult.
In 1980, the Supreme Court actually ruled that the land was taken illegally. They offered the Sioux a settlement of over $100 million. The tribes refused the money. They don't want the cash; they want the land back.
The Secret Room You Can't Visit
Behind Abraham Lincoln’s forehead, there is a hidden tunnel.
Borglum had this grand vision for a "Hall of Records." It was supposed to be a massive room where the most important documents in American history—the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution—would be stored. He wanted future civilizations to know why the mountain was carved.
The project was never finished.
Borglum died in March 1941, and with World War II looming, the government pulled the plug on the funding. Today, the Hall of Records is just a 70-foot-long empty tunnel. In 1998, they did finally put a titanium vault in the floor of the entry containing porcelain tablets that explain the history of the monument, just in case humanity forgets a few thousand years from now.
But no, you can't go in there. It’s strictly off-limits to the public.
What it Took to Build It
It took 14 years and 400 workers to finish the job. And honestly, it’s a miracle no one died.
- 90% of the mountain was carved with dynamite. They weren't just using tiny chisels. "Powder monkeys" would set off precise explosions to blast away the rock within inches of the final "skin" of the faces.
- The workers were mostly miners. These guys weren't artists. They were locals looking for work during the Great Depression. They were paid about $8 a day to hang off the side of a mountain in "bosun chairs" while using jackhammers.
- The total cost? Just under $1 million. In today's money, that's roughly $20 million. For a massive sculpture on the side of a mountain, that’s actually kinda a bargain.
Why Nobody is Being Added
Every few years, a rumor goes around that a new face is being added to the mountain. Reagan? Obama? Trump?
The answer is a hard no.
The National Park Service has been very clear: there is no room left on the mountain. The granite that remains is structurally unstable and won't support another carving. Attempting to add a fifth face would likely cause the existing ones to crack or collapse.
So, what you see is what you get. The four presidents currently on Mt Rushmore are the only ones who will ever be there.
Planning Your Visit (The Real Way)
If you're actually going to go see who's on Mt Rushmore, don't just stand at the main terrace.
- Walk the Presidential Trail. It’s a 0.6-mile loop that gets you much closer to the base of the mountain. You’ll get a perspective of the scale that you just can’t see from the parking lot.
- Go at Night. They do a lighting ceremony every evening. It’s a bit patriotic-heavy, but seeing the faces illuminated against the pitch-black South Dakota sky is honestly pretty cool.
- Check out the Sculptor's Studio. It’s a separate building where you can see the original 1/12th scale models Borglum used. It helps you realize how much of the original plan—like the presidents' torsos—never actually got built.
- Visit the Crazy Horse Memorial. About 30 minutes away, there is another mountain carving in progress. It’s a response to Mt Rushmore, featuring the Lakota leader Crazy Horse. It’s been under construction since 1948 and is entirely privately funded.
Actionable Takeaways
If you want to truly understand the monument, do these three things:
- Read the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie. It gives you the legal context for why the land is so controversial today.
- Look up the Hall of Records vault contents. Knowing what they chose to leave for "future humans" tells you a lot about how the creators viewed their own legacy.
- Watch for the "honeycombing" marks. When you're at the memorial, look for the tiny drill holes on the unfinished parts of the mountain. It shows you the exact physical process the workers used to smooth out the granite after the dynamite did its job.
The monument is more than just a photo op. It’s a complicated, messy, and impressive piece of American engineering that tells a story far deeper than just four faces in the stone.