Construction of Mount Rushmore

Borglum also envisaged other grand extensions to his plan, but a combination of hard granite, looming war in Europe, and lack of funding conspired against him.

In 1998, a titanium vault was installed in the granite floor of the unfinished hall, and filled with 16 porcelain enamel panels that include the United States Constitution and other important historical documents.

A walking trail and boardwalk travels through the forests to the sculptor's studio, now a museum with information about the construction of the monument.

Borglums original design was a sculpture of each president intended to go down to their waists, but time constraints and funding only provided for their heads.

A few hundred workers, most of whom were miners, sculptors, or rock climbers, used dynamite, jackhammers, and chisels to remove material from the mountain.

Due to the economic instability of the United States caused by the Great Depression, it was completed in seven years, and dedicated to the public on Independence Day 1934.

While Theodore Roosevelt's head was being constructed, accommodations for tourists were being built, including plumbing, lighting, and a visitor center.

The Hall of Records was to include a grand entrance to an 80-by-100-foot vault carved directly into the granite face of the small canyon behind Lincoln's head.

In 1938, Borglum and his crew began to carve this grand hall, where he envisaged the original Declaration of Independence and United States Constitution should eventually be stored.

But a combination of unexpectedly hard granite, looming war in Europe, and lack of funding conspired against Borglum's last dream, though his plans became more elaborate as his team rushed to complete this work.

A titanium vault was installed in the granite floor of the unfinished hall, and filled with 16 porcelain enamel panels that include the United States Constitution and other important historical documents.