The Final Drilling at Mount Rushmore
On October 31, 1941, the final drilling at Mount Rushmore took place under Lincoln Borglum’s direction.
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Work Stops
On October 31, 1941, the final drilling at Mount Rushmore took place under Lincoln Borglum’s direction. The date marks the end of the carving campaign.
A Change in Leadership
Gutzon Borglum had died earlier that year. His son oversaw the final period rather than the original sculptor personally completing the work.
The Finished Form and the Larger Plan
The monument’s visible heads were not every element once envisioned. Ending the project did not mean that all proposed additions had been realized.
A Place With Contested Meaning
The national memorial occupies a landscape whose significance extends beyond the sculpture. Its patriotic interpretation coexists with Indigenous histories and objections.
Completion as a Historical Event
The anniversary concerns the end of work, not the beginning of construction. Photographs of final drilling and the resulting form can explain both the achievement and its limits.
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