Mt. Rushmore: A monumental disappointment
The four faces: famous for being famous
By Tim
Mt. Rushmore is a publicity stunt posing as a national park unit.
Park units come in all shapes and sizes, from the wild natural expanses of parks like Rocky Mountain or Yellowstone, the cultural and political importance of a place like Gettysburg, to the purely commemorative spots like the Lincoln Memorial or the St. Louis Arch. What they have in common is the goal of preserving what is best about our nation for the enjoyment of future generations, whether you define “best” as natural or cultural.
Mt. Rushmore is a strange combination of cultural and natural assets presented in a contradictory, ambiguous, and commercialized manner. For me, it was a disappointment of … well, monumental … proportions.
My disappointment with the memorial is a combination of things.
First, it’s not that I don’t like the commemorative type of park. The Lincoln Memorial, for example, leaves me with a sense of awe every time I visit it. The statue of Lincoln and examples of his writing allow me to experience a historical figure in a personal way.
In contrast, the faces on Mt. Rushmore convey little if anything about the people whose images are blasted into the stone. They are remote, impersonal, literally unapproachable. Mt. Rushmore did not inspire a sense of awe in me.
It’s not that I don’t like parks created merely to draw visitors to a place and idea. The St. Louis arch was a publicity stunt created to revive the city’s waterfront and attract visitors. But it’s also an engineering marvel and a monument that reflects something about that place’s significance in American history as the gateway to the West. It’s got a reason to be where it is and look like it does.
But what are Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and … who’s the fourth guy, oh, yeah, Teddy Roosevelt … doing on a cliffside in the Black Hills of South Dakota? What is their relevance to that place, other than the fact that the raw goods of their assembly (rock) were located there? By that standard, most of the national Capitol should be located in some quarry in Tennessee.
The Black Hills are beautiful and unique. They really don’t need our design help. I’m not saying tear the monument down. But why build it in the first place?
The answer is that a son of South Dakota thought it would be a great idea and attract visitors. He got a sculptor and a majority of Congress to go along with him. A memorial is born.
Finally, the Black Hills are a traditional sacred site of the Lakota and other native Americans. I don’t know the history of Mt. Rushmore’s interpretive plan (each park has one), but it’s obvious that the park service has attempted to answer native American concerns with some modest concessions. There were a few teepees and a native musician at the site. But nothing in their presentation told me why these elements were there, if I didn’t know already. It would have been far better to have presented these elements in some manner that acknowledged the difficult relationship between the white guys up on the mountain and the native American elements down below. I’ve seen other museums and parks do it (notably the museum of natural history in New York in their new interpretations of their famous — and inaccurate — depictions of animal life).
Seven faces: Which one is Teddy Roosevelt?
Finally, the park recently underwent a major construction of a huge granite amphitheater used in a nightime lighting ceremony. It reminded me of a Disney World amphitheater we visited a few years back. There was also a walkway with granite pillars (one for each state) and a huge granite pavillion. Oh, and a huge granite parking garage. The construction was designed to complement the memorial. But frankly, it was more of a competition, like a showy frame for a bland painting.
Obviously, I’m down on this park. My disappointment comes from the many other great park experiences we had on our trip — the arch, Rocky Mountains, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, North Cascades, Badlands — and the many other parks I’ve visited throughout my life.
I think everyone would be better off if the nation turned over Mt. Rushmore to the South Dakota Chamber of Commerce. They in turn could subcontract to Disney. I bet the light show would be better. Maybe they could replace Teddy with Mickey. At least people would recognize the mouse.
