For many people, bucket list destinations are, almost by definition, found in exotic and distant locales. Typically appearing on travellers’ dream itineraries are such splendours as the Taj Mahal; the Egyptian pyramids; the ruins at Machu Picchu; the moai of Easter Island; and the Great Wall of China. However, while many world travellers dream of voyaging to the likes of India or China, comparatively fewer explorers — particularly among those based outside the U.S. — aspire to descend upon the American state of South Dakota. But earlier this month, I visited a genuine wonder that’s located in that great state of South Dakota: Mount Rushmore. My conclusion is that Rushmore merits mention among the most impressive man-made landmarks that the world has to offer.
During the same excursion that brought me to Rushmore, I also swung by the Crazy Horse Memorial, which is nearby to Rushmore in South Dakota’s Black Hills. Although Crazy Horse is still under construction and is quite a long way from completion, it will one day rank alongside Rushmore for majesty and grandeur.
Rushmoring: paying homage to four Presidents on a mountain
Historical background
From 1927 to 1941, under the supervision of Danish-American sculptor Gutzon Borglum (1867-1941), the faces of four U.S. Presidents were carved into the sheer granite face of the mountain. But let’s take a step back to reflect upon how the idea for such a stupendous creation arose. The notion of carving replicas of legendary personages in the Black Hills was first conceived of by Jonah Leroy “Doane” Robinson (1856-1946), who served for a time as South Dakota’s state historian, and who sought to create a tourist attraction. As envisioned by Robinson, the folks depicted would have been pioneers and other legendary figures of the Western United States, such as the explorers Merriwether Lewis and William Clark; showman William “Buffalo Bill” Cody; and Native American leader Red Cloud. But when Borglum was commissioned to bring the project to realization, he had a better idea. Continue reading
H-Bomb's Worldwide Karaoke 