Gutzom Borglum starting searching for a site for his sculpture in August of 1926 and original ideas of sculpting in the Needles on the tall rock formations were abandoned because people were opposed to tampering with the beauty of nature and he felt a carved needle would look too much like a totem pole. So he continued to search until he found a mountain with a huge sheet face of stone as free of faults and minerals as possible. He found Mount Rushmore named after a young New York lawyer who came to the Hills in 1905 to inspect a client’s tin mines. Borglum explained his choices of the four heads: Washington - because he was the father of our country - dedicated in 1930. Jefferson - because he expressed our beliefs in the Declaration of Independence and expanded our territory with the Louisiana Purchase - dedicated 1936. Lincoln - for preserving the Union - dedicated 1937. Teddy Roosevelt - because he fulfilled the expansionist’s dream by linking the oceans with the Panama Canal - dedicated 1939. Each head, brow to chin, is as tall as the entire Great Sphinx of Egypt. Each head measures 60 feet from chin to the top of the head. Each nose is 20 feet long, each mouth 18 feet wide and the eyes are 11 feet across. Borglum started his carving in 1927 at the age of 60 and he and his crew of hard-rock miners carved for over fourteen years. Unfortunately, Borglum died in 1941 and the final dedication was not until 50 years later. His son Lincoln Borglum supervised the completion of the heads, and carving stopped in October of 1941.