High on a granite cliff in South Dakota's Black Hills tower the huge carved faces of four American presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt. Together they constitute the world's largest piece of sculpture.

The massive tableau inspires awe, curiosity and bemusement. How, and when, was it done? What obstacles were overcome to cut the 60-foot-high heads out of a wilderness mountain? Who possessed the audacity -- or lunacy -- to create such a gargantuan work?

The story of Mount Rushmore's creation is as bizarre and wonderful as the monument itself. It is the tale of a hyperactive, temperamental artist whose talent and determination propelled the project, even as his ego and obsession threatened to tear it apart. It is the story of hucksterism and hyperbole, of a massive public works project in the midst of an economic depression. And it is the story of dozens of ordinary Americans who suddenly found themselves suspended high on a cliff face with drills and hammers as a Danish sculptor they considered insane directed them in the creation what some would call a monstrosity, and others a masterpiece.

Film Description
A synopsis of the film, plus film credits.

Transcript
The program transcript.

Primary Sources
Explore some writings related to South Dakota's best-known attraction.

Further Reading
A list of books, articles, and Web sites relating to the program topic.

	AMERICAN EXPERIENCE is closed captioned for deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers by The Caption Center at WGBH.
	A special narration track is added to the series by Descriptive Video Service® (DVS®), a service of WGBH to provide access to people who are blind or visually impaired. The DVS narration is available on the SAP channel of stereo TVs and VCRs.