1868
A treaty between the U.S. government and the native Sioux gives the Sioux property rights in perpetuity over a territory that includes the Black Hills.
1876
After gold is discovered in the Black Hills (1874), prospectors move in and displace the Sioux.
1885
Charles Rushmore goes to the Black Hills to inspect mining claims; Mount Rushmore is named in his honor.
1923
South Dakota state historian Doane Robinson writes to eminent Chicago sculptor Lorado Taft proposing that one of the "Needles" -- spiky rock formations -- of the Black Hills be carved in the likenesses of a "notable Sioux such as Red Cloud" and other Western figures. Taft responds by stating that he is in poor health. 1924
Robinson contacts Gutzon …show more content…
August: Borglum arrives in South Dakota and declares that he will carve a mountain, not the Needles. He decides on Mount Rushmore as the best site. Thomas Jefferson and Theodore Roosevelt are to be included in the sculptural program.
October 1: Rushmore is dedicated.
1927
President Calvin Coolidge spends a summer in the Black Hills.
August 10: A second dedication featuring Coolidge is arranged. Borglum invites Coolidge to write the text of the Entablature.
October 4: Actual carving begins.
1929
June 6: The Mount Rushmore National Memorial Commission is created. Rapid City mayor John Boland is named president of the Commission's executive committee.
1930
April: Borglum releases Coolidge's Entablature text -- with unlabeled "edits". Criticized by pundits, Coolidge withdraws from the entire scheme.
July 4: A dedication of the Washington head is held.
1931
Workers carving the Jefferson head encounter problems; the stone to Washington's right, where they have been working, is not strong enough to support the sculpture.
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1933
Gutzon's son Lincoln Borglum begins full-time work at