20: Wait… Does Mount Rushmore Suck? (Part 3)

There are so many reasons why Mount Rushmore National Monument *shouldn’t* exist. Right from the start, there was opposition. Environmentalists called the proposed monument a desecration. Native Americans rightly asserted that the Black Hills — and specifically the Six Grandfathers Mountain (aka Mount Rushmore) — was their property. But that didn’t stop Gutzon Borglum, or his circle of high-powered supporters. Together, they pushed forward. They even manipulated a president! Thanks to a mix of hubris, luck, and money, Mount Rushmore National Monument began to take shape. Remember, kids, history hoes always cite their sources! For this episode, Kristin pulled from: The book, “The Carving of Mount Rushmore,” by Rex Alan Smith The documentary, “Mount Rushmore” “The Sordid History of Mount Rushmore,” by Matthew Shaer for Smithsonian Magazine “Biography: Gutzon Borglum,” PBS.org “The heartbreaking, controversial history of Mount Rushmore,” by Amy McKeever for National Geographic “Why Native Americans Have Protested Mount Rushmore,” by Jodi Rave for History.com “Are treaties perpetual? United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians,” by Reid Benson for teachingamericanhistory.org “The largest mass execution in US history,” Death Penalty Information Center The video, “The dark history of Mount Rushmore,” for TedEd.com “BIOGRAPHY: Native Americans and Mount Rushmore,” PBS.org “United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians,” Encyclopedia of the Great Plains Are you enjoying An Old Timey Podcast? Then please leave us a 5-star rating and review wherever you listen to podcasts! Are you *really* enjoying An Old Timey Podcast? Well, calm down, history ho! You can get more of us on Patreon at patreon.com/oldtimeypodcast. At the $5 level, you’ll get a monthly bonus episode (with video!), access to our 90’s style chat room, plus the entire back catalog of bonus episodes from Kristin’s previous podcast, Let’s Go To Court.