Beating the Rush at Mount Rushmore

by Ashley Cheung, Principal & Founder, VPG

America turns 250 in a few days, and I already got a head start on the celebration.

At the end of May, I took my mom on a national parks tour through the American West. The highlight? Mount Rushmore. From photographs, the monument always looked impossibly grand. In person, as I pulled up on the tour bus, I felt the same rush of excitement, though it seemed much smaller.

The day had its start in drama. Earlier, a fellow traveler slipped on a wet rock coming down Devil's Tower in the rain. Our tour guide didn't miss a beat; ambulance arranged, emergency room sorted, the group kept calm and were incredibly compassionate. The man was a pro.

By the time we reached Mount Rushmore, the energy had shifted to pure awe. We strolled past state plaques, stopped at the ones from states we'd lived in, and soaked it all in. I walked away with an American Eagle plushie embroidered with Mount Rushmore, my very own souvenir for adding South Dakota to my growing list of all 50 states visited.

A little history worth knowing: Construction began in 1927 under sculptor Gutzon Borglum, who spent 14 years carving 60-foot granite faces of Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt, and Lincoln into the Black Hills. Dedicated in 1941, it's been called the "Shrine of Democracy" ever since, and it earns the name.

The site has evolved into a full national memorial with trails, exhibits, and interpretive programming run by the National Park Service. Fireworks were a beloved July 4th tradition for years; however, they were paused due to concerns about environmental impacts and effects on the traditional cultural landscape of surrounding tribes.

Now, they're back for the big one: South Dakota's Governor and the U.S. Secretary of the Interior confirmed fireworks will return for America's 250th.

Mount Rushmore is hosting three days of events July 2–4, 2026, with military concerts, cultural demonstrations, and a fireworks show on July 3rd.

I'm so glad we beat the rush to see this incredible monument. Happy 250th, America, the land of the free and the home of the brave!