Mount Rushmore Black Hills region of South Dakota in order to promote tourism in the region. His initial idea was to sculpt the Needles; however, Gutzon Borglum rejected the Needles because of the poor quality of the granite and strong opposition from American Indian groups. They settled on Mount Rushmore, which also has the advantage of facing southeast for maximum sun exposure. Robinson wanted it to feature American West heroes such as Lewis and Clark, Red Cloud, and Buffalo Bill Cody, but Borglum decided that the sculpture should have broader appeal and chose the four presidents. Senator Peter Norbeck sponsored the project
Absaroka (proposed state) also a motivation for the proposed state, as Mount Rushmore (constructed 1927–1941) would be within Absaroka according to some plans. In a craze for state secession felt by the public, state automobile license plates bearing the name were distributed, as well as pictures of "Miss Absaroka 1939". The movement was unsuccessful and fairly short-lived. The chief record of its existence comes from the Federal Writers' Project, which included a story about the plan as an example of Western eccentricity. Absaroka (proposed state) Absaroka, (pronounced ab-SOR-o-ka) was an area in the United States, comprising parts of the states of Montana, South