Rushmore carvers

["Simon Brown" <moonsong@zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz>]

The documentary I previously referred to is the Public Broadcasting Service
'American Experience: Mount Rushmore'
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/rushmore/filmmore/index.html This website has
references to books and links to other sites.

There is a reference to 85lb air hammers used for drilling the blast holes,
but no mention of the size of the tools they called 'bumpers' used for
texturing the stone.

I read one of Lincoln Borglum's books (Mt Rushmore) which seemed to be
partly an attempt to smooth feathers that his father had ruffled. No mention
was made of work injuries on the mountain, although the website listed above
contains light-hearted references to some close calls. I can find no image
of workers wearing protection against noise, dust and flying particles,
although they may have removed their PPE for photos.

'Like many of the men who worked on Rushmore, Lincoln's lungs were
permanently scarred from breathing granite dust for so many years'
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/rushmore/peopleevents/p_lborglum.html

Don't be fooled by stone typing- some 'granites' have negligible silica
content, while some marbles and soapstones can contain silica and asbestos
http://web.princeton.edu/sites/ehs/artsafety/sec14.htm

Simon