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The Passing of the Drills by Eugene M. Wiese

This picture was taken by my late father-in-law, John Albert Schreiber, within moments of the passing of the drills to Gutzon Borglum that would be used to drill the first holes in the face of Mt. Rushmore for the first blasting at the start of the Memorial. President Calvin Coolidge (the gentleman in the large ten-gallon hat near the center of the picture) gave the drills to sculptor Borglum who immediately thereafter ascended in a swing chair to the face of Mt. Rushmore where he drilled the holes to start the sculpting of the famous Memorial. The drills passed to him by the President were made by Matt Cindel, an employee of Mr. Schreiber at the mine owned by Mr. Schreiber near Lead, South Dakota. Also in my possession is a closer shot of the President and others on the stage, and also a picture of my late mother-in-law, Dorothy Catherine (Reckitt) Schreiber sitting in the crowd observing the ceremonies.