History is here, in Highland Mills

Highland Mills - Despite chilly winds and a faint sun, members of the Woodbury Historical Society gathered Saturday, Dec. 4, in front of the Rushmore Memorial Library in Highland Mills to dedicate a marker designating the building as a state historic site. Joining them were several town and village officials as well as members of the community. It took 25 years to get the designation and two years to get the sign but the society never wavered in its determination to gain recognition for the building that now serves as the headquarters of WHS. The pudding stone structure was built in 1923 as Woodbury’s first library through the benevolence of Charles Rushmore and his family who lived in Highland Mills at the time. Rushmore is more well-known for the mountain in South Dakota which is named after him and which now bears the likenesses of several U.S. Presidents. Rushmore was a young attorney in the early 20th century who was sent to South Dakota to investigate some mining enterprises for a client. He uncovered some wrongdoing and in doing so, saved his clients and others from financial ruin. In appreciation for his diligence, the governor of South Dakota decreed that the nameless rock formation would henceforth be known as “Mount Rushmore.” Besides now being a state historic site, the Rushmore building has also been added to the National Historic Registry by the federal government.