Scotts Bluff National Monument

Scotts Bluff National Monument
Covered Wagon on the Oregon Trail at Scotts Bluff
Map showing the location of Scotts Bluff National Monument
Map showing the location of Scotts Bluff National Monument
Scotts Bluff
Map showing the location of Scotts Bluff National Monument
Map showing the location of Scotts Bluff National Monument
Scotts Bluff
LocationScotts Bluff County, Nebraska, U.S.
Nearest cityGering, Nebraska
Coordinates41°50′05″N 103°42′26″W / 41.83472°N 103.70722°W / 41.83472; -103.70722[1]
Area3,005 acres (12.16 km2)[2]
CreatedDecember 12, 1919 (1919-December-12)
Visitors166,007 (in 2019)[3]
Governing bodyNational Park Service
WebsiteScotts Bluff National Monument

Scotts Bluff National Monument is located west of the City of Gering in western Nebraska, United States. This National Park Service site protects over 3,000 acres of historic overland trail remnants, mixed-grass prairie, rugged badlands, towering bluffs and riparian area along the North Platte River. The park boasts over 100,000 annual visitors.

The monument's north bluff is named after Hiram Scott, who was a clerk for the Rocky Mountain Fur Company and died near the bluff in 1828. The bluff served as an important landmark on the Oregon Trail, California Trail and Pony Express Trail, and was visible at a distance from the Mormon Trail. Over 250,000 westward emigrants passed by Scotts Bluff between 1843 and 1869. It was the second-most referred to landmark on the Emigrant Trails in pioneer journals and diaries.

Scotts Bluff County and the city of Scottsbluff, Nebraska, were named after the landmark.[4]

  1. ^ "Scotts Bluff National Monument". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  2. ^ "Listing of acreage – December 31, 2011" (XLSX). Land Resource Division, National Park Service. Retrieved March 19, 2012. (National Park Service Acreage Reports)
  3. ^ "Annual Visitation Report by Years: 2009 to 2019". nps.gov. National Park Service. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  4. ^ Fitzpatrick, Lillian L. (1960). Nebraska Place-Names. University of Nebraska Press. pp. 128–130. ISBN 0-8032-5060-6.

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