Register Cliff
Encyclopedia
Register Cliff is a sandstone
cliff and featured key navigational landmark prominently listed in the 19th century guidebooks about the Oregon Trail
, and a place where many emigrants chiseled the names of their families on the soft stones of the cliff it was one of the key checkpoint landmarks for parties heading west along the Platte River
valley west of Fort John, Wyoming which allowed travelers to verify they were on the correct path up to South Pass
and not moving into impassable mountain terrainsgeographically, it is on the eastern ascent of the Continental divide
leading upward out of the great plains
in the east of the U.S. state
of Wyoming
. It is notable as a historic landmark for 'registering' hundreds of emigrants on the Oregon Trail (thus also the other northern Emigrant Trail
s that split off farther west such as the California Trail
and Mormon Trail
) who came to follow custom and inscribed their names on its rocks during the western migrations of the 19th century. An estimated 500,000 emigrants used these trails from 1843–1869, with up to one-tenth dying along the way, usually due to disease. Register Cliff is the eastern most of the three prominent emigrant "recording areas" located within Wyoming, the other two being Independence Rock
and Names Hill
.
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
cliff and featured key navigational landmark prominently listed in the 19th century guidebooks about the Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
The Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
, and a place where many emigrants chiseled the names of their families on the soft stones of the cliff it was one of the key checkpoint landmarks for parties heading west along the Platte River
Platte River
The Platte River is a major river in the state of Nebraska and is about long. Measured to its farthest source via its tributary the North Platte River, it flows for over . The Platte River is a tributary of the Missouri River, which in turn is a tributary of the Mississippi River which flows to...
valley west of Fort John, Wyoming which allowed travelers to verify they were on the correct path up to South Pass
South Pass
South Pass is two mountain passes on the Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountains in southwestern Wyoming. The passes are located in a broad low region, 35 miles broad, between the Wind River Range to the north and the Oregon Buttes and Great Divide Basin to the south, in southwestern Fremont...
and not moving into impassable mountain terrainsgeographically, it is on the eastern ascent of the Continental divide
Continental divide
A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not connected to the open sea...
leading upward out of the great plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
in the east of the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
. It is notable as a historic landmark for 'registering' hundreds of emigrants on the Oregon Trail (thus also the other northern Emigrant Trail
Emigrant Trail
The Emigrant Trails were the northern networks of overland wagon trails throughout the American West, used by emigrants from the eastern United States to settle lands west of the Interior Plains during the overland migrations of the mid-19th century...
s that split off farther west such as the California Trail
California Trail
The California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California...
and Mormon Trail
Mormon Trail
The Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300 mile route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868...
) who came to follow custom and inscribed their names on its rocks during the western migrations of the 19th century. An estimated 500,000 emigrants used these trails from 1843–1869, with up to one-tenth dying along the way, usually due to disease. Register Cliff is the eastern most of the three prominent emigrant "recording areas" located within Wyoming, the other two being Independence Rock
Independence Rock (Wyoming)
Independence Rock is a large granite rock, approximately high, in southwestern Natrona County in the U.S. state of Wyoming, along Wyoming Highway 220. During the middle of the 19th century, the rock was a prominent and well-known landmark on the Oregon, Mormon and California emigrant trails. It...
and Names Hill
Names Hill
Names Hill is a bluff located on the bank of the Green River in the U.S. state of Wyoming, where travelers on the Oregon and California trails carved their names into the rock. It one of three notable "recording areas" along the emigrant trails in Wyoming along with Register Cliff and Independence...
.
See also
- Guernsey State ParkGuernsey State ParkLake Guernsey State Park, also known as Guernsey State Park Historic District, Lake Guernsey Park, Guernsey Lake Park, or Guernsey State Park, is a historic district and state park near Guernsey, Wyoming...
- Oregon TrailOregon TrailThe Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
- Oregon Trail Ruts (Guernsey, Wyoming)Oregon Trail Ruts (Guernsey, Wyoming)Oregon Trail Ruts is a preserved site of wagon ruts of the Oregon Trail on the North Platte River, about .5 miles south of Guernsey, Wyoming. The Oregon Trail here was winding up towards South Pass. Wagon wheels, draft animals, and people wore down the trail about two to six feet into a...
External links
- Register Cliff page, Wyoming Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources
- Register Cliff info from the Wyoming State Historic Preservation Office
- List of names on Register Cliff, Wyoming State Library