Kearney, NE, to Rapid City, SD
Western Nebraska is a tale of small towns dotting the plains on either side of the Platte River. The Platte, famously described as “a mile wide and an inch deep”, was the superhighway of the 1800’s. Running almost due east across the length of Nebraska, the Platte River drainage provided the fastest, easiest route across the Rocky Mountains. The existence of an Indian trail crossing the Rockies was first discovered by the Astor party, which used the network of trails to cross the Rockies in 1811 as they headed back east after founding Fort Astor on the Columbia River in present day Oregon. Since there were so few settlers and trappers at the time, the trail was not exploited until 1834 when Benjamin Bonneville, financed by the Astor Company, led an expedition west along the Platte to Oregon Country. Famed author Washington Irving wrote about the expedition and people in the east became aware that a feasible path to Oregon existed. The wave of emigrants was on. In 1843 an estimated 1,000 emigrants hit the trail and in the ensuing years, drawn west by tales of a veritable Garden of Eden in the Northwest and later the lure of gold, an estimate 500,000 people traveled the trail until its’ eventual demise after 1869 with the completion of the transcontinental railroad. The Platte River is not a single channel, but rather a braid of channels as it traverses the flat plains of central Nebraska. The Oregon Trail is actually an umbrella title for a collection of trails than ran along both the north and south sides of the Platte through most of Nebraska, only coming together after the juncture of the Platte’s two major tributaries just east of present day North Platte. The South Platte rises out of the Colorado Rockies north of Denver; the North Platte rises in northern Colorado but heads due north into Wyoming before turning south east. Emigrants started out from various cities along the roughly 200 miles stretch of the Missouri River between Independence, Missouri, on the south and Council Bluffs, Iowa, on the north. The various trails came together along the Platte River at Fort Kearney in central Nebraska, and essentially became one superhighway until crossing South Pass in Wyoming and reaching Fort Bridger. There the trail splits with the Oregon Trail heading northwest and the California Trail heading southwest. Most pioneers set out from Independence, Missouri (the Oregon and California Trails in red on the map below); fewer from St. Joseph, Missouri (orange on the map)i; and others (mostly Mormon) from Council Bluffs, Iowa (the Mormon Trail, drawn in blue). Wherever they started from, all came together at a point near the western point of a large island in the Platte and travelled together through the Rocky Mountains.That point, represented by the dot on the map, was Fort Kearney (pronounced “car-knee”.)
Due to the treacherous nature of the Platte, shifting channels with each spring flood, the fort was established in 1848 about two miles south of the river. The fort, really a military reservation, was huge, ten miles square. Fort Kearney was the first fort in what was eventually a string of forts along the trails leading west designed to protect travelers. Only used for 23 years, the fort also served as a Pony Express station, a stagecoach stop on the Overland Trail, and towards the end sheltered crews building the Union Pacific Railroad. Timber is scarce on the prairie so when the fort was decommissioned in 1871 the structures were dismantled and materials used elsewhere, the land opened to homesteaders. Today part of the fort grounds are a state park, no original buildings remain.
A rare 1858 picture shows part of the fort at that time.
A reconstruction of the blacksmith shop built with sod and frame shows how most of the structures on the fort were built from the available materials, stretching what little wood was available.
As I’ve learned from past travels throughout the west, the stereotypical vision of a western fort surrounded by walls simply didn’t exist. Fort Kearney was wide open but a structure resembling the forts of our fantasies did exist, built to protect horses from thieves. This reconstruction is the only other major structure on the grounds.
A small museum is in the visitors center, housing various artifacts found by local farmers over the years as well as some from the grounds of the fort. A collection of clay pipes is an interesting picture into ordinary life of the time.
When the railroads came through in 1871 a junction was established north of the river where the Burlington and Missouri Railroad joined its’ tracks with those of the Union Pacific The town of Kearney Junction was established and named after the fort, though miss. -spelled with the addition of the “e”. The new spelling was adopted and the town name shortened to just Kearney. Today Kearney continues to sit astride a major transportation corridor, I-80, and marks its’ distinction with a dramatic arch over the interstate.
Known as “The Archway”, the structure houses a museum documenting the evolution of the transporation corridor through a walk past dioramas depicting the evolution of the modes of travel along the river. The arch is actually two stories tall, one walks above the interstate and back during the experience. The entrance plaza features a bronze sculpture the memorializes the true experience of the Martin brothers who were attacked by Indians while putting up hay. They fled the attack on horseback, where struck by arrows and fell to the ground where they were left for dead. Remarkably they survived.
Inside an escalator rises up to the diorama entrance.
Once up the escalator the journey through time begins. My poor Canon One-Shot had a hard time in the dim light so many of the pictures are slightly out of focus.
In 1912 Indianapolis Motor Speedway founder Carl Fisher proposed creating the country’s first oast-to-coast highway in time for the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco. The result was the 3,389 Lincoln Highway from San Francisco to New York, following the Great Platte River Road through Kearney.
Inside the Roadside Diner windows let you look out at the interstate below.
Heading west from Kearney Nebraska spreads out before us. The broad Platte Valley stretches out for miles on both sides of the tree-lined river, a seemingly endless sea of corn.
This is the same route that the Pony Express travelled. Storied in the lore of the West, the Pony Express actually only operated for 18 months, from April 3, 1860, to October 24, 1861, but during that span reduced the time for messages to travel between the east and west coasts to ten days. The completion of the transcontinental telegraph in 1861 ended the Pony Express. While it operated, 120 men and 400 horses utilized 186 stations across the west. The stations were about 10 miles apart and at each station the rider would switch to a fresh horse and continue on with the mail pouch. An original Pony Express station, originally built in 1854 southwest of Gothenburg, NE, was moved to a city park in Gothenburg where it is now the visitors center and a small museum. The 1854 building predates the Pony Express, it originally saw use as a fur trading post and a ranch house.
The railroads continue to parallel the highway along the Platte and in virtually every small town that straddles the tracks I see these pedestrian walkways, often the second tallest structure in town (the first, of course, is the ever present grain elevator!)
As we approach the place where the Platte is formed by the joining of the South Platte and North Platte Rivers a line of bluffs begin to show to the south.
The town of North Platte sits between the two rivers just west of the confluence. It began as a railroad town in 1868 and is still a railroad town. During the late 1800’s famed western showman Buffalo Bill Cody made his home on a ranch (Scout’s Rest) just north of the railroads. North Platte was a convenient home base for him as it took three trains to transport his “Wild, Wild West Show” around the nation and the proximity between his ranch and the railroad made caring and transporting for his animals easier. Since I visit his ranch after the season is over all I can do is take a picture of his house and the barn.
Through the years North Platte’s importance to the railroads grew and in 1995 the Guinness Book of Records recognized it as being home to the world’s largest rail yard, Bailey Yard. Officially known as a railroad classification yard, Bailey Yard is a site owned by the Union Pacific Railroad where locomotives and cars are sorted, serviced and repaired before heading out all over the United States. It is enormous, roughly 8 miles long and nearly two miles wide. The Golden Spike Tower which serves as the visitor’s center, is 100 feet tall and rises from the corn fields just east of North Platte.
An elevator takes the visitor up to the open air deck on the 7th floor and the enclosed observation deck on the eighth floor. Spectacular views are available on all sides. The facility is so large that it was a challenge taking pictures that could show the scope of the yard. Here are views of the yard to the northwest and northeast.
East the town of North Platte sits a couple of miles away beyond a fall corn maze and fields.
South the view is across the visitor parking lot (note the Lunch Box in the crisp fall sun) towards the South Platte River hidden in the thin line of trees in the distance.
This graphic details the schematics of the yard as well as some of the data about its’ operation.
Travelling west from North Platte on Highway 30 along the South Platte River we reach Ogalalla, NE, where, like the pioneers, our path turn northwest and climbs up out of the South Platte Valley and across a rolling plateau for about 20 miles before descending into the North Platte Valley. Huge fields of corn blanket the land along side of a number of enormous cattle feedlots that tend to hug the bottom of the gentle hills..
The road begins to descend towards the North Platte. This was really the first test of the pioneers on the Oregon Trail as previously the road had been relatively easy to travel. The trail descended to the North Platte at Ash Hollow, where the hill was too steep for wagons to descend so the pioneers had to brake the wheels of the wagons, tie ropes to them, and winch them down the hillside.
This is the view that the pioneers had looking down into Ash Hollow and the North Platte River from the top of the bluff. The river winds across a relatively flat, wide valley with low hills rising to the north.
The trail then crossed the river and followed along the north side, some distance north of the actual river bed due to the need to be away from the widespread wanderings of the river during floods. The land is becoming more rugged, with bluffs framing the south side of the river bottom and rolling hills on the north.
Suddenly my pulse starts to quicken, much like I’m sure that the emigrants perked up, because on the horizon to the south across the river bottom are the first of the great “markers” along the Oregon Trail, Jailhouse Rock and Courthouse Rock.
Courthouse Rock was first noted in the journals of explorer Robert Stuart in 1812 and the rock formations were christened due to the resemblance to a courthouse and, after about four weeks on the trail, this was a significant mark of progress for pioneers after weeks of plodding through monotonous prairie. Most surviving pioneer journals note the sight of this landmark with awe and excitement (remember that the emigrants had never seen this kind of environment.) The trail continues and soon the second significant geological monument appears. One of the iconic symbols of the Oregon Trail, Chimney Rock can be seen for miles.
The bluffs that have been forming the southern horizon are now getting a little more rugged,sprinkled with trees, and a bit higher. Now named the Wildcat Hills, they stretch off into the southwest. Continuing northwest on Highway 26 the third of the great Nebraska landmarks stretches across the horizon. The most prominent feature in the Wildcat Hills, the rock formation was named Scott’s Bluff in 1828 after a fur trader who had died near the base.
As you get closer the mass separates into two distinct sections, north (first picture) and south (second picture), with the North Platte River running close to the base of the northern bluffs. These pictures were taken standing outside of the Lunch Box at the rv park where we stayed for the night.
The pointed rock formation at the southern end of the northern bluffs is specifically called Scott’s Bluff and the visitor center is at the base.
You can actually drive up to the top of the north bluffs on a winding road through three narrow tunnels (I just barely made it, the limit on the length of a vehicle is 26 feet and the Lunch Box is 24 feet long). The views from the top are spectacular. To the south are the Wildcat Hills and the visitor center; to the north across the river is the town of Scottsbluff, to the east at the foot of the bluff is the town of Gering. These two pictures were taken from the same spot, a viewpoint on top of the northern bluffs.
Gering was founded at the base of Scott’s Bluff on the south side of the North Platte River in 1887 and named after a pioneer merchant. The town of Scottsbluff was founded in 1900 on the north side of the river as a stop on the railroad. Because of the treacherous nature of the river, particularly due to widespread flooding in the spring, neither town is located on the river but set back some distance. This is not a particularly prosperous area of the state. As with the western half of all of the states in a line from North Dakota down to Oklahoma, the majority of the state’s population lies in the eastern half of Nebraska. The western half is farming and ranch country where a hardy people scratch a living off a land with little water and a harsh climate. The small city center of both towns reflect that fact. The city centers have few historical buildings and are a collection of practical buildings in a variety of architectural styles. Gering, the smaller of the two towns, now has a population of approximately 9,000 people.
Gering is the county seat of Scott’s Bluff County and the 1920 count courthouse is still in use.
About four miles north across the river Scottsbluff has nearly twice the population of Gering, benefiting from the presence of the railroad and Hwy 26. Somewhat inexplicably, the lonely sculpture of a whisk frames my view of the downtown strip.
The six story Lincoln Hotel building (built in 1918 and now apartments) is by far the tallest building for at least 200 miles in all directions.
The final stretch of our journey involves heading due north across the panhandle of Nebraska and western South Dakota. This is a lonely land with long panoramas sculpted by wind and water.
A brief respite of flat land is farmed, often interspersed with rows of trees functioning as a windbreak for the fields of wheat.
But the emptiness returns…
Then a line of dark green frames the horizon. Near the South Dakota border the prairie drops along an escarpment that is clothed with a pine forest, Nebraska’s only National Forest.
At the northern base of the pine forest sits the small town of Chadron on the southern edge of the grasslands that stretch into South Dakota to the north.
The Black Hills of South Dakota appear on our left and the highway skirts the eastern edge as we reach towards Rapid City and I-90.
This provides a rather quiet finish for our exploration of America’s “Heartland.” I now turn left and follow I-90 back home in Billings. Here’s the final path that the Lunch Box actually travelled this fall.
As always, thanks for coming along!
Next up: Who Knows?
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