Oregon Trail Ruts

Board of the History of the Oregon Trail Ruts from the Wyoming Recreation Commission

Oregon Trail Ruts, wagon tracks of the settlers moving west

Clear traces of the draft animals have also been preserved in the sandstone

The Oregon Trail Ruts are a half-mile long section of the Oregon Trail , on which the wagon and draft animal tracks of the settlers moving west have been preserved.

The Oregon Trail Ruts are located on the banks of the North Platte River , south of the town of Guernsey , Wyoming , USA . Usually, the settlers came to this place after they had left their night quarters at Register Cliff , about 3.5 kilometers east and moved on towards South Pass , the first crossing over the ridge of the Rocky Mountains .

Emergence

At the point of the Oregon Tail Ruts, the trail leads over an eroded sandstone rib. Wagon wheels, hooves of the draft animals and the people who moved along here left their traces in the two to six meter high soft rock that can still be seen today. The traces were created between 1841 and 1869. The Oregon Trail was a clearly visible rutted road at this point that the settlers could follow relatively easily. This location was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1966 because it is where the best preserved tracks on the Oregon Trail are preserved.

Entertains

The site is managed as a State Historic Site in Guernsey State Park . It was granted the status of a National Historic Landmark independently of the park in May 1966 and was entered as a site on the National Register of Historic Places in October of the same year . In 1975 the Wyoming Recreation Commission laid out signs, benches, and a parking lot nearby. The place is unsupervised and the number of visitors is relatively small so the tracks are still well preserved. Entry to the Oregon Trail Ruts is free.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} National Park Service: National Register of Historic Places - Inventory nomination form
2. ↑ National Park Service: Oregon Trail Ruts ( Memento of the original from June 20, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
3. ^ Oregon Trail Ruts on the National Register of Historic Places , accessed March 14, 2020.
   Listing of National Historic Landmarks by State: Wyoming. National Park Service , accessed March 14, 2020.

Web links

Commons : Oregon Trail Ruts (Guernsey, Wyoming)  - Collection of pictures, videos, and audio files

Stephen Lissandrello, 1973 Oregon Trail Ruts photos

Coordinates: 42 ° 15 ′  N , 104 ° 45 ′  W