Marker Logo HMdb.org THE HISTORICAL
MARKER DATABASE
“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument in Coconino County, Arizona — The American Mountains (Southwest)
 

The Birth of a Mountain

 
 
The Birth of a Mountain Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., November 8, 2010
1. The Birth of a Mountain Marker
Inscription.
About 1,000 years ago, something spectacular happened in the lives of local Native peoples. Perhaps they first observed a change in animal behavior. Maybe they noticed the ground warming. Then the tremors increased in number and intensity. By the time the earth cracked open, people had their belongings packed. What followed impacted life profoundly in this corner of the Southwest.

A 1,000-foot-high (305m) cinder cone, known today as Sunset Crater, grew where open parks and forests had been. Volcanic ash buried about 64,000 acres of potential farmland. Many people lost their homes and livelihoods. Stories symbolizing the significance of the eruption were told and retold. Word of the phenomenon may have spread across the continent.

Today, the area's American Indian groups consider this a sacred landscape where life was cleansed, where a connection exists to the world below and the universe above...a landscape that cautions, reminds, and teaches.

—————

[Inset photo caption]
This trail explores the unique environment created by a volcanic eruption. Your options include a short accessible loop or a longer moderate walk to the base of Sunset Crater. Guide books are in the dispenser to your right.
 
Erected by National Park Service
Paid Advertisement
Click on the ad for more information.
Please report objectionable advertising to the Editor.
Click or scan to see
this page online
.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Natural Features.
 
Location. 35° 21.782′ N, 111° 31.058′ W. Marker is in Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument, Arizona, in Coconino County. Marker is along the Lava Flow Trail, about 200 feet east of the parking lot. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Flagstaff AZ 86004, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 12 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Life and Landscape Transformed (within shouting distance of this marker); The Power to Symbolize (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); As Powerful as a Volcano (about 300 feet away); Changes to Come (about 500 feet away); "The Peaks" (approx. 2.2 miles away); Geological Infant (approx. 2.2 miles away); Bushmaster Park (approx. 11.2 miles away); The Museum Club (approx. 11.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument.
 
Also see . . .  Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. (Submitted on April 14, 2011, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
 
The Birth of a Mountain Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., November 8, 2010
2. The Birth of a Mountain Marker
Pumice and Lava Along the Lava Flow Trail image. Click for full size.
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., November 8, 2010
3. Pumice and Lava Along the Lava Flow Trail
Sunset Crater Volcano in background.
View of the Bonita Lava Flow image. Click for full size.
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., November 8, 2010
4. View of the Bonita Lava Flow
Looking north.
San Francisco Volcano Field Relief Map image. Click for full size.
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., November 8, 2010
5. San Francisco Volcano Field Relief Map
In Visitor Center. Flagstaff is in the lower right center of diorama, where roads intersect south of the large crater (San Francisco Peaks).
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on April 14, 2011, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 743 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos:   1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on April 14, 2011, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Share this page.  
Share on Tumblr
m=41689

CeraNet Cloud Computing sponsors the Historical Marker Database.
This website earns income from purchases you make after using our links to Amazon.com. We appreciate your support.
Paid Advertisements
Mar. 19, 2024