Grand Canyon National Park in Coconino County, Arizona — The American Mountains (Southwest)

Grand Canyon's Gateway

Photographed by James Hulse, June 21, 2024

1. Grand Canyon's Gateway Marker

Inscription. Below you, the Colorado River makes a dramatic turn. Ever since the river entered Grand Canyon at Lees Ferry, it has been deepening its gorge east of the Kaibab Plateau. Here, the river turned west to cut straight through the plateau, opening a gateway to allow it to carve the deepest section of Grand Canyon, the Granite Gorge. In 1861, the first geologist to visit the canyon, John Strong Newberry, concluded the Colorado River had carved the canyon.

His finding holds today. But why did the river turn to slice through the plateau? Geologists still try to pięce this puzzle together in attempts to reconstruct Grand Canyon's evolution; however, continued erosion of the canyon confounds them. With the unending flow of the Colorado River, many clues are swept away into the Gulf of California, where they rest hidden in the river's delta.

From this point the view towards the north was particularly grand; the course of the Colorado was visible for nearly a hundred miles....
John Strong Newberry, 1858

Erected by Grand Canyon, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Topics. This historical marker

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is listed in these topic lists: Parks & Recreational Areas • Science & Medicine. A significant historical year for this entry is 1861.

Location. 36° 2.317′ N, 111° 50.244′ W. Marker is in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, in Coconino County. It is on Desert View Drive. The marker is located north of the Navajo Point Parking Lot along the viewing trail. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Grand Canyon AZ 86023, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Flagstaff & High Country

and in Hopi.

It is also in the American Southwest,

in the Mountain West,

in Colorado Plateau,

and at the Four Corners.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain

and also Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Tribal Connections (a few steps from this marker); Like Nowhere Else (approx. 0.6 miles away); Ancient Illusion (approx. 0.7 miles away); 1956 Grand Canyon TWA-United Airlines Aviation Accident Site (approx.

Photographed by James Hulse, June 21, 2024

2. Grand Canyon's Gateway Marker

0.7 miles away); Revealing Features (approx. ¾ mile away); The Watchtower (approx. ¾ mile away); Tragedy Remembered (approx. ¾ mile away); Delta Farmers (approx. one mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Grand Canyon National Park.

Also see . . . John Strong Newberry. Wikipedia

John Strong Newberry (December 22, 1822 – December 7, 1892) was an American physician, geologist and paleontologist. He participated as a naturalist and surgeon on three expeditions to explore and survey the western United States. During the Civil War he served in the US Sanitary Commission and was appointed secretary of the western department of the commission. After the war he became professor of geology and paleontology at Columbia University School of Mines and chief geologist of the Geological Survey of Ohio.

(Submitted on July 8, 2024, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.)

Credits. This page was last revised on July 8, 2024. It was originally submitted on July 7, 2024, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas. This page has been viewed 242 times since then and 24 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on July 8, 2024, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.