Great Bend in Barton County, Kansas — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)

Lt. Zebulon Pike, 1806

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 8, 2024

1. Lt. Zebulon Pike, 1806 Marker

Inscription.
In 1803 the United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from France, although secretly still claimed by Spain. On July 15, 1806, Lt. Zebulon Pike, US Army, left St. Louis, Missouri, with 22 troops and 51 Indians. He was to make treaties with Indian tribes in the new territory and discover the headwaters of the Arkansas and Red Rivers, which were the southern boundary of the Louisiana Purchase.

After treating with the Pawnee Indians on the Kansas-Nebraska border, Pike followed a trace of Spanish soldiers going south to the Arkansas River. On October 15th, Pike's party crossed Cheyenne Bottoms and reached Wet Walnut Creek. Sending the rest of the party toward the Arkansas, Pike and a companion explored Wet and Dry Walnut Creeks for three days. Unable to find the Spanish trace or their comrades, they became lost. The soldiers at the Arkansas River, three miles distant, sent two riders to rescue Pike.

From October 18th to the 28th, 1806, Pike camped here and explored up the Arkansas as far as the Pawnee Creek, looking for the Spanish trace, making observations, writing reports, and constructing two canoes. On the 28th,

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Lt. Wilkinson, five soldiers and two Osage Indians left to journey down the Arkansas to the Mississippi River to report their findings. Pike and the rest of the company proceeded up the river to find the headwaters of the Arkansas. In Colorado he saw the mountain, later named Pikes Peak, before his party was taken into custody by Spanish soldiers and later returned to the United States.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Exploration • Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical date for this entry is October 18, 1806.

Location. 38° 21.662′ N, 98° 45.362′ W. Marker is in Great Bend, Kansas, in Barton County. It is on Frey Street just south of 10th Street (U.S. 56), on the left when traveling north. The marker is on the east side of Santa Fe Trail Park. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1405 10th Street, Great Bend KS 67530, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Central Kansas. It is also in the American Midwest,

in the Corn Belt,

on the prairies,

on the Southern Plains,

and on the Santa Fe Trail Corridor.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 8, 2024

2. Lt. Zebulon Pike, 1806 Marker

Looking west through Santa Fe Trail Park.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Santa Fe Trail (a few steps from this marker); a different marker also named Santa Fe Trail (within shouting distance of this marker); Prey and Play (approx. ¼ mile away); Post Rock & Black Gold (approx. ¼ mile away); Wild West Superhighway (approx. half a mile away); Veterans of Foreign Wars Memorial (approx. half a mile away); Streetscape (approx. 0.6 miles away); Jack Kilby (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Great Bend.

Also see . . .
1. October 18, 1806: Rendezvous at the Great Bend (Discover Lewis & Clark).

Excerpt: Near present Great Bend, Kansas, explorer Zebulon Pike is reunited with his men. Hoping to send some of them home, he searches for trees to make canoes.
“Commenced our route at a good time, and about ten o’clock, discovered two men on horse-back in search of us, (one my waiter;) they informed us the party was encamped on the Arkansaw, about three miles south of where then were: this surprised us very much as we had no conception of that river being so near.”

(Submitted on June 12, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

2. Zebulon Pike's Legacy (Wetlands & Wildlife National Scenic Byway).

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Excerpt: Near midnight, on October 13, 1806, Lieutenant Zebulon Pike and his exploring party, headed to the Rockies, reached the Arkansas River just southwest of Great Bend. The explorers camped by the river for two weeks to rest their animals and lay in a supply of meat. Pike's published expedition reports strongly influenced public opinion about this region. He described the Great Plains as "incapable of cultivation," best left "to the wandering and uncivilized aborigines of the country." Later explorers echoed his claims, and the Plains became known in the mid-1800's as the "Great American Desert" labeled on a map by Major Stephen Long.
Though Pike's descriptions discouraged settlement here for more than fifty years, his explorations spurred on the opening of the Santa Fe Trail in 1821. The Trail brought thousands of settlers through this area during the mid-1800s. By 1870, settlers had discovered that crops could, indeed, prosper here. In 1872, rail service reached this county, and settlers flooded in to begin a new life.

(Submitted on June 12, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

3. Pike’s 2nd Expedition – KS (Pike National Historic Trail Association).

Excerpt: On the Arkansas, Pike sent Lieutenant Wilkinson, five soldiers, and two Osages on a descent of the Arkansas River in two canoes from near present Great Bend on October 28, 1806. Navigation proved impossible, and they soon abandoned the canoes. After hiking a week, they built new canoes and set out to navigate the river again. They faced many hardships and were “rescued” by a band of Osage Indians, who helped them to safety.

(Submitted on June 12, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

Credits. This page was last revised on June 12, 2026. It was originally submitted on June 12, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 11 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on June 12, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.