Watford City in McKenzie County, North Dakota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)

Bentonitic Clay

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, July 21, 2015

1. Bentonitic Clay Marker

Inscription.
The blue-black popcorn-like soil that caps the plateau 50 feet below this point is bentonitic clay. Bentonite clays flow when wet. This bluish-colored layer can be traced for miles up and down the river.

Erected by National Park Service.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Natural Features.

Location. 47° 37.415′ N, 103° 22.778′ W. Marker is in Watford City, North Dakota, in McKenzie County. It is on Scenic Drive, on the right when traveling north. Marker is located at the Bentonitic Clay Overlook in the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Watford City ND 58854, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in North Dakota’s Bakken Oil Patch.

It is also in the American Lewis & Clark Corridor,

on the prairies,

and on the Northern Plains.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land

and also the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Work in Progress / Better Together (approx. 0.6 miles away); The View that Launched a Park (approx. one mile away); The Long X Trail: A Dusty Trail to Greener Pastures (approx. 1½ miles away); North Dakota Badlands (approx. 1.9 miles away); Cannonball Mystery (approx. 2.9 miles away); A Wild River / Growing Old / Cotton (approx. 3.2 miles away); Tilted (approx. 4.1 miles away); Layers in Time / Portraits in Stone (approx. 4.7 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Watford City.

Other markers no longer

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nearby. Man and Grass (was approx. 0.7 miles away but has been replaced with another marker now near it); Building From Hard Times (was approx. one mile away but has been replaced with another marker now near it); Long X Cattle Trail (was approx. 2.1 miles away but has been permanently removed); Edge of a Glacier (was approx. 2.7 miles away but has been permanently removed); “Cannon Ball” Concretions (was approx. 2.9 miles away but has been permanently removed); Roosevelt and the Boat Thieves (was approx. 3.2 miles away but has been permanently removed); Slump Formation (was approx. 4.2 miles away but has been permanently removed).

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, July 21, 2015

2. Bentonitic Clay Marker

Marker in Theodore Roosevelt National Park image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, July 21, 2015

3. Marker in Theodore Roosevelt National Park

View from the Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, July 21, 2015

4. View from the Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on September 14, 2015, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. This page has been viewed 637 times since then and 28 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on September 14, 2015, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.