Last updated: October 26, 2021
Place
"A Landscape Changed Forever" Wayside
NPS/Walker Donnelly
Quick Facts
Amenities
1 listed
Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits
Description of Wayside: Low-profile wayside that is 42 x 24 inches. It has a black rectangular base with two rectangular pillars supporting the wayside panel. The panel is framed in black metal. The wayside is located at the end of a paved trail, overlooking the visitor center complex and Mitchell Pass, a gap between two sandstone bluffs.
Wayside Layout: At the top of the wayside is a thin black banner with white text. Aligned to the left is "Scotts Bluff National Monument". Aligned to the right is the text "National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior," and finally the National Park Service arrowhead. The title of the wayside is below the black banner in large black font. The panel has a cream-colored background. Black text is arranged in two columns on the left two-thirds of the wayside. Below the text is one image. To the right of the text are two images.
Wayside Title: A Landscape Changed Forever
Text: Some called it "The Great American Desert"
Unlike the Native Americans, many 19th century European-Americans did not see the abundance and beauty of the prairie. At first it was just a barrier between them and their goals further west. Oregon had the fertile Willamette Valley, California had gold and Utah was the Promised Land.
As they passed in their thousands: their animals devoured the grasses, their wagons ground deep paths and the people brought diseases to Native Americans who had no resistance. The presence of so many people crossing the plains disrupted the migration of several animal herds the Native Americans depended on for food, tools, clothing and housing.
Some of the animals disappeared completely, others moved to ever shrinking habitats. The Prairie wolf and Audubon bighorn sheep are now extinct. Lone bears, elk, moose and antelope show up once every few years. The only bison in the area no longer roam free, they live on ranches instead.
Once Nebraska opened to homesteading, settlers gradually made their way to the Scotts Bluff area. Using modern irrigation techniques, the North Platte River watered their crops and cattle, trees were planted as wind breaks and the face of the American prairie became what you see today. Soon the "Great American Desert" became a vital part of the nation's food production.
What untouched areas are close to your home? Are they, or should they be, preserved?
Image: Parallell wheel ruts are seen cutting through a prairie landscape.
Image Caption: Scars from wagon wheels still mark the landscape. Credit: "Wagon ruts" tinted photo by William Henry Jackson. Scotts Bluff National Monument collection.
Image: A watercolor painting shows two men with rifles in the foreground with a large herd of bison spread over the prairie in the background.
Image Caption: Hunted almost to extinction, American bison roam free in very few places today. Credit: "White Men Hunting Buffalo" watercolor by William Henry Jackson, Scotts Bluff National Monument collection.
Image: A watercolor painting depicts covered wagons, being pulled by oxen, passing distinctive sandstone formations.
Image Caption: A few people on the wagon trains called the plains "boring."
Credit: "North Platte River Valley" watercolor by William Henry Jackson, Scotts Bluff National Monument collection.
Wayside Layout: At the top of the wayside is a thin black banner with white text. Aligned to the left is "Scotts Bluff National Monument". Aligned to the right is the text "National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior," and finally the National Park Service arrowhead. The title of the wayside is below the black banner in large black font. The panel has a cream-colored background. Black text is arranged in two columns on the left two-thirds of the wayside. Below the text is one image. To the right of the text are two images.
Wayside Title: A Landscape Changed Forever
Text: Some called it "The Great American Desert"
Unlike the Native Americans, many 19th century European-Americans did not see the abundance and beauty of the prairie. At first it was just a barrier between them and their goals further west. Oregon had the fertile Willamette Valley, California had gold and Utah was the Promised Land.
As they passed in their thousands: their animals devoured the grasses, their wagons ground deep paths and the people brought diseases to Native Americans who had no resistance. The presence of so many people crossing the plains disrupted the migration of several animal herds the Native Americans depended on for food, tools, clothing and housing.
Some of the animals disappeared completely, others moved to ever shrinking habitats. The Prairie wolf and Audubon bighorn sheep are now extinct. Lone bears, elk, moose and antelope show up once every few years. The only bison in the area no longer roam free, they live on ranches instead.
Once Nebraska opened to homesteading, settlers gradually made their way to the Scotts Bluff area. Using modern irrigation techniques, the North Platte River watered their crops and cattle, trees were planted as wind breaks and the face of the American prairie became what you see today. Soon the "Great American Desert" became a vital part of the nation's food production.
What untouched areas are close to your home? Are they, or should they be, preserved?
Image: Parallell wheel ruts are seen cutting through a prairie landscape.
Image Caption: Scars from wagon wheels still mark the landscape. Credit: "Wagon ruts" tinted photo by William Henry Jackson. Scotts Bluff National Monument collection.
Image: A watercolor painting shows two men with rifles in the foreground with a large herd of bison spread over the prairie in the background.
Image Caption: Hunted almost to extinction, American bison roam free in very few places today. Credit: "White Men Hunting Buffalo" watercolor by William Henry Jackson, Scotts Bluff National Monument collection.
Image: A watercolor painting depicts covered wagons, being pulled by oxen, passing distinctive sandstone formations.
Image Caption: A few people on the wagon trains called the plains "boring."
Credit: "North Platte River Valley" watercolor by William Henry Jackson, Scotts Bluff National Monument collection.