Preston Monument: Difference between revisions

Content deleted Content added

Inline

Revision as of 00:43, 17 October 2024

The Preston Monument is a stone marker that shows the tri-point (the place where three states meet) of Oklahoma, Colorado, and New Mexico. It is named after Levi S. Preston, who surveyed a portion of the New Mexico–Colorado border.^[1]

While Preston was determining the northern boundary of Texas, he was tasked with determining the true location of both the northwest corner, a point of some contention, the Tri-point some 2 miles to the east, and the northeast corner of the Texas panhandle, some 170 miles to the east.

Northwest corner of Texas, 1900 survey

Preston laid a stone marker in 1900 on top of two previous posts, the earlier of which he was convinced was the original John H. Clark marker from 1859, stating:

At this northwest corner of the [Capital Land and Cattle Company] XIT pasture fence, I remove wire fencing, dig up the corner post, which I find set 18 inches in the ground, and set on top of the rotted stump of an old cedar post. Excavating carefully around this old stub, I find the bottom of it at 26 inches below surface of ground, and remove a segment of the old post 8 inches in diameter and 8 inches long, greatly decayed and reduced almost to a dry pulpy ash. The dark mould and pieces of decayed cedar indicated that the original post was about 10 X 12 inches in diameter at bottom. This old cedar post could easily have been in the ground more than the eighteen years since 1882, and very likely for ten years longer.

Thus, Preston re-established the northwest corner of Texas that had been in use since the incomplete 1859 survey. Hr continues:

I set a sandstone 60 X 12 X 10 inches 36 inches in the ground for the northwest corner of the State of Texas, marked
"N.W. Cor.
---------
  Texas"
on east; "N. M.," on east; "1859," on south, and "1900," on north faces.^[2]

The marker, if still intact, is apparently under the road surface of U.S. Route 56.^[3]

Tri-point of Oklahoma, Colorado, and New Mexico

The tri-point marker for Oklahoma, Colorado, and New Mexico is at an elevation of 4,444 feet at 37°00′01″N 103°00′09″W / 37.000154°N 103.002362°W / 37.000154; -103.002362.^[4]

External links

References

^ State of New Mexico v. State of Colorado. (267 U.S. 30 (1925))
^ Northwest Boundary of Texas, p.42
^ "Mick Dunn reports on Nov 12, 2016, that Clark's Monument is buried below the shoulder pavement."
^ Clark, Patterson & Denise Lu "Cornering America's tri-points: A guide to 65 lonely spots where at least three states converge" (Sept. 17, 2015) (Accessed Nov. 29, 2021)

37°00′00″N 103°00′08″W / 37.00000°N 103.00222°W / 37.00000; -103.00222

This Colorado state location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This New Mexico state location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This Oklahoma state location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[1] State of New Mexico v. State of Colorado. (267 U.S. 30 (1925))

[Report-2] Northwest Boundary of Texas, p.42

[club-3] "Mick Dunn reports on Nov 12, 2016, that Clark's Monument is buried below the shoulder pavement."

[4] Clark, Patterson & Denise Lu "Cornering America's tri-points: A guide to 65 lonely spots where at least three states converge" (Sept. 17, 2015) (Accessed Nov. 29, 2021)

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 The '''Preston Monument''' is a stone marker that shows the [[tri-point]] (the place where three states meet) of [[Oklahoma]], [[Colorado]], and [[New Mexico]]. It is named after Levi S. Preston, who surveyed a portion of the New Mexico–Colorado border.<ref>''State of New Mexico v. State of Colorado''. (267 U.S. 30 (1925))</ref>
+While Preston was determining the northern boundary of Texas, he was tasked with determining the true location of both the northwest corner, a point of some contention, the Tri-point some 2 miles to the east, and the northeast corner of the Texas panhandle, some 170 miles to the east.
-It is an elevation of 4,444 feet. <ref>Clark, Patterson & Denise Lu [https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/lifestyle/trifinia/ "Cornering America's tri-points: A guide to 65 lonely spots where at least three states converge" (Sept. 17, 2015)] (Accessed Nov. 29, 2021)</ref>
+==Northwest corner of Texas, 1900 survey==
+Preston laid a stone marker in 1900 on top of two previous posts, the earlier of which he was convinced was the original John H. Clark marker from 1859, stating:
+<blockquote>At this northwest corner of the [Capital Land and Cattle Company] XIT pasture fence, I remove wire fencing, dig up the corner post, which I find set 18 inches in the ground, and set on top of the rotted stump of an old cedar post. Excavating carefully around this old stub, I find the bottom of it at 26 inches below surface of ground, and remove a segment of the old post 8 inches in diameter and 8 inches long, greatly decayed and reduced almost to a dry pulpy ash. The dark mould and pieces of decayed cedar indicated that the original post was about 10 X 12 inches in diameter at bottom.
+This old cedar post could easily have been in the ground more than the eighteen years since 1882, and very likely for ten years longer.</blockquote>
+Thus, Preston re-established the northwest corner of Texas that had been in use since the incomplete 1859 survey. Hr continues:
+<blockquote>I set a sandstone 60 X 12 X 10 inches 36 inches in the ground for the northwest corner of the State of Texas, marked
+<pre>"N.W. Cor.
+---------
+  Texas"
+</pre>
+on east; "N. M.," on east; "1859," on south, and "1900," on north faces.<ref name=Report>[https://pubs.usgs.gov/bul/0194/report.pdf Northwest Boundary of Texas], p.42</ref></blockquote> The marker, if still intact, is apparently under the road surface of [[U.S. Route 56]].<ref name=club>"[https://highpointers.org/wp-content/uploads/tripoints/pages/3ptNM-OK-TX.html Mick Dunn reports on Nov 12, 2016, that Clark's Monument is buried below the shoulder pavement.]"</ref>
+==Tri-point of Oklahoma, Colorado, and New Mexico==
+The tri-point marker for Oklahoma, Colorado, and New Mexico is at an elevation of 4,444 feet at {{Coord|37.000154|-103.002362}}.<ref>Clark, Patterson & Denise Lu [https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/lifestyle/trifinia/ "Cornering America's tri-points: A guide to 65 lonely spots where at least three states converge" (Sept. 17, 2015)] (Accessed Nov. 29, 2021)</ref>
 ==See also==