Scotts Bluff, National Monument, Nebraska

Towering 800 feet above the North Platte River, Scotts Bluff has served as a landmark for peoples from Native Americans to emigrants on the Oregon, California and Mormon Trails to modern travelers. Rich with geological and paleontological history as well as human history, there is much to discover while exploring the 3,000 acres of Scotts Bluff National Monument.

The Scotts Bluff National Monument's Presidential Proclamation states that Scotts Bluff has "scientific interest ... from a geologic standpoint." The scientific interest of this site has been apparent since the late 1890s when the U.S. Geological Survey made the first formal geologic investigation of the area. Geologic publications relating to Scotts Bluff number at least nine and the area continues to be the subject of investigation. Although it appears the geology of Scotts Bluff has been well studied, the statement in the proclamation helps focus on one of the primary natural resources of the Monument, its geology.

Scotts Bluff, like the adjoining Wildcat Hills and nearby Chimney Rock, Courthouse and Jail Rock, has been and continues to be weathered out of geologic deposits of alluvial origin that made up the ancient high plains of the region prior to regional uplifting. Wind and stream deposits of sand and mud, wind deposits of volcanic ash, and supersaturated groundwater rich in lime formed the layers of sandstone, siltstone, volcanic ash and limestone that now comprise Scotts Bluff's steep elevation, ridges, and the broad alluvial fans at its base. The high plains that existed at that time now began to gradually erode away, except at certain locations that were protected by a caprock of hard limestone that was more resistant to erosion.

The geology of Scotts Bluff is also significant for historical reasons. Emigrants typically traveled within the Platte River Valley on both sides of the river; however, at Scotts Bluff the geology of the badlands forced the emigrants out of the valley. The badlands presented a barrier to travel because they stretched from the base of the bluff to the river itself. Once the emigrants moved out of the valley, the bluff formations forced the travelers to look for a pass to allow them to move through the bluffs and continue on their westward journey.

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