Rocky Mountains

The Rocky Mountains, often called the Rockies, are a broad mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than 3000 miles (4800 km) from British Columbia to New Mexico, extending through Canada and much of the breadth of the contiguous United States. The highest peak is Mount Elbert, in Colorado, which is 14,440 feet (4401 m) above sea level. Mount Robson (12,972 feet/3954 m) is the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies. The Rocky Mountain System is a United States physiographic region.

Human History

Since the last great Ice Age, the Rocky Mountains were a sacred home first to Paleo-Indians and then to the Native American tribes of the Apache, Arapaho, Bannock, Blackfoot, Cheyenne, Crow. Flathead, Shoshoni, Sioux, Ute, and others (Johnson 1994). Paleo-Indians hunted the now-extinct mammoth and ancient bison (an animal 20% larger than modern bison) in the foothills and valleys of the mountains. Like the modern tribes that followed them, Paleo-Indians probably migrated to the plains in fall and winter for bison and to the mountains in spring and summer for fish, deer, elk, roots, and berries. In Colorado, along the crest of the Continental Divide, rock walls that Native Americans built for driving game date back 5,400-5,800 years (Buchholtz 1983). A growing body of scientific evidence indicates that Native Americans had significant effects on mammal populations by hunting and on vegetation patterns through deliberate burning (Kay 1994).

Related Topics:
Paleo-Indians - Native American - Apache - Arapaho - Bannock - Blackfoot - Cheyenne - Crow - Flathead - Shoshoni - Sioux - Ute - Mammoth - Ancient bison - Fish - Deer - Elk - Root - Berries

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Recent human history of the Rocky Mountains is one of more rapid change (Lavender 1975; Knight 1994). The Spanish explorer Francisco Vásquez de Coronado--with a group of soldiers, missionaries, and African slaves--marched into the Rocky Mountain region from the south in 1540. The introduction of the horse, metal tools, rifles, new diseases, and different cultures profoundly changed the Native American cultures. Native American populations were extirpated from most of their historical ranges by disease, warfare, habitat loss (eradication of the bison), and continued assaults on their culture.

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Francisco Vásquez de Coronado - 1540

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The Lewis and Clark expedition (1804-1806) was the first scientific reconnaissance of the Rocky Mountains. Specimens were collected for contemporary botanists, zoologists, and geologists (Jackson 1962). The expedition was said to have paved the way to (and through) the Rocky Mountains for European-Americans from the East, although Lewis and Clark met at least 11 European-American mountain men during their travels.

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Mountain men, primarily French, Spanish, and British roamed the Rocky Mountains from 1720 to 1800 seeking mineral deposits and furs. After 1802, American fur traders and explorers ushered in the first widespread white presence in the Rockies. The more famous of these include Americnas included William Henry Ashley, Jim Bridger, Kit Carson, John Colter, Thomas Fitzpatrick, Andrew Henry, and Jedediah Smith. On July 24, 1832, Benjamin Bonneville led the first wagon train across the Rocky Mountains by using Wyoming's South Pass.

Related Topics:
Fur trader - White - William Henry Ashley - Jim Bridger - Kit Carson - John Colter - Thomas Fitzpatrick - Andrew Henry - Jedediah Smith - July 24 - 1832 - Benjamin Bonneville - Wagon train - Wyoming

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The Mormons began to settle near the Great Salt Lake in 1847. In 1859, gold was discovered near Cripple Creek, Colorado, and the regional economy of the Rocky Mountains was changed forever. The transcontinental railroad was completed in 1869, and Yellowstone National Park was established in 1872. While settlers filled the valleys and mining towns, conservation and preservation ethics began to take hold. President Harrison established several forest reserves in the Rocky Mountains in 1891-1892. In 1905, President Theodore Roosevelt extended the Medicine Bow Forest Reserve to include the area now managed as Rocky Mountain National Park (Buchholtz 1983). Economic development began to center on mining, forestry, agriculture, and recreation, as well as on the service industries that support them (Lavender 1975). Tents and camps became ranches and farms, forts and train stations became towns, and some towns became cities.

Related Topics:
Mormon - Great Salt Lake - 1847 - 1859 - Gold - Cripple Creek, Colorado - Transcontinental railroad - Yellowstone National Park - President Harrison - 1905 - President Theodore Roosevelt - Medicine Bow Forest Reserve - Rocky Mountain National Park - Mining - Forestry - Agriculture - Recreation

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