Four Corners
The Four Corners is a region of the Southwestern United States consisting of the southwestern corner of Colorado, southeastern corner of Utah, northeastern corner of Arizona, and northwestern corner of New Mexico. Most of the Four Corners region belongs to semi-autonomous Native American nations, the largest of which is the Navajo Nation, followed by Hopi, Ute, and Zuni tribal reserves and nations. The Four Corners region is part of a larger region known as the Colorado Plateau and is mostly rural, rugged, and arid.
The Four Corners area is named after the quadripoint at the intersection of approximately 37° north latitude with 109° 03′ west longitude, where the boundaries of the four states meet, and are marked by the Four Corners Monument. It is the only location in the United States where four states meet. In addition to the monument, commonly visited areas within Four Corners include Monument Valley, Mesa Verde National Park, Chaco Canyon, Canyons of the Ancients National Monument and Canyon de Chelly National Monument. The most populous city in the Four Corners region is Farmington, New Mexico, followed by Durango, Colorado.
History
The United States acquired the four corners region from Mexico after the end of the Mexican–American War in 1848. In 1863 Congress created the Arizona Territory from the western part of New Mexico Territory. The boundary was legally defined as a line running due south from the southwest corner of Colorado Territory, which had been created in 1861. This was an unusual act of Congress, which almost always defined the boundaries of new territories as lines of latitude or longitude, or following rivers, but seldom as extensions of other boundaries.
By defining one boundary as starting at the corner of another, Congress ensured the eventual creation of four states meeting at a point, regardless of the inevitable errors of boundary surveying.[1] Due to a "standard" survey error of the time, the originally surveyed location of the "Four Corners" point was unintentionally located by its initial surveyor as being 1,821 feet (555 m) east of the original location actually specified by the US Congress in 1863. The area was first surveyed by the U.S. Government in 1868 as part of an effort to make Colorado Territory into a state, the first of the Four Corners states formed.
The first marker was placed at the originally surveyed and current spot in 1868.[2] In 1925, some 57 years after Congress had first attempted to specify the spot, the problems surrounding the originally misplaced marker were brought up before the US Supreme Court. In order to amicably remedy this original surveying error, the US Supreme Court then redefined the point of the Four Corners, officially moving the Four Corners point roughly 1,800 feet (550 m) east, to where the original survey had first held it to be all along, and to where it remains to this day, duly marked.[3] This initial survey error has resulted in some longstanding misunderstandings about the correct location of the Four Corners marker, some of which remain to this day.[4] The first Navajo tribal government was established in 1923 to regulate an increasing number of oil exploration activities on Navajo land.[5]
Geography
The Four Corners Monument is located at 36°59′56.3″N 109°02′42.6″W / 36.998972°N 109.045167°W.[6]
The Four Corners is part of the high
Federally protected areas in the Four Corners area include
Politics
Six governments have jurisdictional boundaries at the Four Corners Monument: the states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah, as well as the tribal governments of the
Cities
The Four Corners region is mostly rural. The economic hub, largest city, and only metropolitan area in the region is Farmington, New Mexico.[12] The populated settlement closest to the center of Four Corners is Teec Nos Pos, Arizona.[13] Other cities in the region include Cortez and Durango in Colorado; Monticello and Blanding in Utah; Kayenta and Chinle in Arizona; and Shiprock, Aztec, and Bloomfield in New Mexico.[12]
Transportation
Air service is available via the
The main line of the
Helium
The Four Corners region was one of the first locations in the United States in which helium was extracted, and the area is increasingly important as a source of helium supply, with the region being noted for its abundance of high-grade 'green' helium.[15]
The most notable helium field in the region is Arizona's Holbrook basin.
See also
- Four Corners Monument
- List of regions of the United States
- Four Corners radio stations
- Canadian four corners
- Quadripoint
- TAG Corner
- Trail of the Ancients National Scenic Byway, Four Corners, Colorado and Utah
- Trail of the Ancients Scenic Byway (New Mexico)
- List of tripoints of U.S. states
References
- ISBN 978-0-226-35591-7.
- ^ "The National Monument That's in the Wrong Place". 2013. Retrieved December 6, 2020. Correction of mistaken federal survey.
- ^ "Why the Four Corners Monument is in Exactly the Right Place". www.ngs.noaa.gov. 2009. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
- National Geodetic Survey. May 7, 2003. Retrieved January 15, 2007.
- ^ Ward, Kathleen. "Rainmaker, Go North – Nebraska Needs Help, Too". Kansas State University Research and Extension. Archived from the original on September 12, 2006. Retrieved May 8, 2008.
- ^ ISBN 0-929591-84-4.
- U.S. Department of Energy. Archived from the original(PDF) on June 26, 2008. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
- ^ "Four Corners Indian Tribes". Farmington, New Mexico Convention and Visitors Bureau. Retrieved December 6, 2016.
- ^ "Ute Mountain Ute Tribe – Overview and Statistics". Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
- ^ a b "Four Corners Area Map". Farmington, New Mexico Convention and Visitors Bureau. Archived from the original on September 24, 2007. Retrieved May 8, 2008.
- ^ "Google Maps". Google Maps. Retrieved May 8, 2008.
- ^ Richard F. Weingroff. "U.S. 666: Beast of a Highway?". (USDOT – FHWA). Retrieved November 17, 2007.
- ^ Fresne, Patrick (July 23, 2023). "When a Rush Begins: A Field Guide to the Helium Hopefuls of the United States". Gold and Revolution. Retrieved September 7, 2023.