The Upper Crossing

The Upper Crossing (HM1Q4U)

Location: Casper, WY 82604 Natrona County
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Country: United States of America
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N 42° 50.26', W 106° 22.292'

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Inscription
The North Platte River that we see today is considerably different than the river that the 1847 pioneer party had to cross. As series of dams upstream from this site strictly regulates the flow of water on a year round basis.

(Map of Platte River and Ferry Crossings Sites)



Brigham Young arrived at a point near this site with the Mormon Pioneer 72-wagon company of 143 men, three women and two children on June 12, 1847. Strong winds and high water (150 yards wide and 10 to 15-feet deep) made crossing the river difficult and extremely dangerous. After various attempts to cross and frustrated by slow progress, Brigham Young commissioned the construction of a larger ferry boat. After just three days, the ferry was complete and had been provided as well with two oars and a rudder for control. Brigham Young realized that subsequent Mormon companies would require the ferry to cross the North Platte, and he also appreciated the revenue-generating potential of helping other pioneers cross the river. Wilford Woodruff recorded that "...President Young thought it wisdom to leave a number of the brethren here and keep a ferry until our Company Came up. Emigrants will pay for ferrying $1.50 cents per waggon..."(sic).

On June 19, one week after their arrival, Brigham Young named nine men to remain and operate the ferry:
Thomas Grover, Captain (professional ferryman)
William Empey, Assistant Captain
Appleton Harmon, Carpenter-Mechanic
Luke Johnson, Doctor and Hunter
James Davenport, Blacksmith
James Higbee, Herdsman
Edmund Ellsworth, Hunter
Francis Pomeroy, Hunter
Benjamin Stewart, Coal miner
A tenth man, Eric Glines, elected himself to stay behind with the ferrymen.
Details
HM NumberHM1Q4U
Series This marker is part of the Mormon Pioneer Trail series
Tags
Placed ByCasper Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Saturday, December 19th, 2015 at 1:03pm PST -08:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)13T E 387913 N 4743700
Decimal Degrees42.83766667, -106.37153333
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 42° 50.26', W 106° 22.292'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds42° 50' 15.6000" N, 106° 22' 17.5200" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)307
Which side of the road?Marker is on the right when traveling West
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 4001 Fort Caspar Rd, Casper WY 82604, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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