History of Treck Through Mountains

History of Treck Through Mountains (HMZTI)

Location: Animas, NM 88020 Hidalgo County
Buy New Mexico State flags at Flagstore.com!
Country: United States of America
Buy United States of America flags at Flagstore.com!

N 31° 25.624', W 109° 2.253'

  • 0 likes
  • 0 check ins
  • 0 favorites
  • 379 views
Inscription

U.S. Mormon Battalion Trail

— Historical Landmark No. 7 —

On November 28, 1896 the Mormon Battalion of the U. S. Army West crossed these mountains near this summit enroute to California during the Mexican War. Col. Cooke had dispatched scouts ahead to find the best route. An Indian guide, Charonneau, while scouting ahead was attacked by three grizzly bears. He killed one bear which provided meat for the troops.

Lt. Stoneman with 21 men could not find a suitable route down the mountain. They began cutting a road but the task was to laborious and the progress to slow. Col. Cooke then ordered the wagons unloaded and the supplies packed on horses and the mules for transport down the mountain. The wagons were lowered down the 40% grade by ropes. One wagon crashed to the canyon bottom. Henry Bigler wrote, "no other man but Cooke would attempt to cross wagons at such a place. Cooke had the spirit of a Bonaparte".

Dedicated to the Soldiers of the U. S. Mormon Battalion

Wagon being lowered down steep slope with ropes

Col. Fred M. Reese - C&CH US Mormon Battalion
Project Supervisors - Marvin E. Follet and Ralph Mangum
Masonry - Denis Gregg
Sponsors - Douglas Boy Scouts
Scout Troupe 414
Lumber by Kiabab Lumber Inc.Artist - Ralph ReeseSign built and designed by Robin ButtonThomas L. Kane Company
Details
HM NumberHMZTI
Tags
Marker Number7
Year Placed1986
Placed ByCol. Fred M. Reese - C&CH US Mormon Battalion, Douglas Boy Scouts and Scout Troupe 414
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Wednesday, October 8th, 2014 at 8:51am PDT -07:00
Pictures
Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.
Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)12R E 686524 N 3478599
Decimal Degrees31.42706667, -109.03755000
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 31° 25.624', W 109° 2.253'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds31° 25' 37.44" N, 109° 2' 15.18" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)505
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 105 Co Rd C106, Animas NM 88020, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

Is this marker missing? Are the coordinates wrong? Do you have additional information that you would like to share with us? If so, check in.

Check Ins  check in   |    all

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.

Comments 0 comments

Maintenance Issues
  1. Is this marker part of a series?
  2. What historical period does the marker represent?
  3. What historical place does the marker represent?
  4. What type of marker is it?
  5. What class is the marker?
  6. What style is the marker?
  7. This marker needs at least one picture.
  8. Can this marker be seen from the road?
  9. Is the marker in the median?