Chapter 11

[CH]Page 15, Twelfth Annual Report of Dr. Hayden.

Sheepeater Cliffs(7,500)—D: 7—1879—Norris—From the name of a tribe of Indians, the only known aboriginal occupants of what is now the Yellowstone Park. (SeeChapter II, Part II.) It was upon one of the “ancient and but recently deserted, secluded, unknown haunts” of these Indians, that Colonel Norris, “in rapt astonishment,” stumbled one day, and was so impressed by what he saw, that he gave the neighboring cliff its present name. He thus describes this retreat:[CI]

“It is mainly carpeted with soft grass, dotted, fringed, and overhung with small pines, firs and cedars, and, with the subdued and mingled murmur of the rapids and cataracts above and below it, and the laughing ripple of the gliding stream, is truly an enchanting dell—a wind and storm sheltered refuge for the feeble remnant of a fading race.”

[CI]Page 10, Annual Report Superintendent of the Park for 1879.

Sheridan Mt.(10,250)—P: 8—1871—Barlow—For Gen. P. H. Sheridan, who actively forwarded all the early exploring expeditions in this region, and, at a later day, twice visited the Park. His public warnings at this time of the danger to which the Park was exposed from vandals, poachers, and railroad promoters, and his vigorous appeal for its protection, had great influence in bringing about a more efficient and enlightened policy in regard to that reservation. (See "Mt. Everts.")

Signal Hills(9,500)—M: 12—1871—U. S. G. S.—A ridge extending back from Signal Point on the Yellowstone Lake.

Silver Tip Peak(10,400)—K: 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Specimen Ridge(8,700)—E: 11—Name known prior to 1870.—Characteristic. (SeeChapter V, Part II.)

Stevenson, Mt.(10,300)—M: 13—1871—U. S. G. S.—For James Stevenson, long prominently connected with the U. S. Geological Survey.

“In honor of his great services not only during the past season, but for over twelve years of unremitting toil as my assistant, oftentimes without pecuniary reward, and with but little of the scientific recognition that usually comes to the original explorer, I have desired that one of the principal islands of the lake and one of the noble peaks reflected in its clear waters should bear his name forever.”—Hayden.[CJ]

[CJ]Page 5, Fifth Annual Report of Dr. Hayden.

Mr. Stevenson was born in Maysville, Ky., December 24, 1840. He early displayed a taste for exploration and natural history, and such reading as his limited education permittedwas devoted to books treating of these subjects. At the age of thirteen he ran away from home and joined a party of Hudson’s Bay Fur Company’s traders, bound up the Missouri River. On the same boat was Dr. F. V. Hayden, then on his way to explore the fossiliferous region of the Upper Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers. Noticing Stevenson’s taste for natural history he invited him to join him in his work. Stevenson accepted; and thus began a relation which lasted for more than a quarter of a century, and which gave direction to the rest of his life.

JAMES STEVENSON.

He was engaged in several explorations between 1850 and 1860, connected with the Pacific railroad surveys, and with others under Lieutenants G. K. Warren and W. F. Raynolds. In 1861 he entered the Union service as a private soldier, and left it in 1865 with an officer’s commission. After the war he resumed his connection with Dr. Hayden. He was mainly instrumental in the organization of the United States Geological Survey of the Territories in 1867, and during the next twelve years he was constantly engaged in promoting its welfare. When the consolidation of the various geographical and geological surveys took place in 1879, under the name of the United States Geological Survey, he became associated with the United States Bureau of Ethnology. He had always shown a taste for ethnological investigations and his scientific work during the rest of his life was in this direction,principally among the races of New Mexico and Arizona. He died in New York City July 25, 1888.

In the paragraph quoted above from Dr. Hayden there is more than any but the few who are familiar with the early history of the geological surveys will understand. It rarely happens that a master is so far indebted to a servant for his success, as was true of the relation of Dr. Hayden and James Stevenson. Stevenson’s great talent lay in the organization and management of men. His administrative ability in the field was invaluable to the Survey of which Hayden was chief, and his extraordinary influence with Congressmen was a vital element in its early growth. His part in the Yellowstone Explorations of 1871 and 1872 is second to none in importance. It will not be forgotten that he was the first to build and launch a boat upon the Yellowstone Lake, nor that he, and Mr. Langford who was with him, were the first white men to reach the summit of the Grand Teton.

Storm Peak(9,500)—E: 8—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Survey Peak(9,200)—T: 4—1885—U. S. G. S. This mountain was a prominent signaling point for the Indians. It was first named Monument Peak by Richard Leigh who built a stone mound on its summit.

Table Mountain(10,800)—O: 14—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Terrace Mountain(8,100)—C: 6—1878—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Teton, Grand(13,691)—Not on Map.—This mountain has borne its present name for upward of four score years. Through more than half a century it was a cynosure to the wandering trapper, miner and explorer. The name has passed into all the literature of that period, which will ever remain one of the most fascinating in our western history. Indeed, it has become the classic designation of the most interesting historic summit of the Rocky Mountains. That itshould always retain this designation in memory of the nameless pioneers who have been guided by it across the wilderness, and thousands of whom have perished beneath its shadow, would seem to be a self-evident proposition. Individual merit, no matter how great, can never justify the usurpation of its place by any personal name whatever. An attempt to do this was made in 1872 by the United States Geological Survey who rechristened it Mt. Hayden. The new name has never gained any local standing, and although it has crept into many maps its continued use ought to be discouraged. It is greatly to the credit of Dr. Hayden that he personally disapproved the change, so far at least, as very rarely, if ever, to refer to the mountain by its new name.

Three Rivers Peak(9,900)—E: 4—1885—U. S. G. S.—Branches of the Madison, Gallatin and Gardiner Rivers take their rise from its slopes.

Thunderer, The(10,400)—D: 14—1885—U. S. G. S.—Seemingly a great focus for thunder storms.

Top Notch Peak(10,000)—L: 13—1895—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Trident, The(10,000)—Q-R: 14—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Trilobite Point(9,900)—F: 4—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Turret Mountain(10,400)—P: 14—1878—Characteristic.—Called by Captain Jones “Round-head or Watch Tower.”

Twin Buttes(8,400)—K: 14—1870—Washburn Party.—Characteristic.

Washburn, Mt.(10,000)—F: 9—1870—Washburn Party.—For General Henry Dana Washburn, chief of the Yellowstone Expedition of 1870.

General Washburn was born in Windsor, Vt., March 28, 1832. His parents moved to Ohio during his infancy. He received a common school education and at fourteen beganteaching school. He entered Oberlin College, but did not complete his course. At eighteen he went to Indiana where he resumed school-teaching. At twenty-one he entered the New York State and National Law School, from which he graduated. At twenty-three he was elected auditor of Vermilion county, Indiana.

His war record was a highly honorable one. He entered the army as private in 1861 and left it as brevet brigadier-general in 1865. His service was mainly identified with the Eighteenth Indiana, of which he became colonel. He was in several of the western campaigns, notably in that of Vicksburg, in which he bore a prominent part. In the last year of the war he was with Sherman’s army, and for a short time after its close was in command of a military district in southern Georgia. In 1864, he was elected to Congress over the Hon. Daniel W. Voorhees, and again, in 1866, over the Hon. Solomon W. Claypool. At the expiration of his second term he was appointed by President Grant, surveyor-general of Montana, which office he held until his death.

GEN. HENRY DANA WASHBURN.

It was during his residence in Montana that the famous Yellowstone Expedition of 1870 took place. His part in that important work is perhaps the most notable feature of his career. As leader of the expedition he won the admiration and affection of its members. He was the first to send to Washington specimens from the geyser formations. He ardentlyespoused the project of setting apart this region as a public park and was on his way to Washington in its interest when his career was cut short by death. The hardship and exposure of the expedition had precipitated the catastrophe to which he had long been tending. He left Helena in November, 1870, and died of consumption at his home in Clinton, Indiana, January 26, 1871.

General Washburn’s name was given to this mountain by a unanimous vote of the party on the evening of August 28, 1870, as a result of the following incident related by Mr. Langford:

“Our first Sunday in camp was at Tower Creek. The forest around us was very dense, and we were somewhat at a loss in deciding what course we needed to follow in order to reach Yellowstone Lake. We had that day crossed afreshIndian trail, a circumstance which admonished us of the necessity of watchfulness so as to avoid disaster. While we were resting in camp, General Washburn, without our knowledge, and unattended, made his way to the mountain, from the summit of which, overlooking the dense forest which environed us, he saw Yellowstone Lake, our objective point, and carefully noted its direction from our camp. This intelligence was most joyfully received by us, for it relieved our minds of all anxiety concerning our course of travel, and dispelled the fears of some of our party lest we should become inextricably involved in that wooded labyrinth.”

White Peaks(9,800)—F : 4—1895—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Wild Cat Peak(9,800)—T : 8—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Yount Peak(Hayden, 11,700; Hague, 12,250)—Not on map.—1878—U. S. G. S.—Source of the Yellowstone.—Named for an old trapper and guide of that region.

APPENDIX A.

III.

STREAMS.

[Map locations refer only to outlets, or to points where streams pass off the limits of the map. Altitudes refer to the same points, but are given only in the most important cases.]

Agate Creek—E : 10—1878—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Alum Creek—H : 9—Name known prior to 1870—Characteristic.

Amethyst Greek—E : 12—1878—U. S. G. S.—Flows from Amethyst Mountain.

Amphitheater Creek—D : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—From form of valley near its mouth.

Antelope Creek—E : 10—1870—Washburn Party—Characteristic.—This name is often applied locally to a tributary of the Yellowstone just above Trout Creek.

Arnica Creek—L : 8—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Aster Creek—P : 7—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Astrigent Creek—J : 12—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Atlantic Creek—S : 13—1873—Jones—Flows from Two-Ocean-Pass down the Atlantic slope.

Badger Creek—P : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Basin Creek—Q : 9—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Bear Creek—B : 7—1863—Party of prospectors under one Austin. On the way they found fair prospects in a creek on the east side of the Yellowstone, and finding also a hairless cub, called the gulch “Bear.”—Topping.

Bear Creek—K : 11—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Beaver Creek—O : 9—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Beaver Dam Creek—O : 12—1871—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Bechler River—R : 1—1872—U. S. G. S.—For Gustavus R. Bechler, topographer on the Snake River Division of the Hayden Expedition of 1872.

Berry Creek—U : 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Black-tail Deer Creek—B : 8—Named prior to 1870—Characteristic.

Bluff Creek—H : 10—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Bog Creek—H : 10—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Boone Creek—T : 1—Named prior to 1870—For Robert Withrow, an eccentric pioneer of Irish descent, who used to call himself “Daniel Boone the Second.”

Bridge Creek—K : 9—1871—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

“At one point, soon after leaving camp, we found a most singular natural bridge of the trachyte, which gives passage to a small stream, which we called Bridge Creek.”—Hayden.

“Natural Bridge” is really over a branch of Bridge Creek.

Broad Creek—F : 10—1871—Barlow—Characteristic.

Buffalo Creek—D : 11—Prior to 1870—Naming party unknown—Characteristic.

Burnt Creek—E : 10—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Cache Creek—F : 13—1863—Prospecting party under one Austin were in camp on this stream when they were surprised by Indians, and all their stock stolen except one or two mules. Being unable to carry all their baggage from this point, theycachedwhat they could not place on the mules, or could not themselves carry. From this circumstance arose the name.

Calfee Creek—F : 13—1880—Norris—For H. B. Calfee, a photographer of note.

"Some seven miles above Cache Creek we passed the mouth of another stream in a deep, narrow, timbered valley, whichwe named Calfee Creek, after the famous photographer of the Park. Five miles further on, we reached the creek which Miller recognized as the one he descended in retreating from the Indians in 1870, and which, on this account, we called Miller’s Creek."—Norris.[CK]

[CK]Page 7, Annual Report Superintendent of the Park for 1880.

Cañon Creek—1 : 5—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Carnelian Creek—E : 9—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Cascade Creek—G : 8—1870—Washburn Party—Characteristic.

Chalcedony Creek—E : 12—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Chipmunk Creek—O : 11—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Clear Creek—L : 11—1878—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Cliff Creek—Q : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Clover Creek—G : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Cold Creek—H : 14—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Columbine Creek—M : 11—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Conant Creek—T : 1—Prior to 1870—By Richard Leigh for one All Conant, who went to the mountains in 1865, and who came near losing his life on this stream.

Cotton Grass Creek—H : 9—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Cougar Creek—G : 2—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Coulter Creek—R : 8—1885—U. S. G. S.—For John M. Coulter, botanist in the Hayden Expedition of 1872.

Crawfish Creek—R : 6—1885—U. S. G. S—Characteristic.

Crevice Creek—C : 7—1867—Prospecting party under one Lou Anderson.

“They found gold in a crevice at the mouth of the first Stream above Bear, and named it, in consequence, CreviceGulch. Hubbel went ahead the next day for a hunt, and upon his return he was asked what kind of a stream the next creek was. ‘It’s a hell roarer,’ was his reply, and Hell Roaring is its name to this day. The second day after this, he was again ahead, and, the same question being asked him, he said: “‘Twas but a slough.” When the party came to it, they found a rushing torrent, and, in crossing, a pack horse and his load were swept away, but the name of Slough Creek remains.”—Topping.

Crooked Creek—R : 10—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Crow Creek—K : 15—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Crystal Creek—D : 11—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Cub Creek—L : 11—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Deep Creek—E : 10—1873—Jones—Characteristic.

De Lacy Creek—M : 6—1880—Norris—For Walter W. De Lacy, first white man known to have passed along the valley. (See "Shoshone Lake.") First named Madison Creek by the Hayden party in 1871.

Duck Creek—G : 3—1895—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Elk Creek—D : 9—Named prior to 1870—Characteristic.

Elk Tongue Creek—C : 12—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Escarpment Creek—Q : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Fairy Creek—J : 4—1871—Barlow—From “Fairy Falls,” which see.

Falcon Creek—R : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Falls River—S : 1—1872—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Fan Creek—C : 2—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Fawn Creek—C : 5—1878—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Firehole River—I : 4—This name and “Burnt Hole” have been used to designate the geyser basins and the stream flowing through them since at least as far back as 1830. Captain Bonneville says it was well known to his men. The term “Hole” is a relic of the early days when the open valleys or parks among the mountains were called “holes.” The descriptive“fire, naturally arose from the peculiar character of that region.”

Firehole, Little—L : 4—1878—U. S. G. S.—From main stream.

Flint Creek—F : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Forest Creek—Q : 7—1885—U. S. G. S—Characteristic.

Fox Creek—R : 11—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Gallatin River—A : 1—1805—Lewis and Clark—For Albert Gallatin, Secretary of War under President Jefferson.

Gardiner River(5360)—B : 6—This name, which, after “Yellowstone,” is the most familiar and important name in the Park, is the most difficult to account for. The first authentic use of the name occurs in 1870, in the writings of the Washburn party. In Mr. Langford’s journal, kept during the expedition, is the following entry for August 25, 1870: “At nineteen miles from our morning camp we came to Gardiner River, at the mouth of which we camped.” As the party did not originate the name, and as they make no special reference to it in any of their writings, it seems clear that it must already have been known to them at the time of their arrival at the stream. None of the surviving members has the least recollection concerning it. The stream had been known to prospectors during the preceding few years as Warm Spring Creek, and the many “old timers” consulted on the subject erroneously think that the present name was given by the Washburn Party or by the Hayden Party of 1871. What is its real origin is therefore a good deal of a mystery.

The only clue, and that not a satisfactory one, which has come under our observation, is to be found in the book “River of the West,” already quoted. Reference is there made to a trapper by the name of Gardiner, who lived in the Upper Yellowstone country as far back as 1830, and was at one time a companion of Joseph Meek, the hero of the book. In another place it is stated that in 1838, Meek started alone from Missouri Lake (probably Red Rock Lake) "for the GallatinFork of the Missouri, trapping in a mountain basin called Gardiner’s Hole…. On his return, in another basin called Burnt Hole, he found a buffalo skull, etc." As is well known, the sources of the Gallatin and Gardiner are interlaced with each other, and this reference strongly points to the present Gardiner Valley as “Gardiner’s Hole.” The route across the Gallatin Range to Mammoth Hot Springs, and thence back by way of the Firehole Basin, was doubtless a natural one then as it is now. It is therefore reasonable to suppose that this name came from an old hunter in the early years of the century, and that the Washburn Party received it from some surviving descendant of those times.

Geode Creek—C : 8—1878—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Geyser Creek—H : 6—1878—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Gibbon River—I : 4—1872—U. S. G. S.—For Gen. John Gibbon, U. S. A., who first explored it.

“We have named this stream in honor of Gen. John Gibbon, United States Army, who has been in military command of Montana for some years, and has, on many occasions, rendered the survey most important services.”—Hayden.[CL]

[CL]Page 55, Sixth Annual Report of Dr. Hayden.

Glade Creek—S : 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Glen Creek—C : 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Gneiss Creek—G : 1—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Gravel Creek—U : 10—1895—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Grayling Creek—F : 1—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Grouse Creek—O : 10—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Harebell Creek—R : 8—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Hart River—Q : 9—1872—U. S. G. S.—From Hart Lake, of which it is the outlet. (See “Hart Lake.”)

Hell Roaring Creek—C : 9—1867—See “Crevice Creek.”

Indian Creek—E : 6—1878—U. S. G. S.—See “Bannock Peak.”

Iron Creek—L : 4—1871—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Jasper Creek—D : 11—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Jay Creek—S : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Jones Creek—K : 15—1880—Norris—For Captain (now Lieutenant-Colonel) W. A. Jones, Corps of Engineers, U. S. A., who first explored it. Captain Jones was leader of an important expedition through the Park in 1873, and has since been largely identified with the development of the Park road system.

Jumper Creek—J : 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Lamar River(5,970)—D : 10—1885—U. S. G. S.—For the Hon. L. Q. C. Lamar, Secretary of the Interior during the first administration of President Cleveland. The stream is locally known only by its original designation, the “East Fork of the Yellowstone.”

Lava Creek—D : 7—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Lewis River—R : 7—1872—U. S. G. S.—From “Lewis Lake,” which see.

Lizard Creek—U : 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Lost Creek—D : 9—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Lupine Creek—D : 7—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Lynx Creek—Q : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Madison River—G : 1—1805—Lewis and Clark—For James Madison, Secretary of State to Thomas Jefferson.

Magpie Creek—J : 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Maple Creek—G : 2—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Mason Creek—L : 16—1881—Norris—For Major Julius W. Mason, U. S. A., commander of escort to Gov. Hoyt, of Wyoming, on the latter’s reconnaissance for a wagon road to the Park in 1881.

Meadow Creek—M : 11—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Middle Creek—L : 15—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Miller Creek—G : 13—1880—Norris—For a mountaineer named Miller. See "Calfee Creek."

Mink Creek—T : 11—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Mist Creek—I : 14—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Moose Creek—N : 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Moss Creek—G : 10—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Mountain Creek—P : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Mountain Ash Creek—R : 3—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Nez Percé Creek(7,237)—J : 4—1878—U. S. G. S.—The Nez Percé Indians passed up this stream on their raid through the Park in 1877. It had previously been called “East Fork of the Firehole.” Prof. Bradley, of the U. S. Geological Survey, christened it Hayden’s Fork in 1872. (SeeChapter XIII, Part I.)

Obsidian Creek—E : 6—1879—Norris—Characteristic.

Opal Creek—E : 12—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Otter Creek—H : 8—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Outlet Creek—P : 9—1895—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Owl Creek—T : 5—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Pacific Creek—W : 11—1873—Jones—Flows from Two-Ocean Pass down the Pacific slope.

Panther Creek—D : 5—1878—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Pebble Creek—D : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Pelican Creek—K : 10—Probably named by the Washburn Party in 1870. Hayden and Barlow, in 1871, use the name as though it were already a fixture. Mr. Hedges says of this stream:

“About the mouth of the little stream that we had just crossed were numerous shallows and bars, which were covered by the acre with ducks, geese, huge white-breasted cranes, and long-beaked pelicans, while the solitary albatross, or sea-gull, circled above our heads with a saucy look that drew many a random shot, and cost one, at least, its life.”

Phlox Creek—Q : 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Plateau Creek—C : 12—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Polecat Creek—S : 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Quartz Creek—E : 10—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Rabbit Creek—K : 4—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Raven Creek—J: 12—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Red Creek—Q: 8—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Rescue Creek—C: 7—1878—U. S. G. S.—Where Everts was not found. (See “Mt. Everts.”)

Rocky Creek—O: 12—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Rose Creek—D: 12—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Sedge Creek—K: 11—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Senecio Creek—S: 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Sentinel Creek—J: 4—1872—U. S. G. S.—“The two central ones [geyser mounds] are the highest, and appear so much as if they were guarding the Upper Valley, that this stream was called Sentinel Branch.” Bradley.

Shallow Creek—F: 11—1895—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Sickle Creek—Q: 10—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Slough Creek—D: 10—1867—See “Crevice Creek.”

Snake River(6,808)—W: 8—1805—Lewis and Clark—From the Snake or Shoshone Indians, who dwelt in its valley.

Soda Butte Creek—E: 12—Probably named by miners prior to 1870. From an extinct geyser or hot spring cone near the mouth of the stream.

Solfatara Creek—G: 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Solution Creek—M: 8—1885—U. S. G. S.—The outlet of Riddle Lake.

Sour Creek—H: 9—1871—Barlow—Characteristic.

Spirea Creek—R: 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Spring Creek—M: 5—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Spruce Creek—J: 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Squirrel Creek—N: 5—1878—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Stellaria Creek—C: 3—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Stinkingwater River—L: 16—1807—John Colter—From an offensive hot spring near the junction of the principal forks of the stream. A most interesting fact, to which attention was first publicly called by Prof. Arnold Hague, is the occurrence on the map, which Lewis and Clark sent to PresidentJefferson in the spring of 1805, of the name “Stinking Cabin Creek,” very nearly in the locality of the river Stinkingwater. Prof. Hague, who published an interesting paper concerning this map inSciencefor November 4, 1877, thinks that possibly some trapper had penetrated this region even before 1804. But with Lewis and Clark’s repeated statements that no white man had reached the Yellowstone prior to 1805, it seems more likely that the name was derived from the Indians.

Straight Creek—E: 5—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Sulphur Creek—G: 9—1878—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.—Locally this name is applied to a stream which flows from the hot springs at the base of Sulphur Mountain.

Surface Creek—G: 9—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Surprise Creek—P: 9—1885—U. S. G. S.—Its course, as made known by recent explorations, was surprisingly different from that which earlier explorations had indicated.

Tangled Creek—J: 4—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.—A hot water stream which flows in numberless interlaced channels.

Thistle Creek—J: 10—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Thoroughfare Creek—R: 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Its valley forms part of a very practicable route across the Yellowstone Range.

Timothy Creek—G: 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Tower Creek—D: 10—1870—Washburn Party—From “Tower Falls,” which see.

Trail Creek—O: 12—1873—Jones—From an elk trail along it.

Trappers' Creek—P: 13—1885—U. S. G. S.—A great beaver resort.

Trout Greek—I: 9—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Violet Creek—I: 8—1872—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.—“We named the small stream Violet Creek, from the profusion of violets growing upon its banks.” Peale.

Weasel Creek—K: 9—1895—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Willow Creek—H: 14—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Winter Creek—E: 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Witch Creek—O: 8—1878—U. S. G. S.—Probably from the prevalence of hot springs phenomena along its entire course.

Wolverine Creek—R: 8—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Yellowstone River(8,100 and 5,360)—U: 16 (enters map); A: 5 (leaves map).—SeePart I, Chapter I.

APPENDIX A.

IV.

WATER-FALLS.

[Figures in parentheses indicate approximate heights of falls in feet. These in most cases are not to be relied upon as strictly accurate, there having been no published record of actual measurements, except in the case of the Yellowstone Falls.]

Collonade Falls—F: 3—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Crystal Falls(129)—G: 8—1870—Washburn Party.—Characteristic.—The total fall includes three cascades.

Fairy Fall(250)—K: 4—1871—Barlow.—Characteristic.

Firehole Falls(60)—I: 4—Takes name from river.

Gibbon Falls(80)—I: 5—Takes name from river.

Iris Falls—P: 3—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Kepler Cascade(80)—L: 5—1881—Norris.—For the son of Hon. John W. Hoyt, Ex-Governor of Wyoming, who accompanied his father on a reconnaissance for a wagon road to the Park in 1881. Norris speaks of him as “an intrepid twelve-year old” boy who “unflinchingly shared in all the hardships, privations, and dangers of the explorations of his father,” which included many hundred miles of travel on horseback through that difficult country; and in admiration for the lad’s pluck, he named this cascade in his honor.

Lewis Falls, Upper(80)—P: 7—Takes name from river.

Lewis Falls, Lower(50)—Q: 7—Takes name from river.

Moose Falls—R: 6—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Mystic Falls—L: 4—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Osprey Falls(150)—D: 6—1885—U. S. G. S.

Ouzel Falls—P: 3—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Rainbow Falls(140)—R: 4—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.—Height includes total of three falls.

Rustic Falls(70)—D: 6—1878—Norris—Characteristic.

Silver Cord Cascade—G: 9—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Terraced Falls—R: 4—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Tower Falls(132)—D: 10—1870—Washburn Party—Characteristic.

“By a vote of a majority of the party this fall was called Tower Fall.”—Washburn.

“At the crest of the fall the stream has cut its way through amygdaloid masses, leaving tall spires of rock from 50 to 100 feet in height, and worn in every conceivable shape…. Several of them stand like sentinels on the very brink of the fall.”—Doane.

Undine Falls(60)—D: 7—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Union Falls—Q: 4—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Virginia Cascade(60)—H: 7—1886—By E. Lamartine, at that time foreman in charge of government work in Park.—For the wife of the Hon. Chas. Gibson, President of the Yellowstone Park Association.

Wraith Falls(100)—D: 7—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Yellowstone Falls(Upper 112; Lower 310)—H: 9—From the river which flows over them.[CM]

[CM]Record of the various measurements of the Upper and Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River.

Folsom (1869) Upper Fall, 115 feet. Method not stated.Lower Fall, 350 feet. Method not stated.Doane (1870) Upper Fall, 115 feet. Line.Langford (1870) Lower Fall, 350 feet. Line stretched on an incline.Moore’s Sketch (1870) Lower Fall, 365 feet. Method notstated.Hayden (1871) Upper Fall, 140 feet. Method not stated.Lower Fall, 350 feet. Method not stated.Gannett (1872) Upper Fall, 140 feet. Barometer.Lower Fall, 395 feet. Comparison of angles subtendedby Falls and by a tree of known height.Jones (1873) Upper Fall, 150 feet. Barometer.Lower Fall, 329 feet. Barometer.Ludlow (1875) Upper Fall, 110 feet. Line.Lower Fall, 310 feet. Line.Gannett (1878) Upper Fall, 112 feet. Line.Lower Fall, 297 feet. Line stretched on an incline.U. S. G. S. (Recent) Upper Fall, 109 feet. Method not stated.Lower Fall, 308 feet. Method not stated.Chittenden (1892) Upper Fall, 112 feet between point of first descent and level of pool below. Measured by means of a transit instrument. Width of gorge at brink of fall, and a few feet above water surface, 48 feet.

APPENDIX A.

LAKES.

[Figures in parentheses denote elevations.]

Beach Lake(8,150)—K: 8—1885—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

Beaver Lake(7,415)—F: 6—1879—Norris—Characteristic.

Beula Lake(7,530)—R: 5—1872—U. S. G. S.—Characteristic.

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