White Cloud, Kansas - 40th Parallel Marker

When we went to see the obelisk, the foot path was so overgrown we didn't attempt it. We even tried getting in a back way but there wasn't an opening we could see to use. The historical marker marker along the road was placed right on the Kansas/Nebraska border (the 40th parallel). [Mike & Susan, 09/26/2009]

This point marks the beginning of the public land surveys of the sixth principal meridian. This marker was placed here on May 8, 1855 and was used for the initial point of survey for Nebraska, Kansas and parts of Colorado, Wyoming, and South Dakota.

It is a difficult climb to the top of the bluff to the marker though there is a foot trail with handrails and benches for resting along the way. Location is remote. There are no services of any kind. [Dempsey Yearry, 04/04/2008]

[RA: We're granting some latitude, ahem, in posting this one. The 40th Parallel simply isn't as exciting as, say, the 45th Parallel, with its associated town pride over an invisible line. But if you're a big fan of COORDINATES, it's up to you to decide if a 40th pilgrimage is worthwhile. The pointless climb helps, a little -- and there is an official Nebraska Historical Marker.]