WHEELER STONE FT. BAYARD N.M. - U.S. Historic Survey Stones and Monuments on Waymarking.com

THE 4 GREAT SURVEYS
4 GREAT SURVEYS

THIS IS NOW REFERENCE MARK 2 PID=CY0795
Documented History (by the NGS)
1/1/1945 by USGS (MONUMENTED)
1/1/1980 by NGS (GOOD)
DESCRIBED BY NATIONAL GEODETIC SURVEY 1980 12.9 KM EAST FROM SILVER CITY. 1.1 KILOMETER (0.7 MILE) NORTH ALONG HUDSON STREET FROM THE POST OFFICE IN SILVER CITY, THENCE 11.0 KILOMETERS (6.8 MILES) SOUTHEAST ALONG U.S. HIGHWAY 180, THENCE 0.8 KILOMETER (0.5 MILE) NORTHWEST ALONG A PAVED ROAD (OLD U.S. HIGHWAY 180), THENCE 0.8 KILOMETER (0.5 MILE) NORTHEAST ALONG A PAVED ROAD TO THE FORT BAYARD HOSPITAL, THENCE 0.2 KILOMETER (0.1 MILE) NORTHWEST ALONG A PAVED ROAD, 0.2 KILOMETER (0.1 MILE) NORTHWEST OF THE HOSPITAL AT AN ABANDONED WHITE BUILDING, 23.2 METERS (76.4 FEET) SOUTH OF THE SOUTH CORNER OF THE BUILDING, 6.4 METERS (21.0 FEET) EAST OF THE CENTER OF THE ROAD, 7.3 METERS (23.9 FEET) NORTH OF THE STATION MARK, 2.1 METERS (7.0 FEET) WEST OF A P0LE WITH A STREET LIGHT. NOTE= A PIECE IS BROKEN OFF THE EAST SIDE OF THE DISK AND THE STAMPING IS OBLITERATED. THE MARK IS 0.4 M ABOVE THE ROAD.

NOTE FROM FT. BAYARD RESET: 1/1/1945 by USGS (GOOD) RECOVERY NOTE BY US GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 1945 STATION MARK--A BRONZE USC AND GS STATION DISK, STAMPED ---FORT BAYARD USGS 1945---. NOTE--REFERENCE MARK NO. 2 OF THE U.S. COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY IS A STANDARD USGS ALUMINUM TABLET, SET IN A SQUARE GRANITE STONE, WHICH PROJECTS 1-1/2 FT. ABOVE THE GROUND. THIS MARK IS IDENTICAL WITH THE 1879 WHEELER ASTRONOMIC STATION AND WAS THE MARK USED BY USGS IN 1931 AS STATION ---BAYARD---.

The "Great Surveys" begin with the army sponsored Wheeler Surveys beginning in 1869. See Lt. George M. Wheeler, United States Geographical Surveys West of the One Hundredth Meridian, Washington, Annual Reports, 1869-1883 and Final Reports I-VII (1889) plus 14 Unclassified Publications. The only biography of Wheeler is Doris O. Dowdy, George Montague Wheeler: the Man and the Myth, Ohio Univ. Press, Athens, OH, 1993. This is an exposé of Wheeler more than a biography.

A NEARBY MONUMENT
Yet, the gender and the name ascribed to the rock monolith were by no means settled during these early years. In his survey of southwestern New Mexico in 1877, Wheeler noted on a draft version of a map of the Santa Rita region a rock monolith whose location corresponds perfectly to the Kneeling Nun. However, the name appearing on Wheeler's map is "Kneeling Jesus". This map was never published by the government. However, Wheeler's denotation and the other accounts mentioned above indicate that the monolith was, in the 1870s, known by at least three different names Kneeling Nun, Kneeling Virgin, and Kneeling Jesus.

Monumentation Type: Dressed stone Monumentation Type (if other): STONE MONUMENT Monument Category: other (not included below) Monument Category (if other): 1ST GREAT SURVEY Accessible to general public: yes Historical significance: THE FIRST OF THE 4 GREAT SURVEYS. County: GRANT USGS Quad: Fort Bayard, USGS Fort Bayard (NM) NGS PID: CY0795 Approximate date of monument: 01/01/1879 Explain Non-Public access: Not listed Monument Website: Not listed Other Coordinates: Not Listed Other Coordinates details: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
1. A closeup photo of the monument is required.
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2. A 'distant' photo including the monument in the view is highly recommended. Include the compass direction you faced when you took the picture.

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