Oregon Buttes
The Oregon Buttes are small buttes, near the Oregon Trail, in what is now the state of Wyoming.
| Oregon Buttes | |
|---|---|
Oregon Buttes | |
| Highest point | |
| Peak | North Butte |
| Elevation | 8,562 ft (2,610 m) Oregon Buttes |
| Geography | |
| Location | Sweetwater County |
| Country | United States |
| State | Wyoming |
| Range coordinates | 42°15′36″N 108°50′55″W |
They are just past South Pass, and are two flat-topped summits plus a smaller, conical one. For travelers on the Oregon Trail, the buttes were on the horizon for a day's travel, perhaps more. This was as they crossed Rock Creek, then Willow Creek, and, for the last time, the Sweetwater River.
Pioneers on the trails used physically descriptive names for the buttes: "Table Rock," or "Table Rocks."
Currently, they are in a remote area and can be difficult to get to. From the top of a butte one can see for miles, including to the north the Wind River Mountains, and to the southwest the Unitah Mountain Range.
They rise about 1,500 feet (460 m) from the plain. They are flat-topped.
Petrified wood is found in the area, but it is closed for hunting of minerals, as well as gold panning.
Near 12 miles (19 km) southwest of Oregon Buttes stands the Tri-Territory site. This site is where the Oregon Territory, First Mexican Empire, and the Louisiana Purchase met at a single point.