01Summary
A great bluff rising 800 feet above the North Platte River, named for fur trader Hiram Scott, who died near it in 1828.
02History
Scotts Bluff rises 800 feet above the North Platte River in western Nebraska. It takes its name from Hiram Scott, a fur-company clerk who died near the bluff in 1828 on his way back from that year's rendezvous. The story, first recorded by trapper Warren Ferris, who passed the bluff in 1830, says Scott fell ill and was left behind by two companions, and that his skeleton was found the next spring. The details have been lost.
Through 1850 nearly all wagons swung south around the bluffs through Robidoux Pass. Then a road was opened through the gap between Scotts Bluff and South Bluff, which cut about eight miles off the old road. In 1851 wagons split about evenly between the two routes, and from 1852 most took the gap. Emigrants called it Devil's Gap. It was named Mitchell Pass only after nearby Fort Mitchell was built in 1864.
The Pony Express and the first transcontinental telegraph line also went through the gap.
03Today
Scotts Bluff National Monument protects the bluff and Mitchell Pass. Erosion has smoothed away the wagon ruts, but visitors can walk about half a mile of the old road on the Oregon Trail Pathway. The visitor center holds the world's largest collection of work by pioneer photographer and artist William Henry Jackson.
05Stops nearby
The Oregon Trail ran about 2,170 miles from Independence, Missouri, to Oregon City. The stops just before and after this one are below. You can also find Scotts Bluff on the interactive map.