Independence Rock. Natrona County, Wyoming. 1870.

Album caption and index card: Independence Rock. A noted landmark, on the Oregon Trail, for travelers at the time when this route was used. Its base, bordering the old road, is literally covered with names and dates, many of the former well known in the history of the west, and some of them antedating Fremont's time. The Sweetwater flows immediately along the southern end of it, although on the opposite side of the stream another ridge, continuing toward the southwest, was once connected with it. It is a vast and excellent illustration of disintegration, its rounded form resembling an oblong haystack, with layers of rock lapping over the top and sides of the mass. Thin layers have been broken off in part, and huge masses are scattered [...]