100 years of US routes: 1926-2026
(referred to as Corner G on this page)
According to the Congressional definition of the boundary of Colorado, this point is theoretically where the 37th parallel north latitude intersects 103 degrees west longitude*. The first three attempts to locate this intersection (1857, 1859, and 1881) were later found to be in error. The fourth (and finally accepted) location was set in 1900 by Levi Preston. However, due to the technological limitations of his day, it is not exactly right either (but it is remarkably close, and at any rate, his survey does define the official boundary, regardless of its accuracy). This was originally a sandstone monument, but during his 1928 resurvey Arthur Kidder replaced it with the current granite marker shown below.
* Many American surveys between 1850-1884 were based on the Washington Meridian, which was officially abolished by Congress in favor of the Greenwich Prime Meridian in 1912. This point is one of the few Colorado corners that was defined as a degree of longitude west of Greenwich (as opposed to "west of Washington").
The view in this photo was to the west. I was standing in the northeast corner of New Mexico; my father (on the right) was standing in Colorado. The fenceline behind his hat runs along the Colorado-New Mexico line. The northwest corner of Oklahoma's panhandle is just to the left (south) of the camera, and directly in front of me. The state names are inscribed on the marker:
Research and/or photo credits: Dale Sanderson