The Cimarron River is a tributary of the Arkansas. The Arkansas River is a major Tributary of the Mississippi River. It extends over 698 miles (1123 km) across four states (New Mexico, Oklahoma, Colorado, and Kansas). New Mexico ( is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States of America. Oklahoma ( is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. The State of Colorado ( or chiefly by nonresidents) is a state located in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States of America. Kansas ( is a Midwestern state in the central region of the United States of America, an area often referred to as the American " The headwaters flow from Johnson Mesa west of Folsom in northeastern New Mexico. Johnson Mesa is an 8609 foot (2624 meters Mesa in Colfax County in northeastern New Mexico just south of the Colorado border Folsom is a village in Union County, New Mexico, United States. The river enters the Oklahoma Panhandle near Kenton, then crosses the southeastern corner of Colorado where it flows into Kansas. Kenton is a small unincorporated community in Cimarron County, Oklahoma, United States. It then re-enters the Oklahoma Panhandle, again into Kansas, and finally back into Oklahoma where it flows into the Arkansas River at Keystone Reservoir above Tulsa, Oklahoma. Keystone Lake is an artificial Lake in northeastern Oklahoma on the Arkansas and Cimarron Rivers
The river's name comes from the early Spanish name, Río de los Carneros Cimarrón, which is usually translated as River of the Wild Sheep. Early American explorers also called it the Red Fork of the Arkansas because of water's red color.
In New Mexico the river is known as the Dry Cimarron River. The river is not completely dry but sometimes disappears entirely under the sand in the river bed. The Dry Cimarron Scenic Byway follows the river from Folsom to the Oklahoma border. In Oklahoma the river flows along the southern edges of Black Mesa, the highest point in that state. Black Mesa extends from Mesa de Maya in Colorado southeasterly along the north bank of the Cimarron River, crossing the northeast corner of As it first crosses the Kansas border, the river flows through the Cimarron National Grassland. Cimarron National
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Historical notes of interest
- Historically, the Santa Fe Trail branched southward from the Arkansas to the Cimarron. Forgan is a town in Beaver County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 532 at the 2000 census. The Santa Fe Trail was a Historic 19th century transportation route through southwestern North America connecting Missouri with Santa Fe One branch was known as the Cimarron Cutoff, and another, the Aubry Cutoff. The lack of water along the Cimarron Cutoff route from the Arkansas to the Cimarron led American traders and travelers to call the area the "Cimarron Desert". Mexican traders called it the "Jornada del Muerte" (Journey of Death).
- In 1831 Commanche Indians killed Jedediah Smith (a famous hunter, trapper, and explorer) on the Santa Fe Trail near the Cimarron River. Jedediah Strong Smith (born January 6, 1799 — presumed date of death May 27, 1831) was a hunter, trapper, Fur trader His body was never recovered.
- In 1834 General Henry Leavenworth established Camp Arbuckle (Fort Arbuckle) at the mouth of the Cimarron River. Henry Leavenworth ( December 10, 1783 &ndash July 21, 1834) was an American soldier active in the War of 1812 and early military
- Historic sites along the river include the ruins of Camp Nichols, a stone fort built by Kit Carson in 1865 to protect travelers from Indian raiders on the Cimarron Cutoff. Camp Nichols, also known as Fort Nichols or Camp Nichols Ranch, was a historic fortification located in present-day Cimarron County Oklahoma. Christopher Houston "Kit" Carson ( December 24, 1809 &ndash May 23, 1868) was an American Frontiersman The Plains Indians are the Indigenous peoples who live on the plains and rolling hills of the Great Plains of North America. It was located near present day town of Wheeless, Oklahoma. Wheeless is a small unincorporated community in Cimarron County Oklahoma.
- The old Chisholm Trail crossed the river at Red Fork Station near present day Dover, Oklahoma. The Chisholm Trail was a dirt Trail used in the later 19th century to drive cattle overland from ranches in Texas to Kansas Railheads The trail stretched Dover is a town in Kingfisher County, Oklahoma, United States.
Additional reading
- Anshutz, Carrie W. Schmoker; M. W. (Doc) Anshutz. Cimarron Chronicles: Saga of the Open Range. Meade, Kansas: Ohnick Enterprises, 2003. ISBN 0-9746222-0-6
- Dary, David. The Santa Fe Trail: Its History, Legends, and Lore. New York: Penguin, 2002 (Reissue). ISBN 0-14-200058-2
- Hanners, Laverne; Ed Lord. The Lords of the Valley: Including the Complete Text of Our Unsheltered Lives. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1996. ISBN 0-8061-2804-6
- Hoig, Stan. Beyond the Frontier: Exploring the Indian Country. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1998. ISBN 0-8061-3052-0
- Schumm, Stanley A. Channel Widening and Flood-Plain Construction along Cimarron River in Southwestern Kansas: Erosion and Sedimentation in a Semiarid Environment. Washington D. C. : Government Printing Office, 1963. ISBN B0007EFJLY
- Schumm, Stanley A. River Variability and Complexity. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005. ISBN 0-521-84671-4
- Stovall, John Willis. Geology of the Cimarron River Valley in Cimarron County, Oklahoma. Chicago, 1938.
- Woodhouse, S. W. (Eds. John S. Tomer, Michael J. Brodhead). A Naturalist in Indian Territory: The Journals of S. W. Woodhouse, 1849-50 (The American Exploration and Travel Series, Vol 72). Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1996. ISBN 0-8061-2805-4
See also
- Cimarron National Grassland
- Maxwell National Wildlife Refuge (NWR)
- Point of Rocks (Kansas)
- Santa Fe Trail
External links
- Mouth of the Cimarron Topozone. Cimarron National Maxwell is a village in Colfax County, New Mexico, United States. National Wildlife Refuge is a designation for certain Protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Point of Rocks, in Morton County Kansas, was one of three landmarks by the same name on the Santa Fe Trail. The Santa Fe Trail was a Historic 19th century transportation route through southwestern North America connecting Missouri with Santa Fe
- Headwaters of the Cimarron Topozone.
- Cimarron National Grassland USDA Forest Service.
- Dry Cimarron Scenic Byway New Mexico Historic Markers.
- Kansas connections (Eco-History Trails and Tales)
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