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Brow Monument and Brow Monument Trail
The Brow Monument is listed in the National Register of Historic Places for Coconino County, Arizona . It is located on the North Kaibab Plateau in northern Arizona within the jurisdiction of the Kaibab National Forest. (Its registration number is 1987001159). The National Register designation is to memorialize the John Wesley Powell surveying expedition of 1872. The site consists of one of the survey markers that were key in calculating distances and topography in the early West. The survey markers were also referred to as “monuments”, thus the term “Brow Monument” defines both the physical marker as well as representing a memorial for the Expedition.

Brow Monument is mentioned on only two maps; the topographic map located in the lobby of the North Kaibab National Forest visitor center in Jacob Lake, Arizona and in the National Forest Service "Kaibab National Forest North Kaibab Ranger District" map. 

The Brow Monument is reachable by foot via the Brow Monument Trail. The trailhead is located within the Kaibab National Forest. The trailhead can be accessed by two-wheel drive passenger cars (in good weather) although high clearance four-wheel drive vehicles are recommended because of ruts and tree -fall on Forest Service roads. Access to the site can be limited in late fall to early spring because of heavy snowfall.

Directions to the trailhead from either the North Kaibab Visitor Center in Jacob Lake or from Grand Canyon north rim facilities are as follows:

Proceed on state highway 67 to Forest Service road #22 which is located just south of the Demotte campground and north of the National Park entrance station. Turn west onto this road. Proceed north on FS 22 for approximately 16 miles to the turn off for Forest Service Road 477. Turn left onto FS 477. In approximately 1/4 mile, there will be a sign for Brow Monument. Turn right after the sign onto Forest Service road 252. In less than 1/2 mile, the road will be posted for Brow Monument by making a left turn onto Forest Service road 252c. Proceed carefully for approximately 1.5 miles to the trailhead. The Forest Service map cited above is accurate and useful for finding these roads.

The trailhead is very will marked along the route and there is informational signage also along the route (see below). The waymarks are brown metal posts located approximately 200 feet apart along the open ridge walk. There is very little shade along the walk. The trail is posted as being two miles long. It takes approximately 30 minutes to walk to the Monument at an average pace.

the Brow Trailhead is located at 	N 36  35.002’   W 112  23.207’  GPS decimal format

the Brow Monument is located at 	N 36 35.457    W 112  23.887’  GPS decimal format

the Brow Monument GPS coordinates listed in the National Register from Wikipedia are

N 36 35’ 27”     W 112 23’  54”

The Following are verbatim transcriptions of the National Forest Service informational signs along the trail to the Monument.

What is Brow Monument?
Most people remember John Wesley Powell for his exploration of the Colorado and Green Rivers in 1868. However, his second trip to the region in 1871 to map and describe the area was also difficult and dangerous, in rough and unknown territory. Brow Monument remains a legacy to that effort.

In February of 1872, Powell’s crew was sent out from Kanab, Utah, to locate mapping points on the Kaibab Plateau. They stayed with Levi Stewart, a pioneer farmer, at his Big Springs homestead. Although the countryside was covered in snow, they explored neighboring ridges to the southwest for a suitable site to build their marker. Permanent markers were usually a large pyramid of stones, sometimes a blazed tree, or cribbed logs, with a red-and-white flag high above to facilitate telescope readings.

In 1878, G.K. Gilbert returned to the area to remeasure the elevation at some markers. It is believed that at this time he constructed a wooden crib to stabilize the Brow marker.

Looking Back into the Past
The land before you looked very different in the past. If you could go back in time, to the year 1100 AD, you would see fields of corn and beans scattered among farmsteads built by ancient farmers known as the Pueblo people. At 9000 years ago you might glimpse small groups of Indian peoples hunting large game animals with spears.

When the Powell expedition explored this ridge in 1872, the countryside was covered with trees and scattered openings. In 1996, the Bridger Wildfire burned over 60,000 acres leaving the mosaic of trees and desert grasslands you see today. Landscapes across the National Forests are always in a state of change.

Old But Accurate
The Powell Survey mapping methods were surprisingly accurate. In 1933 the U.S. Geological Survey reset Brow monument at this ridgetop location, naming it Brow 2 (see brass cap). Its location is about 300 feet upslope from the original Brow Monument.

The Coast and Geodetic Survey returned to this location in 1953, setting more reference points. If you continue down the trail, you will find the original Brow Monument. In 1996, the Bridger Fire destroyed the wooden cribbing portion of the monument, but the rock base remains.

Find Them Yourself
Topographic maps depict features like mountains, valleys, plains, rivers and so forth. As director of the U.S. Geological Survey, Powell designated topographic maps with contour lines showing changing elevations and labeled features such as trails, wagon roads, streams and springs. Can you find some of these labels on this modern map? (not shown)

Look through the view scope to see if you can find some of the same markers Powell’s crew used to map this region.

Brow Monument
Brow Monument, located on the “brow” of the Kaibab Plateau, is a triangulation station established by members of the 1871-1872 Powell Survey. Major John Wesley Powell led the expedition, which mapped the last unknown expanse of land in the continental United States, the Arizona, and Grand Canyon. The survey crew accomplished this task by using a baseline and triangulation points.

Triangulation is based on geometric principles. If the length of one side of a triangle and two of its angles are known, the length of the other two sides can be calculated. A nine mile long baseline was first laid out near the present-day towns of Fredonia, Arizona and Kanab, Utah, some 30 miles north of here. This baseline served as the known length, and expedition members projected triangles to prominent topographic features. The crew erected markers at triangulation points so that they could be easily seen through survey instruments located on other points. Elevation above sea level was established by barometric readings. With this information, topographic maps could be drawn. The diagram at right illustrates which triangulation stations could be seen from Brow Monument. (not shown)

In 1871, Congress gave John Wesley Powell orders to accurately map the Colorado River and surrounding region. That summer and fall, Powell and his crew traveled by boat down the Colorado River. It was Powell’s second trip down the river’s turbulent waters. At Lee’s Ferry, the expedition traveled overland to the Mormon town of Kanab, Utah. It served as their winter headquarters while they mapped the Arizona Strip. They rode by horseback into rough unknown territory covered by deep snow to locate triangulation points like this one. The difficult and dangerous survey work continued until August of 1872, when the crew returned to the river at Lee’s Ferry and completed their journey at Kanab Creek.

Brow Monument is one of the few survey monuments from the 1871-72 Powell Survey which remains standing today. The monument serves as more than just a survey marker; it is a monument to the dedication of the members of the Powell Survey. Help us protect your American heritage. Historic and prehistoric sites and artifacts on public lands are protected by federal and state laws. Please leave them undisturbed and report any violations you observe to the nearest Forest Service office.

The historic significance of Brow Monument was officially recognized when it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 13, 1987.

There are very few mentions of Brow Monument anywhere; the only citations are:

A "Point of Interest" notation in the Kaibab National Forest North Kaibab Ranger District map

http://www.fs.usda.gov/main/kaibab/maps-pubs

a mention in the National Register of Historic Places listing: http://www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com/az/Coconino/state.html

a mention in the Noehill listing of the National Register of Historic Places

http://www.noehill.com/az_coconino/default_print.aspx?content=&sequence1=name&format1=text&sequence2=authority&format2=text

a mention in the wikipedia.org listing of the National Register of Historic Places

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Register_of_Historic_Places_listings_in_Coconino_County,_Arizona

a mention in LandmarkHunter.com, listing the information included in the National Register of Historic Places.

http://landmarkhunter.com/178170-brow-monument/

a brief mention in an Arizona transportation planning document

http://www.bqaz.gov/PDF/Northern_WP2_Environmental_2_2_4.pdf