Monument Rocks (also Chalk Pyramids) are a series of large chalk formations in Gove County, Kansas, rich in fossils. The formations were the first landmark chosen by the US Department of the Interior as a National Natural Landmark. The chalk formations reach a height of up to 70Â ft (21Â m) and include formations such as buttes and arches. The carbonate deposits were laid down during the Cretaceous Period in what was then the Western Interior Seaway, which split the continent of North America into two landmasses. They are estimated to have been formed 80 million years ago.
History
The Awe-Inspiring Monument Rocks - Eighty million years ago, western Kansas was underwater; the remains of what lived in the sea then turned into chalk, eventually eroding into the large rocks that now tower over the flat countrysid...
On January 29, 2008, Monument Rocks, 25 miles south of Oakley, Kansas, and Castle Rock, 31 miles to the east, were jointly named as one of the 8 Wonders of Kansas.
Gallery
See also
Other geological formations in Kansas:
- Castle Rock (Kansas)
- Mushroom Rock State Park
- Rock City, Kansas
- Big Basin Prairie Preserve
References
- S. W. Williston, The Niobrara Cretaceous of Western Kansas, Transactions of the Annual Meetings of the Kansas Academy of Science, Vol. 13, (1891 - 1892), pp. 107â€"111.
External links
- Monument Rocks (Chalk Pyramids)
- Monument Rocks/Rock Pyramids
- Monument Rocks
- Gove County Map, KDOT
