Free Topo Maps of Agate Fossil Beds National Monument

Download free topo maps of Agate Fossil Beds National Monument. Use the adjoining 7.5 minute quadrangle legend to locate the Nebraska maps you need.

Adjoining 7.5' Quadrangle Legend

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  1. Northwest Topo Map: Harrison SW, NE
  2. North Topo Map: Harrison SE, NE
  3. Northeast Topo Map: Kyle Creek, NE
  4. West Topo Map: Agate NW, NE
  5. Topo Map: Agate, NE
  6. East Topo Map: Whistle Creek NW, NE
  7. Southwest Topo Map: Agate SW, NE
  8. South Topo Map: Mount Edna, NE
  9. Southeast Topo Map: Whistle Creek SW, NE
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Agate Fossil Beds National Monument

Agate Fossil Beds National Monument is located in the valley of the Niobrara River in Nebraska near the town of Harrison. This Monument was established to record the cultural history and natural resources of this region. The Lakota Sioux were long aware of the fossils beds prior arrival of the paleontologists in the 1890s. The establishment of this Park is much a result of Captain James Cook whose Agate Springs Ranch is known as "the Agate" in the region. Cook discovered the fossils as a young man, returning with his wife after their marriage. The ranch was named after the Moss Agate and the river's natural springs. Cook invited scientists to his ranch to explore one of the richest Miocene mammal sites on earth. Cook's lifelong friendship with the Lakota and Red Cloud who was a chief of the Oglala Lakota Sioux was filled with a mutual understanding and respect. Red Cloud and other members of the Lakota gifted the Cook family with many items and artifacts that James Cook preserved. He sincerely felt that these artifacts needed to be conserved for future generations. The Visitor Center has one museum room dedicated to Cook and a second room devoted to the invaluable Cook Collection of more than 500 Plains Indian artifacts. The grounds of the park have two trails leading to the Agate Beds with 20 million year old fossils to view. A side trail leads to the 1910 homestead of Cook's son Harold which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Harold Cook's interest in fossils led to many hours helping paleontologists visiting the area. The museum exhibits at the Visitor Center also have reconstructed skeletons of some of the unusual mammals that existed during the Miocene Era (the Age of Mammals). Fossils can be found at the quarries; two main quarries contain fossils of a small rhino Menoceras, the large Moropus whose appearance looked mystical, and the predator Dinohyus whose huge jaws and tusks were fearsome; other quarries are comprised of the small gazelle camel, Stenomylus, a land burrowing beaver, Palaeocastor and Daphoenodon, a predator of the beardog family. The museum fossil exhibits describe these creatures in detail, while the short trails display the beautiful plains landscape.