Historical Marker
Shiprock (1)
This huge volcanic neck was formed in Pliocene time, over 3,000,000 years ago. It rises 1700 feet above the surrounding plain and is famed in the legends of the Navajo as “Sa-bit-tai-e” (the rock with wings). They hold that it was the great bird that brought them from the north.
New Mexico played a significant role in the American Civil War, with Union and Confederate forces fighting several battles in the territory. The most famous of these was the Battle of Glorieta Pass in 1862, which ended Confederate hopes of capturing the Southwest.