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Abstract
Rumors of a giant cross hidden deep in the Colorado Rocky Mountains finally proved true in 1873 with William Henry Jackson's photograph of Mount of the Holy Cross. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Thomas Moran further immortalized the cross, with many Americans imagining the peak as a Christian symbol of the righteous conquest of the West. Multiple geographical imaginations have since been quilted into the cultural fabric of the peak, such as a pilgrimage shrine, national monument, topographic oddity, Fourteener and water wilderness. The place identity, spiritual geography and iconography of these geographical imaginations are examined through participant observation and archival sources including folklore, poetry, newspaper articles, government surveys and postcards. Some geographical imaginations prove to be unexpectedly temporary, such as the national monument designation, and others surprisingly enduring, such as pilgrimage.
Notes
1. The size of the cross has been subject to much conjecture, with estimates of its height ranging from 1150 feet to 2000 feet and estimates of the width of the arms ranging from 400 feet to 750 feet. Fritiof Fryxell (Citation1933) climbed the Cross Couloir and estimated it to be 1150 feet high and the total width of the arms to be about 400 feet. The elevation of Mount of the Holy Cross is shown on current USGS topographic maps as 14,005 feet (4268.7 m) above sea level. That elevation is based on the geoid (mean sea level) estimates of the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD 29). The National Geodetic Survey has readjusted its elevation calculations to use the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88), and if those elevations are adopted on official maps, the Mount of the Holy Cross elevation will be shown as 14,009 feet (4269.9 m).
2. No doubt the peak was known to the Ute people, and one fanciful account of Jackson's first photograph indicates the Ute Chief Ouray helped Jackson find the peak (Jackson and Marshall Citation1952). However, no evidence suggests this mountain is sacred to the Ute, and the first recorded climb of the peak found no indication of a previous human presence (Bueler Citation2000).
3. Only the briefest of glimpses of Mount of the Holy Cross are possible from Colorado roadways, such as the west side of Shrine Pass, west side of Fremont Pass, north side of Tennessee Pass, west side of Loveland Pass, south slope of the Mount Evans Highway and west portal of Eisenhower Tunnel. The peak is also visible from the summit of the Vail Ski Area.
4. The Colorado Mountain Club (CMC) places registers on the summits of selected peaks for climbers to note their name, hometown and comments. I examined the registers for Mount of the Holy Cross in the CMC collection, held in the Henry S. Hall, Jr. American Alpine Club Library in Golden, Colorado.
5. Holy Cross National Forest became part of White River National Forest in 1945.
6. Holy Cross National Monument was the fifth such designation in Colorado, following Wheeler, Colorado, Yucca House and Hovenweep national monuments, yet the significance of Mount of the Holy Cross as a national shrine is suggested by its proclamation as a national monument prior to the monuments at Great Sand Dunes, Black Canyon of the Gunnison (each later designated a national park), and Dinosaur.
7. House Resolution 7339 provides no rationale for abolishing the national monument and returning the lands to the national forest. Wheeler National Monument was abolished at the same time.
8. Estimates of how many people climbed the mountain are reflected in the available registers, including 19 in 1954, four in 1955, 52 in 1956, two in 1957 and 65 in 1958. Single outings of large numbers of climbers account for much of the fluctuation, such as the group of 37 climbers on 4 July 1958 from the Mountain Recreation Department at the University of Colorado.