The 1959 Earthquake (LEGACY)
N 44° 39.737 W 111° 05.983
12T E 492094 N 4945440
A historical marker about the 1959 Earthquake is located in the City of West Yellowstone, near the entrance to Yellowstone National Park, in Gallatin County, Montana.
Waymark Code: WM3XE8
Location: Montana, United States
Date Posted: 05/31/2008
Views: 112
The historical marker text reads as follows: "On August 17, 1959 at 11:37 P.M., this spectacularly scenic section of Montana became the focus of world-wide attention and made modern history. A heavy shock smashed the soft summer night, earth and rock buckled, lifted and dropped. In several mighty heaves Mother Earth reshaped her mountains in violent response to an agony of deep-seated tensions no longer bearable. A mountain moved, a new lake was formed, another lake was fantastically tilted, sections o highway were dropped into a lake, the earth's surface was ripped by miles of faults, and 28 persons were missing or dead. The area is now safe and much of it has been preserved and marked by the Forest Service for all to see. The Madison River Canyon Earthquake area ,located a few miles northwest of here, is an awesome testimonial to Nature's might."
Additional information from
Wikipedia: "The 1959 Yellowstone earthquake also known as the Hebgen Lake earthquake was a powerful earthquake that occurred on August 17, 1959 at (11:37 pm (MST) in southwestern Montana. The earthquake was registered at magnitude 7.3-7.5 on the Richter scale. The quake caused a huge landslide that caused over 28 fatalities and left $11 million (1959 USD, $74.1 million 2006 USD) in damage. The quake induced landslide also blocked the flow of the Madison River resulting in the creation of Quake Lake. Effects of the earthquake were also felt in Idaho and Wyoming. The 1959 quake was the strongest and deadliest earthquake to hit Montana since the 1935-36 Helena earthquakes left 4 people dead and caused the worst landslides in the history of the Northwestern United States since 1927."