As the plaque reads:
The Big Rock Landmark
SW1/4 17-42-20 W3rd
The origin of the "Big Rock" is unknown, although many believe it was deposited by glaciers which supposedly covered our land during the ice age. Many years of being exposed to nature's elements have taken their toll on the rock. A large top section has broken away and toppled to the Southeast. The rock is thirty feet at the base and raises to a height of twenty-one feet, while the slab which fell is thirty-five feet long and fifteen feet thick. it lies in a basin worn by the feet of many buffalo who rubbed their hides on this huge piece of granite.
To the early Pioneers this boulder was distinguishing "Landmark" because it was visible for many miles across the vast expanse of bald prairie. It became a welcome site to settlers going West in an otherwise unmarked area. In this way, a cross-country trail was worn past the "Rock" going from Battleford to Sounding Lake-both posts for the Mounted Police. This track became known as the Sounding Lake Trail.
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