Whitman Mission National Historic Site Obelisk
Posted by: 
Rose Red
N 46° 02.491 W 118° 27.651
11T E 386968 N 5099698
A towering 27-feet-tall obelisk stands on a hill about 150' above the surrounding countryside, on land known by the Cayuse Indians as Waiilatpu ("place of the people of the rye grass").
Waymark Code: WM34BR
Location: Washington, United States
Date Posted: 02/07/2008
Views: 16
I traveled The Oregon Trail with an Elderhostel group from Kansas City/Independence, Missouri to Oregon City, Oregon June 13-28, 2007. On Tuesday, June 26, we visited the Whitman Mission Historic Site on the banks of the Walla Walla River. While the group listened to a talk by the Park Ranger, I explored the historic site.
A towering 27-feet-tall obelisk stands on a hill about 150' above the surrounding countryside, on land known by the Cayuse Indians as Waiilatpu ("place of the people of the rye grass"). Dr. Marcus and Narcissa Whitman, the missionary couple who had settled in the Walla Walla region and were promoting Christianity, were killed along with 11 others by the Cayuse tribes in 1847. The obelisk was erected in 1897 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the tragedy at Waiilatpu. This monument stands on the hill Narcissa used to climb to watch for her husband's return from his trips of mercy.
Instructions for logging waymark: A photograph is required of you (or your GPS receiver, if you are waymarking solo) and the obelisk.