The Palo Duro Canyon reveals a history in its walls of over 240 million years.
Four geologic layers are exposed in its depths, including the Quartermaster, the Tecovas, the Trujillo, and the Ogallala.
Of the four visible geologic layers, the oldest layer is the Quartermaster layer. This layer is composed of orange-red to dark-red claystone and sandstone.
The next layer, the Tecovas, is composed of colorful mudstone and "sugar sand" that, when combined with the Quartermaster layer, form the "Spanish Skirts" visible in many areas of the canyon. Many fossils have been found in this layer in the canyon.
The next layer, the Trujillo layer, is composed of sandstone and conglomerate layers. The final layer, the Ogallala layer, which is the caprock layer of the canyon, is composed of sandstone and caliche. Many fossils have also been found in this layer. (See the book, The Story of Palo Duro Canyon)
Artifacts and other remains found in the above layers reveal that people have lived in the canyon for over 12,000 years. These remains are often found at the heads of the canyons and tributaries and around the falls, where the Indians lived. Four stages of cultural development have been identified in these layers, including the PaleoIndian, MesoIndian, NeoIndian and Historic stages.
In the North Palo Duro Canyon, the Smithsonian Institution discovered a MesoIndian campsite years ago, and MesoIndian rock art has also been discovered in various places throughout the Palo Duro Canyon. (See excerpts from Chalk Hollow: Culture Sequence and Chronology in the Texas Panhandle by Waldo R. Wedel of the Smithsonian Institution .) Evidence of NeoIndian tribes has also been found, as well as that of the Historic tribes, such as the Apache and Comanche. The Comanche, Kiowa and Cheyenne were the last remaining Indian tribes in the North Palo Duro Canyon area. In 1874, the U.S. Army defeated them in a final battle, the Battle of the Palo Duro, which marked the end of the nearly 12,000 years of Indian habitation in the canyon.
In addition to the evidence of millenniums of human habitation, the canyon layers have exposed over the years many fossils of prehistoric wildlife. Life-size exhibits at the Pandhandle Plains Historical Museum in Canyon, Texas, as well as fossil remains exhibited there, give visitors a rare and exciting glimpse of the prehistoric animals that once inhabited our area. Animals range from the alligator-like creatures of the Triassic Period, such as the Phytosaur, Metoposaurus, and Desmatosuchus, to the mammoth and bison of the Pleistocene or Ice Age.
In short, the Palo Duro Canyon is a unique window into other worlds. Many artifacts and other evidence from earlier times make it clear that our canyon was inhabited by cultures and animals from millenniums past.
If a transmission line is carelessly and thoughtlessly strung across the canyon, which will also include the roads and equipment necessary to maintain the line over time and the danger of fire it all brings, then all of our efforts over the years to preserve the historical value and beauty of our canyon will be lost. It takes only a few moments to destroy what has taken millions of years to create. Such a mindless venture would be a tragedy and embarrassment generations would be forced to witness and endure in the many years to come.
At this critical time, let's not forget our own place in history. Future generations will look back on us. What do we want them to see? ...High-voltage power lines?
Or perhaps a beautiful canyon, full of life and history, waiting to be discovered.
