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Four Corners is a region of the Southwestern United States consisting of the southwestern corner of Colorado, southeastern corner of Utah, northeastern corner of Arizona, and northwestern corner of New Mexico. Most of the Four Corners region belongs to semi-autonomous Native American nations, the largest of which is the Navajo Nation, followed by Hopi, Ute, and Zuni tribal reserves and nations. The Four Corners region is part of a larger region known as the Colorado Plateau and is mostly rural, rugged, and arid.

The Four Corners area is named after the quadripoint at the intersection of approximately 37° north latitude with 109° 03′ west longitude, where the boundaries of the four states meet, and is marked by the Four Corners Monument. It is the only location in the United States where four states meet. In addition to the monument, commonly visited areas within Four Corners include Monument Valley, Mesa Verde National Park, Chaco Canyon, Canyons of the Ancients National Monument and Canyon de Chelly National Monument. The most populous city in the Four Corners region is Farmington, New Mexico, followed by Durango, Colorado.

History

The United States acquired the four corners region from Mexico after the end of the Mexican–American War in 1848. In 1863 Congress created the Arizona Territory from the western part of New Mexico Territory. The boundary was legally defined as a line running due south from the southwest corner of Colorado Territory, which had been created in 1861. This was an unusual act of Congress, which almost always defined the boundaries of new territories as lines of latitude or longitude, or following rivers, but seldom as extensions of other boundaries.

By defining one boundary as starting at the corner of another, Congress ensured the eventual creation of four states meeting at a point, regardless of the inevitable errors of boundary surveying.^[1] The area was first surveyed by the U.S. Government in 1868 as part of an effort to make Colorado Territory into a state, the first of the Four Corners states formed. While the US Congress in 1863 intended the corners of Colorado to be placed at the intersections of lines of specific latitude and longitude, due to a "standard" survey error of the time, the originally surveyed location of the "Four Corners" point, along with the corresponding survey marker, was unintentionally placed by its initial surveyor 1,821 feet (555 m) east of the intended location.^[2]

In 1925, some 57 years after Congress had first attempted to specify the spot, the problems surrounding the originally misplaced marker were brought up before the US Supreme Court. In order to amicably remedy this original surveying error, the US Supreme Court then redefined the point of the Four Corners, officially moving the Four Corners point roughly 1,800 feet (550 m) east, to where the original survey had first held it to be all along, and where it remains to this day, duly marked.^[3] This initial survey error has resulted in some longstanding misunderstandings about the correct location of the Four Corners marker, some of which remain to this day.^[4] The first Navajo tribal government was established in 1923 to regulate an increasing number of oil exploration activities on Navajo land.^[5]

Geography

The Four Corners Monument is located at 36°59′56.3″N 109°02′42.6″W / 36.998972°N 109.045167°W / 36.998972; -109.045167.^[6]

The Four Corners is part of the high Colorado Plateau. This makes it a center for weather systems, which stabilize on the plateau then proceed eastward through Colorado and into the central states. This weather system creates snow- and rainfall over the central United States.^[7]

Federally protected areas in the Four Corners area include Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Hovenweep National Monument, Mesa Verde National Park, and Canyons of the Ancients National Monument. Mountain Ranges in the Four Corners include Sleeping Ute Mountains, Abajo Mountains, and the Chuska Mountains.^[8]

Politics

Six governments have jurisdictional boundaries at the Four Corners Monument: the states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah, as well as the tribal governments of the Navajo Nation and Ute Mountain Ute Tribe.^[9] The Four Corners Monument itself is administered by the Navajo Nation Department of Parks and Recreation.^[2] Other tribal nations within the Four Corners region include the Hopi and other Ute.^[10] The Four Corners is home to the capital of the Navajo tribal government at Window Rock, Arizona.^[5] The Ute Mountain Ute tribal headquarters are located at Towaoc, Colorado.^[11] The US federal government also has a large presence in the area, particularly the Department of the Interior with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Department of Agriculture with the Forest Service.

Cities

The Four Corners region is mostly rural. The economic hub, largest city, and only metropolitan area in the region is Farmington, New Mexico.^[12] The populated settlement closest to the center of Four Corners is Teec Nos Pos, Arizona.^[13] Other cities in the region include Cortez and Durango in Colorado; Monticello and Blanding in Utah; Kayenta and Chinle in Arizona; and Shiprock, Aztec, and Bloomfield in New Mexico.^[12]

Transportation

Air service is available via the Durango-La Plata County Airport in Durango, Colorado, Four Corners Regional Airport in Farmington, New Mexico, and Cortez Municipal Airport in Cortez, Colorado. Interstate 40 passes along the southern edge of the Four Corners region. The primary U.S. Highways that directly serve the Four Corners include U.S. Route 64, U.S. Route 160 (which serves the Four Corners Monument itself), U.S. Route 163, U.S. Route 191, U.S. Route 491 (previously U.S. Route 666^[14]), and U.S. Route 550.

The main line of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, now operated by the BNSF Railway, passes along the southern edge of Four Corners. The area is home to remnants of through railroads that are now heritage railways. These include the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad and the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad. The Black Mesa and Lake Powell Railroad, which connects a power plant with a coal mine near Kayenta, comes near the Four Corners.^[8]

Helium

The Four Corners region was one of the first locations in the United States in which helium was extracted, and the area is increasingly important as a source of helium supply, with the region being noted for its abundance of high-grade 'green' helium.^[15]

The most notable helium field in the region is Arizona's Holbrook basin.

Gallery

False-color satellite image of the Four Corners. Bright red lines are vegetation along the major rivers of the area. The main southeast–northwest river is the San Juan. The prominent confluence near the center is the confluence with the Mancos River, in New Mexico. The minor confluence northwest of there is with the Toh Dahstini Wash, which drains to the north from Arizona, joining the San Juan in Colorado near the Utah–Colorado border, just north of Four Corners.
A young Navajo boy on horseback in Monument Valley. The Navajo Nation includes much of the Four Corners area, including the valley, used in many western movies.
Flags surrounding the Four Corners Monument. In clockwise order starting from the frontmost flag, the state flag of Arizona, flag of the Navajo Nation, pre-2011 flag of Utah, Navajo nation (second instance)Ute Mountain Ute Tribe Reservation, Colorado, New Mexico, Navajo Nation (third instance), and the flag of the United States.
The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, now a heritage railway, formerly connected the Four Corners area to the national rail network.
Bluff, Utah and Comb Ridge from the air

References

^ Hubbard, Bill Jr. (2009). American Boundaries: the Nation, the States, the Rectangular Survey. University of Chicago Press. p. 164. ISBN 978-0-226-35591-7.
^ ^a ^b "Four corners Monument". Navajo Nation. Retrieved December 6, 2016.
^ "The National Monument That's in the Wrong Place". 2013. Retrieved December 6, 2020. Correction of mistaken federal survey.
^ "Why the Four Corners Monument is in Exactly the Right Place". www.ngs.noaa.gov. 2009. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Welcome to the Navajo Nation". navajo-nsn.gov. Navajo Nation. Archived from the original on April 17, 2021. Retrieved December 6, 2016.
^ "Four Corners PID AD9256" (text file). NGS Survey Monument Data Sheet. United States National Geodetic Survey. May 7, 2003. Retrieved January 15, 2007.
^ Ward, Kathleen. "Rainmaker, Go North – Nebraska Needs Help, Too". Kansas State University Research and Extension. Archived from the original on September 12, 2006. Retrieved May 8, 2008.
^ ^a ^b Arizona Road and Recreation Atlas (Map) (2004 ed.). 1:400,000. Benchmark Maps. 2004. § D3. ISBN 0-929591-84-4.
^ "Ute Mountain Ute Indian Reservation" (PDF). U.S. Department of Energy. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 26, 2008. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
^ "Four Corners Indian Tribes". Farmington, New Mexico Convention and Visitors Bureau. Retrieved December 6, 2016.
^ "Ute Mountain Ute Tribe – Overview and Statistics". Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
^ ^a ^b "Four Corners Area Map". Farmington, New Mexico Convention and Visitors Bureau. Archived from the original on September 24, 2007. Retrieved May 8, 2008.
^ "Google Maps". Google Maps. Retrieved May 8, 2008.
^ Richard F. Weingroff. "U.S. 666: Beast of a Highway?". (USDOT – FHWA). Retrieved November 17, 2007.
^ Fresne, Patrick (July 23, 2023). "When a Rush Begins: A Field Guide to the Helium Hopefuls of the United States". Gold and Revolution. Retrieved September 7, 2023.

External links

[1] Hubbard, Bill Jr. (2009). American Boundaries: the Nation, the States, the Rectangular Survey. University of Chicago Press. p. 164. ISBN 978-0-226-35591-7.

[navajonation-2] "Four corners Monument". Navajo Nation. Retrieved December 6, 2016.

[Corrected-survey-3] "The National Monument That's in the Wrong Place". 2013. Retrieved December 6, 2020. Correction of mistaken federal survey.

[4] "Why the Four Corners Monument is in Exactly the Right Place". www.ngs.noaa.gov. 2009. Retrieved July 1, 2021.

[navajohistory-5] "Welcome to the Navajo Nation". navajo-nsn.gov. Navajo Nation. Archived from the original on April 17, 2021. Retrieved December 6, 2016.

[FourCorners-6] "Four Corners PID AD9256" (text file). NGS Survey Monument Data Sheet. United States National Geodetic Survey. May 7, 2003. Retrieved January 15, 2007.

[kansasstate-7] Ward, Kathleen. "Rainmaker, Go North – Nebraska Needs Help, Too". Kansas State University Research and Extension. Archived from the original on September 12, 2006. Retrieved May 8, 2008.

[benchmark-8] Arizona Road and Recreation Atlas (Map) (2004 ed.). 1:400,000. Benchmark Maps. 2004. § D3. ISBN 0-929591-84-4.

[doe-9] "Ute Mountain Ute Indian Reservation" (PDF). U.S. Department of Energy. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 26, 2008. Retrieved May 11, 2008.

[Farmingtonin-10] "Four Corners Indian Tribes". Farmington, New Mexico Convention and Visitors Bureau. Retrieved December 6, 2016.

[utemountain-11] "Ute Mountain Ute Tribe – Overview and Statistics". Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. Retrieved May 11, 2008.

[farmington-12] "Four Corners Area Map". Farmington, New Mexico Convention and Visitors Bureau. Archived from the original on September 24, 2007. Retrieved May 8, 2008.

[googlemaps-13] "Google Maps". Google Maps. Retrieved May 8, 2008.

[beastofahighway-14] Richard F. Weingroff. "U.S. 666: Beast of a Highway?". (USDOT – FHWA). Retrieved November 17, 2007.

[15] Fresne, Patrick (July 23, 2023). "When a Rush Begins: A Field Guide to the Helium Hopefuls of the United States". Gold and Revolution. Retrieved September 7, 2023.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{about|the region in the south-western United States|the monument in this region at the corners of the four states|Four Corners Monument|other uses|Four Corners (disambiguation)}}
+{{Short description|Only region in the United States where four states share a boundary point}}
+{{About|the region in the southwestern United States|the monument|Four Corners Monument|other uses|Four Corners (disambiguation)}}
-[[Image:Fourcorners-us.jpg|right|thumb|215px|The Four Corners region is in the red area on this map]]
+{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2019}}
-The '''Four Corners''' is a region of the [[United States]] consisting of southwest [[Colorado]],  northwest [[New Mexico]],  northeast [[Arizona]] and  southeast [[Utah]].<ref name=explore4corners>{{cite web
+[[File:Four Corners.svg|thumb|The Four Corners region is the red circle in this map. The Four Corners states are highlighted in orange.]]
-|url = http://www.explorefourcorners.com/
-|title = Explore Four Corners
+'''Four Corners''' is a region of the [[Southwestern United States]] consisting of the [[Southwest Colorado|southwestern corner]] of [[Colorado]], [[San Juan County, Utah|southeastern corner]] of [[Utah]], [[Northern Arizona|northeastern corner]] of [[Arizona]], and [[Northern New Mexico|northwestern corner]] of [[New Mexico]]. Most of the Four Corners region belongs to semi-autonomous [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] nations, the largest of which is the [[Navajo Nation]], followed by [[Hopi]], [[Ute people|Ute]], and [[Zuni people|Zuni]] tribal reserves and nations. The Four Corners region is part of a larger region known as the [[Colorado Plateau]] and is mostly rural, rugged, and arid.
-|publisher =Canyonlands eSolutions
-|accessdate = 2009-03-10}}</ref>  The boundaries of the four states listed above meet at one point—the only such geographic point in the entire United States.  The Four Corners area is named after the [[quadripoint]] where the boundaries meet.  There is also a [[Four Corners Monument]] showing the exact location where the four states touch.  The majority of the Four Corners region is part of semi-autonomous indigenous American Indian nations. Two of these are the [[Navajo Nation]] and the [[Ute Mountain Ute Indian Reservation]] which both have boundaries at the Four Corners Monument<ref name=doe/> in addition to the four states. The Navajo Nation covers three of the four state corners; the Ute Mountain Reservation is found only in the Colorado corner. The most populous city and economic capital of the region is [[Farmington, New Mexico]].
+The Four Corners area is named after the [[quadripoint]] at the intersection of approximately 37° north latitude with 109° 03′ west longitude, where the boundaries of the four states meet, and is marked by the [[Four Corners Monument]]. It is the only location in the United States where four states meet. In addition to the monument, commonly visited areas within Four Corners include [[Monument Valley]], [[Mesa Verde National Park]], [[Chaco Culture National Historical Park|Chaco Canyon]], [[Canyons of the Ancients National Monument]] and [[Canyon de Chelly National Monument]]. The most populous city in the Four Corners region is [[Farmington, New Mexico]], followed by [[Durango, Colorado]].
-[[File:Navajo (young boy) 2007.jpg|thumb|right|A young [[Navajo people|Navajo]] boy is riding horseback in [[Monument Valley]]. The [[Navajo Nation]] includes much of the Four Corners area, including the valley, famous from many western movies.]]
 ==History==
-The United States first acquired the area now called Four Corners from [[Mexico]] after the [[Mexican American War]] in 1848. In 1863 Congress created [[Arizona Territory]] from the western part of [[New Mexico Territory]]. The boundary was defined as a line running due south from the southwest corner of [[Colorado Territory]], which had been created in 1861. This was an unusual act of Congress, which almost always defined the boundaries of new territories as lines of latitude or longitude, or following rivers. By defining one boundary as starting at the corner of another Congress ensured the eventual creation of four states meeting at a point, regardless of the inevitable errors of boundary surveying.<ref>{{cite book |last= Hubbard |first= Bill, Jr. |title= American Boundaries: the Nation, the States, the Rectangular Survey |year= 2009 |publisher= University of Chicago Press |isbn= 978-0-226-35591-7 |page= 164}}</ref> The area was first surveyed by the U.S. Government in 1868 as part of an effort to make Colorado Territory into a state, the first of the Four Corners states formed. The first marker was placed at the spot in 1912.<ref name=navajonation/> The first Navajo tribal government was established in 1923 to regulate an increasing number of oil exploration activities on Navajo tribal lands.<ref name=navajohistory>{{cite web|title = Welcome to the Navajo Nation| url = http://www.navajo.org/history.htm| publisher = Navajo Nation |accessdate =2008-05-10}}</ref>
+The United States acquired the four corners region from Mexico after the end of the [[Mexican–American War]] in 1848. In 1863 Congress created the [[Arizona Territory]] from the western part of [[New Mexico Territory]]. The boundary was legally defined as a line running due south from the southwest corner of [[Colorado Territory]], which had been created in 1861. This was an unusual act of Congress, which almost always defined the boundaries of new territories as lines of latitude or longitude, or following rivers, but seldom as extensions of other boundaries.
-[[File:Four Corners Monument (1).jpg|left|thumb|The Four Corners Monument as it appeared in the early 21st century. The four states are represented by their [[Flags of the U.S. states|state flags]] in clockwise order [[Arizona]], [[Utah]], [[Colorado]], and [[New Mexico]]]].
+By defining one boundary as starting at the corner of another, Congress ensured the eventual creation of four states meeting at a point, regardless of the inevitable errors of boundary surveying.<ref>{{cite book |last= Hubbard |first= Bill Jr. |title= American Boundaries: the Nation, the States, the Rectangular Survey |url= https://archive.org/details/americanboundari00jrbi |url-access= limited |year= 2009 |publisher= University of Chicago Press |isbn= 978-0-226-35591-7 |page= [https://archive.org/details/americanboundari00jrbi/page/n178 164]}}</ref>  The area was first surveyed by the U.S. Government in 1868 as part of an effort to make Colorado Territory into a state, the first of the Four Corners states formed. While the US Congress in 1863 intended the corners of Colorado to be placed at the intersections of lines of specific latitude and longitude, due to a "standard" survey error of the time, the originally surveyed location of the "Four Corners" point, along with the corresponding survey marker, was unintentionally placed by its initial surveyor {{convert|1821|ft}} east of the intended location.<ref name=navajonation/>
+In 1925, some 57 years after Congress had first attempted to specify the spot, the problems surrounding the originally misplaced marker were brought up before the US Supreme Court. In order to amicably remedy this original surveying error, the US Supreme Court then redefined the point of the Four Corners, officially moving the Four Corners point roughly {{convert|1800|ft}} east, to where the original survey had first held it to be all along, and where it remains to this day, duly marked.<ref name = "Corrected-survey">{{cite web|access-date=2020-12-06|title=The National Monument That's in the Wrong Place|url=https://www.cntraveler.com/stories/2013-07-01/four-corners-monument-quadripoint-maphead-ken-jennings|year=2013}} Correction of mistaken federal survey.
+</ref> This initial survey error has resulted in some longstanding misunderstandings about the correct location of the Four Corners marker, some of which remain to this day.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2009|title=Why the Four Corners Monument is in Exactly the Right Place|url=https://www.ngs.noaa.gov/INFO/fourcorners.shtml|access-date=2021-07-01|website=www.ngs.noaa.gov}}</ref> The first Navajo tribal government was established in 1923 to regulate an increasing number of [[oil exploration]] activities on Navajo land.<ref name=navajohistory/>
 ==Geography==
+The [[Four Corners Monument]] is located at {{coord|36|59|56.3|N|109|02|42.6|W||display=inline,title}}.<ref name=FourCorners>{{cite web | url = http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/ds_mark.prl?PidBox=AD9256 | title = Four Corners PID AD9256 | work = NGS Survey Monument Data Sheet | format = [[text file]] | publisher = United States [[National Geodetic Survey]] | date = May 7, 2003 | access-date = January 15, 2007 }}</ref>
-[[Image:Four Corners Monument Picture 023.jpg|right|thumb|175px|<font size=2>Four Corners Monument before remodeling.</font size=2>]]
-[[Image:FourCornersByPhilKonstantin.jpg|thumb|The actual spot where the four states come together, 2008]]
-The Four Corners Area is generally defined as a circle around the [[Four Corners Monument]] located at {{coord|36|59|56.31532|N|109|02|42.62019|W|}}.<ref name=FourCorners>{{cite web | url = http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/ds_mark.prl?PidBox=AD9256 | title = Four Corners PID AD9256 | work = NGS Survey Monument Data Sheet | format = [[text file]] | publisher = [[United States]] [[National Geodetic Survey]] | date = 2003-05-07 | accessdate = 2007-01-15 }}</ref> A series of news stories in April 2009 pointed out that modern surveys had determined that the intersection of borders was not where it was intended to be.<ref name=desnews>{{cite news |first=Lynn |last=Arave |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Four Corners marker 2 1/2 miles off? Too late |url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,705298412,00.html |work=[[Deseret News]] |publisher= |date=2009-04-19 |accessdate=2009-04-20 }}</ref> However, the news stories used whole degree coordinates, not accounting for the fractional degree offset between the [[Washington Meridian]] standard, used at the time, and the current standard, the [[Prime Meridian]].<ref name=desnews/><ref name=ColoradoTerritory>{{cite web |url=http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/territory.pdf |title=An Act to provide a temporary Government for the Territory of Colorado |format=[[PDF]] |publisher=[[Thirty-sixth United States Congress]] |year=1861-02-28 |accessdate=2007-01-15}}</ref> Furthermore, boundaries as surveyed on the ground have always taken legal precedence over the intended coordinates, according to general U.S. land principles,<ref name=boundarylines>"The Boundary lines, actually run and marked in the surveys returned by the surveyor general, shall be established as the proper boundary lines of the sections or subdivisions for which they were intended", {{cite web |url = http://books.google.com/books?id=Lcs4AAAAMAAJ&printsec=titlepage |title = Manual of Instructions for the Survey of The Public Lands of the United States |publisher =Commissioner of the General Land Office
-|accessdate = 2009-04-20}}</ref> law,<ref name=uscode> (Title U.S.C. 43, Sec, 752).{{cite web |url = http://vlex.com/vid/boundaries-contents-how-ascertained-19254196 |title = U.S. Code
-|publisher =United States |accessdate = 2009-04-20}}</ref> and the Supreme Court.<ref name=supremecourt>{{cite web |url = http://supreme.justia.com/us/267/30/case.html |title = NEW MEXICO V. COLORADO, 267 U. S. 30 (1925) |publisher =Supreme Court Case |accessdate = 2009-04-20}}</ref>
+The Four Corners is part of the high [[Colorado Plateau]]. This makes it a center for [[weather system]]s, which stabilize on the plateau then proceed eastward through Colorado and into the [[Midwest|central states]]. This weather system creates snow- and rainfall over the central United States.<ref name=kansasstate>{{cite web|url=http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/news/sty/2002/weather_winter101002.htm |title=Rainmaker, Go North&nbsp;– Nebraska Needs Help, Too |publisher=Kansas State University Research and Extension |last=Ward |first=Kathleen |access-date=May 8, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060912151115/http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/news/sty/2002/weather_winter101002.htm |archive-date=September 12, 2006 }}</ref>
-[[File:DurangoSilverton1.jpg|left|thumb|The [[Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad]], now a [[heritage railway]], formerly connected the Four Corners area to the national rail network]]
-The Four Corners is part of a high [[Colorado Plateau]]. This makes the area a center for [[weather system]]s, which stabilize on the plateau then proceed eastward toward the [[mountain states|mountain]] and [[Midwest|central states]]. This weather system creates snow and rain fall over the central United States.<ref name=kansasstate>{{cite web|url=http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/news/sty/2002/weather_winter101002.htm|title=Rainmaker, Go North &ndash; Nebraska Needs Help, Too|publisher=Kansas State University Research and Extension|last=Ward|first=Kathleen|accessdate=2008-05-08}}</ref>
-Protected areas in the Four Corners area include [[Canyon de Chelly National Monument]], [[Hovenweep National Monument]], [[Mesa Verde National Park]] and [[Monument Valley]].<ref name=googlemaps/> Mountain Ranges in the Four Corners include [[Sleeping Ute Mountains]], [[Abajo Mountains]] and the [[Chuska Mountains]].<ref name=benchmark/>
+Federally protected areas in the Four Corners area include [[Canyon de Chelly National Monument]], [[Hovenweep National Monument]], [[Mesa Verde National Park]], and [[Canyons of the Ancients National Monument]]. Mountain Ranges in the Four Corners include [[Sleeping Ute Mountains]], [[Abajo Mountains]], and the [[Chuska Mountains]].<ref name=benchmark/>
 ==Politics==
-Six governments have jurisdictional boundaries at the Four Corners: the states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah as well as the tribal governments of the [[Navajo Nation]] and [[Ute Mountain Ute Tribe]].<ref name=doe>{{cite web|url = http://www1.eere.energy.gov/tribalenergy/guide/pdfs/ute_mountain_ute.pdf | title = Ute Mountain Ute Indian Reservation | publisher = [[U.S. Department of Energy]] |accessdate = 2008-05-11}}</ref> The Four Corners Monument itself is administered by the [[Navajo Nation]] Department of Parks and Recreation.<ref name=navajonation>{{cite web |url = http://www.navajonationparks.org/htm/fourcorners.htm | title = Four corners Monument | publisher = Navajo Nation | accessdate =2008-05-08}} </ref>  Other tribal nations within the Four Corners region include [[Hopi]] and other [[Ute tribe|Ute]] tribes.<ref name=Farmingtonin> {{cite web | url = http://www.farmingtonnm.org/pages/tribes.html | title = Four Corners Indian Tribes | publisher=Farmington, New Mexico Convention and Visitors Bureau|accessdate=2008-05-08 }}</ref> The Four Corners is home to the capital of the Navajo tribal government at [[Window Rock, Arizona]].<ref name=navajonation>{{cite web|url = http://www.navajo.org/history.htm | title = Welcome to the Navajo Nation | publisher= Navajo Nation | accessdate = 2008-05-08 }}</ref> The Ute Mountain Ute Tribal headquarters are located at [[Towaoc, Colorado]].<ref name=utemountain>{{cite web | url = http://www.utemountainute.com/overview_statistics.htm |title = Ute Mountain Ute Tribe – Overview and Statistics | publisher = Ute Mountain Ute Tribe |accessdate =2008-05-11}}</ref>
+Six governments have jurisdictional boundaries at the Four Corners Monument: the states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah, as well as the tribal governments of the [[Navajo Nation]] and [[Ute Mountain Ute Tribe]].<ref name=doe>{{cite web|url=http://www1.eere.energy.gov/tribalenergy/guide/pdfs/ute_mountain_ute.pdf |title=Ute Mountain Ute Indian Reservation |publisher=[[U.S. Department of Energy]] |access-date=May 11, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080626005051/http://www1.eere.energy.gov/tribalenergy/guide/pdfs/ute_mountain_ute.pdf |archive-date=June 26, 2008}}</ref> The Four Corners Monument itself is administered by the [[Navajo Nation]] Department of Parks and Recreation.<ref name=navajonation>{{cite web |url = http://navajonationparks.org/navajo-tribal-parks/four-corners-monument/ |title = Four corners Monument |publisher = Navajo Nation |access-date =December 6, 2016}}</ref> Other tribal nations within the Four Corners region include the [[Hopi]] and other [[Ute tribe|Ute]].<ref name=Farmingtonin>{{cite web |url = https://farmingtonnm.org/choose-your-journey/cultural-adventures/native-culture/ |title = Four Corners Indian Tribes |publisher=Farmington, New Mexico Convention and Visitors Bureau|access-date=December 6, 2016 }}</ref> The Four Corners is home to the capital of the Navajo tribal government at [[Window Rock, Arizona|Window Rock]], Arizona.<ref name="navajohistory">{{cite web|title=Welcome to the Navajo Nation|url=http://www.navajo-nsn.gov/history.htm|url-status=dead|access-date=December 6, 2016|website=navajo-nsn.gov|publisher=Navajo Nation|archive-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417183704/https://www.navajo-nsn.gov/history.htm}}</ref> The Ute Mountain Ute tribal headquarters are located at [[Towaoc, Colorado|Towaoc]], Colorado.<ref name=utemountain>{{cite web |url = http://www.utemountainute.com/overview_statistics.htm |title = Ute Mountain Ute Tribe&nbsp;– Overview and Statistics |publisher = Ute Mountain Ute Tribe |access-date =May 11, 2008}}</ref> The [[Federal Government of the United States|US federal government]] also has a large presence in the area, particularly the [[United States Department of the Interior|Department of the Interior]] with the [[Bureau of Indian Affairs]] and the [[United States Department of Agriculture|Department of Agriculture]] with the [[United States Forest Service|Forest Service]].
 ==Cities==
-[[File:Bluff UT - aerial with San Juan River and Comb Ridge.jpg|right|thumb|[[Bluff, Utah]] and [[Comb Ridge]] from the air]]The Four Corners region is mostly rural. The economic hub, largest city, and only [[Metropolitan statistical area|metropolitan area]] in the region is [[Farmington, New Mexico]].<ref name=farmington> {{cite web | url=http://www.farmingtonnm.org/pages/fourcorn-map.html | title=Four Corners Area Map|publisher=Farmington, New Mexico Convention and Visitors Bureau | accessdate=2008-05-08}}</ref> The populated settlement closest to the center of Four Corners is [[Teec Nos Pos, Arizona]].<ref name=googlemaps> {{cite web | url = http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=Teec+Nos+Pos,+Apache,+Arizona,+United+States&ie=UTF8&cd=1&geocode=0,36.923270,-109.091620&ll=36.985826,-109.027977&spn=0.207875,0.249939&z=12 | title = Google Maps | publisher = [[Google]] using data from NAVTEQ | accessdate=2008-05-08 }}</ref> Other cities in the region include [[Cortez, Colorado|Cortez]] and [[Durango, Colorado|Durango]] in Colorado, [[Monticello, Utah|Monticello]] and [[Blanding, Utah|Blanding]] in Utah, [[Kayenta, Arizona|Kayenta]] and [[Chinle, Arizona|Chinle]] in Arizona, and [[Shiprock, New Mexico|Shiprock]], [[Aztec, New Mexico|Aztec]], and [[Bloomfield, New Mexico|Bloomfield]] in New Mexico.<ref name=farmington/>
+The Four Corners region is mostly rural. The economic hub, largest city, and only [[Metropolitan statistical area|metropolitan area]] in the region is [[Farmington, New Mexico]].<ref name=farmington>{{cite web|url=http://www.farmingtonnm.org/pages/fourcorn-map.html |title=Four Corners Area Map |publisher=Farmington, New Mexico Convention and Visitors Bureau |access-date=May 8, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070924012537/http://www.farmingtonnm.org/pages/fourcorn-map.html |archive-date=September 24, 2007 }}</ref> The populated settlement closest to the center of Four Corners is [[Teec Nos Pos, Arizona|Teec Nos Pos]], Arizona.<ref name=googlemaps>{{cite web | url = https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=Teec+Nos+Pos,+Apache,+Arizona,+United+States&ie=UTF8&cd=1&geocode=0,36.923270,-109.091620&ll=36.985826,-109.027977&spn=0.207875,0.249939&z=12 | title = Google Maps | publisher = Google Maps | access-date=May 8, 2008 }}</ref> Other cities in the region include [[Cortez, Colorado|Cortez]] and [[Durango, Colorado|Durango]] in Colorado; [[Monticello, Utah|Monticello]] and [[Blanding, Utah|Blanding]] in Utah; [[Kayenta, Arizona|Kayenta]] and [[Chinle, Arizona|Chinle]] in Arizona; and [[Shiprock, New Mexico|Shiprock]], [[Aztec, New Mexico|Aztec]], and [[Bloomfield, New Mexico|Bloomfield]] in New Mexico.<ref name=farmington/>
 ==Transportation==
-[[Interstate 40]] passes along the southern edge of the Four Corners region. The primary [[U.S. Highways]] that directly serve the Four Corners include [[U.S. Route 64]], [[U.S. Route 160]] (which serves the [[Four Corners Monument]] itself), [[U.S. Route 163]], [[U.S. Route 191]], [[U.S. Route 491]] (previously [[U.S. Route 666]]<ref name="beastofahighway">{{cite web
+Air service is available via the [[Durango-La Plata County Airport]] in [[Durango, Colorado]], [[Four Corners Regional Airport]] in [[Farmington, New Mexico]], and [[Cortez Municipal Airport]] in [[Cortez, Colorado]]. [[Interstate 40]] passes along the southern edge of the Four Corners region. The primary [[U.S. Highways]] that directly serve the Four Corners include [[U.S. Route 64]], [[U.S. Route 160]] (which serves the [[Four Corners Monument]] itself), [[U.S. Route 163]], [[U.S. Route 191]], [[U.S. Route 491]] (previously [[U.S. Route 666]]<ref name="beastofahighway">{{cite web
-| url = http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/us666.htm
+| url = https://highways.dot.gov/highway-history/general-highway-history/us-666-beast-highway
 | title = U.S. 666: Beast of a Highway?
-| accessdate = 2007-11-17
+| access-date = November 17, 2007
 | author= Richard F. Weingroff
 | publisher = ([[United States Department of Transportation|USDOT]]&nbsp;– [[Federal Highway Administration|FHWA]])
-}}</ref>) and [[U.S. Route 550]].
+}}</ref>), and [[U.S. Route 550]].
-The main line of the [[Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway]], now operated by the [[BNSF Railway]], passes along the southern edge of Four Corners. The area is home to remnants of through railroads that are now [[heritage railways]]. These include the [[Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad]] and the [[Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad]]. The [[Black Mesa and Lake Powell Railroad]], which connects a power plant with a coal mine near Kayenta comes near the Four Corners.<ref name=benchmark>{{cite map
+The main line of the [[Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway]], now operated by the [[BNSF Railway]], passes along the southern edge of Four Corners. The area is home to remnants of through railroads that are now [[heritage railways]]. These include the [[Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad]] and the [[Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad]]. The [[Black Mesa and Lake Powell Railroad]], which connects a power plant with a coal mine near Kayenta, comes near the Four Corners.<ref name=benchmark>{{cite map
  |publisher  = Benchmark Maps
  |title      = Arizona Road and Recreation Atlas
@@ Line 48: / Line 48: @@
  |section    = D3
 }}</ref>
-== In popular culture==
+==Helium==
-In [[The Simpsons]] episode [[The Bob Next Door]] Sideshow Bob takes Bart to "Five Corners" to murder him, reasoning that by killing him there the authorities could not prosecute as they would lack [[jurisdiction]].
+The Four Corners region was one of the first locations in the United States in which helium was extracted, and the area is increasingly important as a source of helium supply, with the region being noted for its abundance of high-grade [[Pure-play helium|'green' helium]].<ref>{{Cite web|title = When a Rush Begins: A Field Guide to the Helium Hopefuls of the United States|url = https://www.goldandrevolution.com/when-a-rush-begins-a-field-guide-to-the-helium-hopefuls-of-the-usa/|website = Gold and Revolution|access-date = 2023-09-07|date = 2023-07-23|last = Fresne|first = Patrick}}</ref>
+The most notable helium field in the region is Arizona's Holbrook basin.
+==Gallery==
+<gallery widths="150" heights="150" perrow="5">
+File:Four Corners, Southwestern U.S.jpg|[[False-color]] satellite image of the Four Corners. Bright red lines are vegetation along the major rivers of the area.  The main southeast–northwest river is the [[San Juan River (Colorado River tributary)|San Juan]].  The prominent confluence near the center is the confluence with the [[Mancos River]], in New Mexico. The minor confluence northwest of there is with the Toh Dahstini Wash, which drains to the north from Arizona, joining the San Juan in Colorado near the Utah–Colorado border, just north of Four Corners.
+File:Navajo (young boy) 2007.jpg|A young [[Navajo people|Navajo]] boy on horseback in [[Monument Valley]]. The [[Navajo Nation]] includes much of the Four Corners area, including the valley, used in many western movies.
+File:Four Corners Monument (1).jpg|Flags surrounding the [[Four Corners Monument]]. In clockwise order starting from the frontmost flag, the [[Flags of the U.S. states|state flag]] of [[Arizona]], flag of the [[Navajo Nation]], pre-2011 [[flag of Utah]], Navajo nation (second instance)[[Ute Mountain Ute Tribe]] Reservation, [[Colorado]], [[New Mexico]], Navajo Nation (third instance), and the [[flag of the United States]].
+File:DurangoSilverton1.jpg|The [[Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad]], now a [[heritage railway]], formerly connected the Four Corners area to the national rail network.
+File:Bluff UT - aerial with San Juan River and Comb Ridge.jpg|[[Bluff, Utah|Bluff]], Utah and [[Comb Ridge]] from the air
+</gallery>
 ==See also==
+{{Portal|United States|Arizona|Colorado|New Mexico|Utah}}
-*[[List of regions of the United States]]
-*[[:Template:Four Corners Radio|Four Corners radio stations]]
+* [[Four Corners Monument]]
+* [[List of regions of the United States]]
-*[[Quadripoint]]
+* [[:Template:Four Corners Radio|Four Corners radio stations]]
+* [[Four corners (Canada)|Canadian four corners]]
+* [[Quadripoint]]
+* [[TAG Corner]]
+* [[Trail of the Ancients|Trail of the Ancients National Scenic Byway]], Four Corners, Colorado and Utah
+* [[Trail of the Ancients Scenic Byway (New Mexico)]]
+* [[List of tripoints of U.S. states]]
+{{clear}}
-==Notes==
+==References==
-{{reflist}}
+{{Reflist}}
+==External links==
+{{sister project links|voy=yes|auto=yes}}
+{{Regions of the United States}}
+{{Authority control}}
+[[Category:Colorado Plateau]]
+[[Category:Geography of Apache County, Arizona]]
+[[Category:Geography of Montezuma County, Colorado]]
+[[Category:Geography of San Juan County, New Mexico]]
+[[Category:Geography of San Juan County, Utah]]
 [[Category:Geography of the United States]]
 [[Category:Regions of the United States]]
-[[Category:Borders of Arizona]]
+[[Category:Western United States]]
-[[Category:Borders of Colorado]]
-[[Category:Borders of New Mexico]]
-[[Category:Borders of Utah]]
-[[Category:Native American religious places]]
-[[Category:Geography of Apache County, Arizona]]
-[[Category:Montezuma County, Colorado]]
-[[Category:San Juan County, Utah]]
-[[Category:San Juan County, New Mexico]]
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-[[cs:Čtyři rohy]]
-[[da:Four Corners]]
-[[de:Four Corners]]
-[[es:Four Corners (Estados Unidos)]]
-[[fr:Four Corners (États-Unis)]]
-[[it:Four Corners]]
-[[he:ארבע הפינות]]
-[[lt:Keturių kampų valstijos]]
-[[hu:Four Corners]]
-[[nl:Four Corners]]
-[[ja:フォー・コーナーズ (アメリカ合衆国)]]
-[[no:Hjørnestatene]]
-[[pl:Four Corners]]
-[[pt:Four Corners]]
-[[ro:Four Corners]]
-[[ru:Четыре угла]]
-[[simple:Four Corners]]
-[[fi:Four Corners]]
-[[zh:四角落州]]

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