Blacks Fork
Encyclopedia
Blacks Fork is a 175 miles (281.6 km) tributary of the Green River
in Utah
and Wyoming
. The river rises on the northern side of the Uinta Mountains
as the combination of three streams draining the area around Tokewanna Peak near the Utah-Wyoming border. Right as the river crosses the Wyoming border, it flows into Meeks Cabin Reservoir which is used for irrigation and flood control. From there the river flows through the town of Lyman
before joining with the Smiths Fork, which forms just east of the Blacks Fork in the Unitas, and parallels it for most of its course. The river continues northeast to Granger
, where the river meets the Hams Fork from the north. Shortly thereafter the river makes a sharp turn south, eventually joining the Green River at Flaming Gorge Reservoir
.
and his partner Louis Vasquez
constructed a trading post on the Blacks Fork, located near present day Lyman
, known later as Fort Bridger
. The post soon became a popular stop along the Oregon
and California
trails and later marked the point at which the Mormon Trail
left the other two and continued into Utah
.
Green River (Utah)
The Green River, located in the western United States, is the chief tributary of the Colorado River. The watershed of the river, known as the Green River Basin, covers parts of Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado. The Green River is long, beginning in the Wind River Mountains of Wyoming and flowing...
in Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
and Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
. The river rises on the northern side of the Uinta Mountains
Uinta Mountains
The Uinta Mountains are a high chain of mountains in northeastern Utah and extreme northwestern Colorado in the United States. A subrange of the Rocky Mountains, they are unusual for being the highest range in the contiguous United States running east to west, and lie approximately east of Salt...
as the combination of three streams draining the area around Tokewanna Peak near the Utah-Wyoming border. Right as the river crosses the Wyoming border, it flows into Meeks Cabin Reservoir which is used for irrigation and flood control. From there the river flows through the town of Lyman
Lyman, Wyoming
Lyman is a town in Uinta County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 1,938 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Lyman is located at ....
before joining with the Smiths Fork, which forms just east of the Blacks Fork in the Unitas, and parallels it for most of its course. The river continues northeast to Granger
Granger, Wyoming
Granger is a town in Sweetwater County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 146 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Granger is located at ....
, where the river meets the Hams Fork from the north. Shortly thereafter the river makes a sharp turn south, eventually joining the Green River at Flaming Gorge Reservoir
Flaming Gorge Reservoir
Flaming Gorge Reservoir is a reservoir in Wyoming and Utah, on the Green River, created by Flaming Gorge Dam. Construction on the dam began in 1958 and was completed in 1964...
.
History
In 1843 mountain man Jim BridgerJim Bridger
James Felix "Jim" Bridger was among the foremost mountain men, trappers, scouts and guides who explored and trapped the Western United States during the decades of 1820-1850, as well as mediating between native tribes and encroaching whites...
and his partner Louis Vasquez
Louis Vasquez
Pierre Luis Vasquez was a mountain man and trader. He was born and raised at St. Louis, Missouri. Pierre Luis Vasquez was the son of Benito Vasquez and Marie-Julie Papin Pierre Luis Vasquez (October 3, 1798 – September 5, 1868) was a mountain man and trader. He was born and raised at St....
constructed a trading post on the Blacks Fork, located near present day Lyman
Lyman, Wyoming
Lyman is a town in Uinta County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 1,938 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Lyman is located at ....
, known later as Fort Bridger
Fort Bridger
Fort Bridger was originally a 19th century fur trading outpost established in 1842 on Blacks Fork of the Green River and later a vital resupply point for wagon trains on the Oregon Trail, California Trail and Mormon Trail. The Army established a military post here in 1858 during the Utah War until...
. The post soon became a popular stop along the Oregon
Oregon Trail
The Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
and California
California Trail
The California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California...
trails and later marked the point at which the Mormon Trail
Mormon Trail
The Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300 mile route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868...
left the other two and continued into Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
.