Jedediah Strong Smith
White Pine County, White Pine County, Nevada
Marker Inscription
Jedediah Strong Smith. From May to June 1827, explorer and trapper Jedediah Smith found a route from California’s central valley to the Great Salt Lake Valley in Utah. He became the first European American to completely cross what is now Nevada.Because Smith’s journal and map have never been found, his exact route is unknown. Based on Smith’s own statements about his difficult trip, modern historians and geographers have pieced together the most plausible route. Smith crossed the Sierra Nevada at Ebbetts Pass, swung southeast along or across the headwaters and middle reaches of the Walker River, and passed into central Nevada’s open spaces south of Walker Lake.Smith entered Smoky Valley on its southwest side in June 1827 and crossed the valley in a northeasterly direction. He then paralleled the future Simpson survey, route of the Pony Express and Overland Stage, along modern U.S. Highway 50.He entered Utah at Ibapah.
Erected by Nevada State Historic Preservation Office
The Story
Between May and June of 1827, explorer and trapper Jedediah Strong Smith forced a route from California's Central Valley to Utah's Great Salt Lake Valley, becoming the first known European American to cross the entire expanse of present-day Nevada. Because his journal and map were lost, his exact path is uncertain, but historians trace him over the Sierra at Ebbetts Pass, southeast along the Walker River, and northeast across central Nevada's Smoky Valley toward Utah.
Why it matters
Smith's crossing opened American knowledge of the Great Basin's forbidding interior, a foundational step in the exploration that would draw a nation westward.
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Themes & tags
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