JUNE 2017 • NEBRASKAland 53
as "the dead man's hand."
Over time, the westward flow of
travelers shifted elsewhere, and the
arrival of the railroad and telegraph
put traffic on the Oregon-California
Trail at a standstill. Rock Creek Station
fell into disrepair, and the buildings
vanished. The land was used for
farming, though landowners took care
not to disturb the wagon wheel ruts,
which are still visible today.
In 1980, the Nebraska State
Historical Society began researching
the grounds to help the Nebraska Game
and Parks Commission reconstruct
the buildings. High-tech instruments
were used to analyze the structures'
foundations, but little else was as
precious to their work as a rare 1860
daguerreotype discovered at the
California State Library in Sacramento
– the only known photo of Rock Creek
Station during its operation.
It provides a clear picture of the
The re-created photograph of Rock Creek Station, by Cody Mobley, shot in August 2016.
PHOTO
BY
CODY
MOBLEY
