The Four Corners Is The Only Quadripoint In The Country, But It's Not Where You Think It Is
By Catherine Armstrong|Published June 02, 2020
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Catherine Armstrong
Author
Writer, editor and researcher with a passion for exploring new places. Catherine loves local bookstores, independent films, and spending time with her family, including Gus the golden retriever, who is a very good boy.
The Four Corners Monument draws folks from all over the country. It’s the only place in the United States where you can stand in one spot and be in four states at once! But…the monument isn’t exactly on the quadripoint. Read on to find out why.
There's only one place in the entire country where the boundaries of four states meet. Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado all come together in a quadripoint.
Groups of friends and family also like to post on the monument. "Look! We're each in a different state!" "I'm waving to you from Colorado, and you're in Arizona!"
State boundaries were established beginning in 1866, using Washington meridian and parallel lines. Between 1868 and 1878, four different surveyors mapped out the borders of New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, and Arizona. They were working with the latest equipment and technology available, and they were highly accurate for their time, but there were discrepancies.
In 1919, New Mexico sued Colorado to have border discrepancies corrected. The Supreme Court upheld the original borders, acknowledging that they were off by a bit, but that the original markers (including the Four Corners Monument) were legally binding as the actual borders. The U.S. Geodetic Survey states that the quadripoint is actually 1,807 feet east of where modern surveying technology would place it.
So when you stand on the monument, you're not technically at the intersection of the four states, but you are legally on the quadripoint! Does it matter to the thousands of people who visit this place every year? We doubt it.
The monument is located about 30 miles from the nearest gas station, so make sure you have plenty of gas, and bring along some water.
The hours to visit the Four Corners Monument varies, depending on the time of year. Make sure to visit its website for updated information before you head out there.
Have you visited the Four Corners Monument? We’d love to read about your adventure and see your photos in the comments.
