Grand Canyon, Bright Angel Canyon at Granite Gorge

TheGrand Canyon is a mile-deep, 277-mile-long steep-sided gorge inArizona, formed over millennia by theColoradoRiver.

Location 

TheGrand Canyon lies in the southwestern part of the United States, in the southwestern portion of theColoradoPlateau. The main path of thecanyoncourses from the mouth of the Paria River, near the boundary ofArizonaand Utah, toGrandWash Cliffs, near Nevada’s state line. 

The deepest and most visually dramatic section of theGrand Canyon is 56 miles long and lies within the central part ofGrand Canyon National Park. Here the canyon’s striking strata are on full display, in colors ranging from browns to blues to reds and pinks. TheNorth Rim sits about 8,500 feet above sea level, 1,200 feet higher than theSouth Rim. 

Geologyand History

Erosion or low volumes of material deposition have erased millions of years from thecanyon’s geologic history. Despite this, it remains the most significantlocationon earth for its long and measurablegeologic record. 

Human artifacts found in thecanyonsuggest the presence of prehistoric settlers from the last Ice Age. Ancestral Pueblo people also lived in thecanyon, followed later by Paiute, Navajo, Zuni, and Hopi tribes, as well as theHavasupai who still claim the land today. The first Europeans to visit thecanyonwere Spanish explorers in the 1540s. In the centuries that followed, U.S. expeditionsexplored and mapped the area and studied itsgeologyand ecology. 

Tourism 

Early settlers saw the profit in tourism, which began in earnest after 1901. In 1908, theGrand Canyon was proclaimed aNational Monument by President Theodore Roosevelt, and in 1919 it became a National Park. Today, over 5 million tourists from all over the world visit thecanyoneach year.

Learn more about the Grand Canyon through historical newspapers from our archives. Explore newspaper articles, headlines, images, and other primary sources below.

Articles and Clippings about the Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon Now National Monument, proclamation signed by President Teddy Roosevelt Thu, Jan 23, 1908 – Page 6 ·Los Angeles Herald (Los Angeles, California) · Newspapers.comSome objections raised to making Grand Canyon a National Monument, 1908 Tue, Feb 4, 1908 – 3 · () · Newspapers.comEditorial description of the Grand Canyon as shared in 1909, mentions Powell and Spanish Explorers Tue, Nov 2, 1909 – 15 ·Hartford Courant (Hartford, Connecticut) · Newspapers.comPhoto of John Wesley Powell, first known explorer to travel by boat through Grand Canyon Sun, May 14, 1916 – Page 15 ·The Decatur Herald (Decatur, Illinois) · Newspapers.com1916 article describes the Grand Canyon's walls as a great study of earth's geology Thu, Sep 7, 1916 – Page 6 ·The Indianapolis News (Indianapolis, Indiana) · Newspapers.comGrand Canyon to become a National Park in 1919, some history shared (excerpt) Fri, Jan 31, 1919 – Page 1 ·The Coconino Sun (Flagstaff, Arizona) · Newspapers.comSmithsonian receives geologic records, fossils, samples from walls of the Grand Canyon Fri, Jun 11, 1926 – Page 4 ·The Morning News (Wilmington, Delaware) · Newspapers.com1950 correspondent article about the Havasupai people living in the Grand Canyon since the 12th C. Mon, Jun 26, 1950 – Page 23 ·St. Louis Post-Dispatch (St. Louis, Missouri) · Newspapers.comMap of Grand Canyon National Park including best viewpoints, entrances, campsites Sun, Oct 27, 1996 – Page 173 ·Chicago Tribune (Chicago, Illinois) · Newspapers.comPhoto of President Theodore Roosevelt descending the Grand Canyon Sun, Oct 4, 1998 – 220 ·The San Francisco Examiner (San Francisco, California) · Newspapers.comArizona's Grand Canyon National Park, carved through the Colorado Plateau, is a top US attraction Sun, Jul 4, 2004 – Page T004 ·St. Louis Post-Dispatch (St. Louis, Missouri) · Newspapers.comView of the Grand Canyon's peaks, valleys, and layers of multicolored stone Thu, Aug 21, 2008 – Page 29 ·Clarion-Ledger (Jackson, Mississippi) · Newspapers.com