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Pompeys Pillar was designated as a National Monument in January 2001.Prior to its monument status, it was a designated National Historic Landmark in 1965. It was part of the original 1803 Louisiana Purchase.Pompeys Pillarrepresents the legacy of the early West and its development. At the Pillar, there is evidence of NativeAmericans, early explorers, fur trappers, the U.S. Cavalry, railroad development and early homesteaders, many of whom left their history embedded in this sandstone pillar. Captain William Clark, his guide, Sacagawea, her 18-month old son (nicknamed Pompey) and a crew of 11 men stopped near the 200-foot-high rock outcropping on the return leg of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. On July 25, 1806, Clark carved his signature and the date in the rock and recorded doing so in his journal. The historic signatureremains today, and visitors can walk on a boardwalk to see it.
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