The Granite Mountains are a short subrange of the
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico ...
in central
Wyoming
Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...
of the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. The range runs approximately 100 mi (160 km) E-W along the south side of the
Shoshone Basin
The Wind River Basin or Shoshone Basin is a semi-arid intermontane foreland basin in central Wyoming, United States. It is bounded by Laramide uplifts on all sides. On the west is the Wind River Range and on the North are the Absaroka Range and ...
, and north of the
Sweetwater River, in eastern
Fremont County and western
Natrona County. The highest point is McIntosh Peak at .
Independence Rock is at the east end of the range,
[''Independence Rock, Wyoming,'' 7.5 Minute Topographic Quadrangle, USGS, 1951] and
Split Rock was a prominent landmark on the
Oregon Trail
The Oregon Trail was a east–west, large-wheeled wagon route and emigrant trail in the United States that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail spanned part of what is now the state of Kans ...
. The region is rich in
uranium
Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...
and other mineral deposits.
See also
*
List of mountain ranges in Wyoming
According to the United States Board on Geographic Names, there are at least 109 named mountain ranges and sub-ranges in Wyoming.
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. Wyoming is the 10th most extensive, but ...
References
*
*
Ranges of the Rocky Mountains
Mountain ranges of Wyoming
Landforms of Fremont County, Wyoming
Landforms of Natrona County, Wyoming
{{Wyoming-geo-stub