shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileWyoming

on the Sweetwater River in central Wyoming, west of Casper

Independence Rock Oregon Trail register

Name: Independence Rock Oregon Trail register — on ceramic tile, by WenderVista
Brand: WenderVista

— — a granite dome covered in pioneer names.

— Where it lives

Not only on a wall.

A small tile on the nightstand catching the morning. A larger one above the fire. Yours, wherever you spend the slow hours.

— On the nightstand, a 6-inch on a walnut stand

— Among the books, a 6-inch leaning into the spines

— Down a quiet hall, an 18-inch floating off the wall

— Above the fire, the 24-inch in a walnut surround

— a note from the studio

“A grey granite whaleback rising about 130 feet off the sage flats along the Sweetwater River. Wagon companies on the Oregon, California, and Mormon trails aimed to reach it by the Fourth of July, which is how it got its name. Thousands carved or painted their names into the rock; many are still readable. The wind is constant and the sky goes a long way in every direction. — from the studio

from the studio

— bring it home

Independence Rock Oregon Trail register, on ceramic.

Each tile is finished by hand in our Knoxville studio. Artwork is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, and rests beneath a thin glossy finish. The colour lives in the surface, not on top of it.

What kind of piece?

One tile — square or rectangle.

How big?

the popular one — counter, shelf, nightstand

6 × 6 in · 15 cm · 1.6 lb

Surface finish

A clear glossy finish — the artwork reads as if under resin. Ideal for show-pieces and framed wall art.

How it sits

A hidden cleat — sits ¼″ proud of the wall.

$58

Hand-finished and shipped from our studio at the foot of the Smokies. On your wall in about ten days.

— size

6 × 6 in

15 cm

— weighs

1.6 lb

solid in the hand

— surface

ceramic, hand-finished

art rests beneath a thin glossy finish

— from

Knoxville, TN

our family studio, at the foot of the Smokies

— start a Coaster Set

Pick any four 4-inch tiles — National Parks you've been to, a Smokies set, the four seasons of one place. $ for a set of , cork-backed, ready to live on the table.

— about Independence Rock Oregon Trail register

The place, in three passes.

A little of what's known, in case you fall down the rabbit hole — or want to go see it yourself.

— the place

Independence Rock is a granite monadnock about 130 feet tall, 1,900 feet long, and 850 feet wide, rising off the sage plain of the Sweetwater Valley in Natrona County, Wyoming, roughly fifty miles southwest of Casper along Wyoming Highway 220. It sits at about 6,056 feet on the Mormon, Oregon, and California emigrant trails. The site was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1961 and is managed today as Independence Rock State Historic Site by Wyoming State Parks.

— informed by Wikipedia — Independence Rock, Wyoming State Parks

— the stone

The rock is a Precambrian granite intrusion exposed by erosion, weathered smooth into a low whaleback by wind and freeze-thaw. Emigrants carved or painted their names onto the southern and eastern faces using axle grease, tar, paint, and chisels. An 1850s missionary, Father Pierre-Jean De Smet, called it the Register of the Desert. Estimates put the number of nineteenth-century inscriptions at around 5,000, of which a significant portion are still readable, though weathering continues to erase the painted entries faster than the carved ones.

— informed by Wikipedia — Independence Rock, National Park Service — Oregon NHT

— the year

The rock got its name from the emigrant convention that a wagon company on the Oregon or California trail had to reach it by the Fourth of July to clear the Sierra Nevada before snowfall. Companies that arrived on or near the Fourth often held celebrations on and around the rock — sermons, speeches, a fired salute. Today the state historic site is open year-round during daylight hours, free of charge, with a short interpretive trail at the base and a walk-up route to the summit.

— informed by Wyoming State Parks

— where

United States · Natrona County, Wyoming

— within

Independence Rock State Historic Site

— elevation

1,846 m · 6,056 ft

— position

42.4936° N · 107.1342° W

— the neighborhood

What's nearby.

A handful of named places within an hour's walk or short drive. Some we've already painted; some we will.

9 km W

Devils Gate

river gap

at the lake

Sweetwater River

river

14 km W

Martin's Cove

historic site

80 km NE

Casper

city

Independence Rock Oregon Trail register

Devils Gate

Sweetwater River

Martin's Cove

Casper

— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Independence Rock Oregon Trail register — and about bringing the piece home.

— about the place

Independence Rock stands in Natrona County, Wyoming, about fifty miles southwest of Casper along Wyoming Highway 220, on the north bank of the Sweetwater River at roughly 6,056 feet elevation.

Wagon companies on the Oregon and California trails aimed to reach the rock by the Fourth of July, the date considered the cutoff for clearing the Sierra Nevada before winter snow closed the passes.

Roughly 5,000 nineteenth-century inscriptions have been recorded on the southern and eastern faces. Carved names tend to survive better than painted ones, which weathering continues to erase.

Father Pierre-Jean De Smet, a Jesuit missionary travelling the trail in 1840, called it the Register of the Desert. Trapper William Sublette is often credited with the Fourth-of-July naming in 1830.

No. It is a National Historic Landmark, designated in 1961, and is managed by Wyoming State Parks as the Independence Rock State Historic Site. Admission is free.

It is about 130 feet tall, 1,900 feet long, and 850 feet wide — a Precambrian granite dome rising directly off the surrounding sage plain of the Sweetwater Valley.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. Many descendants of Mormon, Oregon, and California trail emigrants trace family names carved on the rock. A Medium or the Large carries that family story well.

Western-revival, study or library interiors, and warm rustic-contemporary rooms. The granite greys and sage greens carry alongside leather, walnut, and aged brass.

Yes, the wider American-heritage and historian's-study movements lean into landmark imagery with real provenance rather than decorative Western motifs.

A single Large works above a console or mantel. Above a sofa, the four-tile Mural holds the wall and the nine-tile Mural reads as a window onto the Sweetwater plain.

Yes. Order Dura Satin or Matte for showers, backsplashes, and humid rooms. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure.

A soft microfibre cloth and water. No solvents, no abrasive pads. The finish wipes clean and the colour lives in the ceramic surface beneath it.

Yes. Every WenderVista tile is original work from a single family studio in Knoxville, Tennessee. Nothing is licensed in or out.

— if this one stayed with you