Tri-State Corners

       Tri-state corners are the points where three states meet at a common point. There is one point where four states join at a common point and this is where Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico meet at the northeast corner of the Navajo Indian Reservation in Arizona. There are 61other places where three states meet in the continental United States. Jack Parsell was the first person to research and document these in his guidebook "Tri-State Corners in the United States". Jack found that of the 62 corners there were 38 that were on dry land where there should or could be a survey marker. The remaining were in the center of rivers of bodies of water where no monument could be placed. Jack visited all 38 sites and completed the last one on July 29, 1997.

       Jack along with his wife Joyce and friend Clark Hall not only visited the tri-state corners, but they have put together a very good guide book on how to reach them. Although most are not "peaks" in the usual sense they can be challenging to find and most are in remote locations requiring good navigation skills. So if you are looking for new destinations which are off-the-beaten-path, the tri-points are good ones.

       The guide book: "Tri-State Corners in the United States" is available for $7.50 (includes postage) directly from Jack at: Jack Parsell, P.O. Box 97, Beaver Falls, NY. 13305

       Using Jack's guide book I have research the tri-points and have made several tables which provide information not available in the guide book. I have listed the 7.5 minute topo maps the tri-points are on and have listed the UTM coordinates. A GPS file is provided for the tri-points that you can save and then upload to a Garmin GPS receiver. Also, coordinates in latitude and longitude are provided. I have used these coordinates to search for any available benchmark datasheets at the USGS web site and these are provided here by a link from the last table. I plan to add pictures for some tri-points that I have visited and these will be linked from the tables.

Richard L. Carey    July 21, 2000