Anyone standing at the coordinates of 41.0017° N, 104.0532° W, 154 years ago would have seen only a single, man-made marker – the Tri-State Marker – an unassuming placeholder for the spot that Nebraska, Colorado and Wyoming all meet.

Today the marker is open to adventurers wanting to get off the (literal) grid. But why is this spot historically significant in the first place?

On Aug. 17, 1869, long before anyone had GPS at their fingertips, astronomer and surveyor Oliver N. Chaffee stood at this intersection and established the corner monument.

When the tri-state area (Nebraska, Colorado and Wyoming) opened to homesteading, an acreage east of the marker was being farmed. But, according to Dennis Kieler, whose land sits under the marker, “the rest of the ground in both Colorado and Nebraska has never been broke” by the plow. There are still buffalo wallows in the pasture and wagon ruts from trails the farmers and ranchers took to Pine Bluffs, Wyoming, long ago.

The Kieler family’s roots have been planted in Weld County, Colorado, since 1893. Dennis’ grandfather, James (Jim), came to the area with two brothers, Ben and Ollie. One homesteaded east of the oil road that comes south out of Pine Bluffs. The other broke ground 3 miles southeast. Jim homesteaded a mile and a quarter straight south of the marker.

Eventually, Jim purchased Ben’s homestead. He later acquired even more land when the Stewart place, a mile east of the marker, sold in the 1920s. Half of the Stewart’s house was in Colorado, the other half was in Nebraska. Dennis attributes this story-changing gain of land to the Great Depression’s grip on everyone in the nation. “The Depression took more farmers than the drought,” he said. “People had trouble just living.”

As other homesteaders moved on, Jim acquired more and more land and grew to farm around 2,800 acres. Working that much ground took its toll, and he suffered a massive heart attack at age 42. Jim’s son, Howard (Dennis’ dad), took over after his folks moved to Fort Collins, Colorado. Dennis was about 20 years old at the time and worked it on shares with his grandfather until he died.

Born and raised on the homestead (south of the cornerstone), Dennis lived there until he went to college and married. He eventually took over the farm after his own father retired. Dennis’ son, Cotton, the fourth generation of Kielers, now helps whenever needed.

Jim Kieler knew the significance of the marker and recognized the need to share it with visitors. He wasn’t the only one. Many others have helped to keep up the site over the years. In 1981, Art Henrickson and Howard Kieler rehabilitated the corner marker. In 1990, a brass disk was drilled into the top center of the corner stone.

In 1997, local, state and federal organizations worked together to further preserve the monument. Three different types of stone were set in place around the marker to show each of the three states. The base showed the latitude and longitude. “Not long after that,” Dennis said, “some kids came in with a sledgehammer and broke up the base.”

In 2004, a local Boy Scout and the Kimball Rotary Club placed a metal plate with the state names engraved, as well as a fence around the marker. Dan Kinnison assisted Howard in keeping the monument in good shape. Issues arose again when people didn’t respect that the marker was on private property, leaving gates open and taking chunks from the monument as souvenirs.

Later Dennis was contacted about working with Kimball County Tourism to make the marker accessible to tourists, while still keeping the property safe. County commissioners on all (three) sides of the fence came together with Dennis to put in a parking lot and a walking gate into the pasture.

The family has always felt the responsibility to maintain the legacy of the marker and Jim’s wish to keep it open to the public. “Dad respected my grandpa’s wishes and I’ve respected my dad’s wishes,” Dennis said. Issues continue occasionally, however. Even with ground rules written boldly on signage, people still drive in. “I’m not going to close it off, but disrespect will close this—and lots of historical places like it,” Dennis concluded.

Uniquely, thanks to the limitations of technology of Chaffee’s day, the marker is off several hundred feet from the intended placement. Rather than move the marker, the powers that be re-drew the border, changing Nebraska’s boundaries forever.

There’s an old saying, “You can’t get there from here.” With no direct access from Nebraska to the marker, visitors can start from Beech Street in Pine Bluffs, Wyoming, and drive south for 12 miles (this becomes County Road 164), then park in Colorado and stroll 3/4 of a mile to their destination.