USC&GS Bench Mark "RED CLOUD" Jerry Penry
Typically, USC&GS named their triangulation stations for local entities, but having bench marks with names is less common. There once were perhaps 75 such bench marks established by USC&GS in Nebraska and there are around 40 still existing today.
Notice the surveyor who stamped the elevation on the disk evidently did not have a stamp for the number "1" or the decimal place, so he instead used the letter "I" on the elevation 1723.635. The stamping of "Red Cloud" and "1934" on the disk were likely done earlier and before the final elevation was determined. Today this bench mark has an elevation of 1724.26 NAVD88. This bench mark is also set in an unusual octagon shaped concrete pad. Nearly all other bench marks established by USC&GS during this era have a square concrete base.
1934
March 28, 2015
Bench Mark "RED CLOUD" in Webster County, Nebraska, is an example of USC&GS naming a bench mark other than the typical letter/number sequence. In 1934, USC&GS established a second-order level line, designated Line No. 5, across southern Nebraska. This line originated on the original 1899 precise level line approximately 4.4 miles east of Red Cloud at a location known as Lester Junction. Line No. 5 followed the railroads from Lester Junction west a distance of about 85 miles to Arapahoe. Bench marks along this line were given the letter/number sequence designations. The bench marks on this line closest to Red Cloud are "U 169" to the east of town and "T 169" to the west of town. The one placed at the courthouse in Red Cloud was a supplemental bench mark placed by USC&GS at this same time. 
Close-up of the "Red Cloud" bench mark. Note letter "I" used for the "1" and decimal place on the elevation.
Note the unusual octagon concrete base.
Webster County courthouse. Looking northeast.
South entrance to the Webster County courthouse. The arrow marks the location of the bench mark.
Kurt Luebke getting a photo of the bench mark.
Control leveling map of Webster County by USC&GS showing Line No. 5 through Red Cloud.
The yellow pushpins show the locations of the bench marks along Line No. 5. The blue lines show the railroads.
© Jerry Penry 2015