Ash Hollow

ash-hollow-pageant
Photo courtesy Visit Garden County

Ash Hollow State Historical Park near the west end of Lake McConaughy in Garden County is one of Nebraska’s most intriguing state parks. A modern interpretive center interprets the area’s geology, paleontology, prehistoric history and use by native American Indians, the military, and 19th Century explorers and pioneers. Ash Hollow Cave shows evidence of use of the area by prehistoric man as many as 6,000 years ago. More than 30 million years of geologic history and fossils of prehistoric mammals including rhinoceros and mastodons can be examined at the park. Ash Hollow was a stopping point for Plains Indians, a site of U.S. troop maneuvers and a place for shelter and water on the Oregon, California and Mormon Trails. Ruts are still visible at Windlass Hill where wagons were lowered into the valley.

The Visitor Center is situated on a bluff overlooking the mouth of the canyon. The center houses a display of pioneer history, as well as fossils from prehistoric rhinoceros, mammoths and mastodons. Check outdoornebraska.gov/ashhollow for seasonal hours and more information.

In 1835, Ash Hollow was the site of a battle between the Sioux and Pawnee.

The Battle of Blue Water took place there in 1855.  From the Nebraska State Historical Society  website: “One of the great tragedies of the Indian Wars, the battle, also called the Harney Massacre, took place six miles northwest of Ash Hollow in the Blue Water (now called Blue Creek) valley. In response to an Indian raid near Fort Laramie in 1854, General Harney led a raid on a Lakota village on September 3, 1855, killing 86, capturing 70 and destroying the village. The attack was one of the first military engagements between the Army and the Sioux.”

Halloween at the Hollow: Halloween at the Hollow is held the last Saturday in October and is fun event for the entire family. Wagon rides, trunk-or-treating, food and games make the evening fun and memorable.

Learn more about Garden County at VisitGardenCounty.com.

Calendar of Events

Jun
10
Sat
all-day Terry McCormick Memorial Walleye...
Terry McCormick Memorial Walleye...
Jun 10 all-day
Contact: Rose McCormick at 308-778-7216
8:00 am Ogallala Farmers Market
Ogallala Farmers Market
Jun 10 @ 8:00 am – Oct 7 @ 12:00 pm
The Ogallala Farmers Market is held Saturday mornings from 8:00 a.m. to noon at Rendezvous Square.   This year’s season begins June 3, 2023. Markets generally continue through early October.
Jun
11
Sun
9:00 am Family Day 3D Shoot – Big Mac Ar...
Family Day 3D Shoot – Big Mac Ar...
Jun 11 @ 9:00 am – 2:00 pm
The Big Mac Bowhunters will host a Family Day 3D Archery Shoot Sunday, June 11 at the Burma Road Archery Range, across the highway from the Lake McConaughy Visitors Center. People of all ages may[...]
Jun
15
Thu
all-day Pony Express Re-Ride Ogallala Ex...
Pony Express Re-Ride Ogallala Ex...
Jun 15 all-day
Tri-Trails Park in Ogallala serves as a location for one of the hundreds of mochila (mailbag) exchanges from horse to horse that take place along the Pony Express Trail between St. Joseph and Sacramento.   The[...]