The Coronado Cross stands east of Dodge City near the Arkansas River, marking a site associated with Francisco Vazquez de Coronado's 1541 expedition across the plains. The cross itself is simple, but the setting widens the city's story beyond the cattle era.
Stop here with Fort Dodge rather than making a special trip from town. Together they trace older movement through the same river corridor: Spanish exploration, the Santa Fe Trail, military supply, and later the railroad cow town.