New from the University of Nebraska Press: Yellowstone Autumn: A Season of Discovery in a Wondrous Land by W.D. Wetherell.

Wetherell describes Yellowstone as “America’s least-known best-known place.” The author, arriving at the park on the eve of his fifty-fifth birthday, feels the need to examine where life’s mileage has brought him. In the encounter that follows, a writer entering late middle age confronts not only a magnificent corner of the vast American landscape but also the American experience itself.

Detailed in the wise, humorous, and lyrical language that has long distinguished W. D. Wetherell’s award-winning fiction, this introspective journey merges the fascinating story of Yellowstone’s history and geography with the author’s own story—of marriage and aging, of fatherhood, and of the solace to be found in the beauty of the natural world. Most of all it’s a loving tribute to Yellowstone in autumn, the season when the park and its glories are absolutely at their peak.

This edition of Linking in Lincoln is devoted to – what else – Yellowstone. Here we go.

1. Yellowstone park was named after the river bearing the same name, which is named after the French translation of the Minnetaree tribe’s word for the river: Rock Yellow River. Rock Yellow, Yellow Stone, Yellowstone….it’s all the same thing, right? Read a brief history of how the park came to be (and more details about where it got its name) on this page on the National Park Service web site.

2. Yellowstone is home of the largest volcanic caldera in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Violent volcanic eruptions occurred thousands of years ago; could they happen again? The U.S. Geological Survey has dedicated this page to answering all of your questions about the possibility of future volcanic activity at Yellowstone.

3. Yellowstone is a geographically volatile place. In addition to volcanoes, it’s also a hotbed for earthquakes, with thousands of small quakes occurring each year. In 1959, an earthquake clocking in at 7.3 on the Richter Scale rocked the park, killed 28 people, and has since gone down in history as the largest earthquake in Montana history. The USGS has information on that, too.

4. Enough about natural disasters. Yellowstone is well-known for its fly fishing – that’s part of what drew W.D. Wetherell there in the first place. As a result, there are entire web sites devoted to fly fishing at Yellowstone, like this one.

5. Of course, Yellowstone might be best known for its most famous geyser, Old Faithful, which, if you like, you can watch live via this webcam.

Curious about Yellowstone? Be sure to read Yellowstone Autumn by W.D. Wetherell. And see you back on the UNP blog tomorrow!