Teapot Rock

Teapot Rock, or Teapot Dome, is a sandstone landmark in central Wyoming whose teapot-like profile once made it instantly recognizable, though erosion later erased its “handle” and “spout.” Rising near Teapot Creek in the Powder River Basin, it gave its name to a nearby oil field and a broader geologic uplift. In 1915 that field became Naval Petroleum Reserve Number Three as the federal government sought oil for a Navy shifting to oil-fired boilers. The reserve later became infamous in the Warren G. Harding administration’s Teapot Dome bribery scandal, making the name a lasting symbol in American political history. The rock and site were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

Midwest, Wyoming · United States