Devils Tower National Monument is a United States National Monument that is located in Crook County in northeastern Wyoming. The Monument was established as the first national monument by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906 through his use of the Antiquities Act. The Monument is the core of an ancient volcano; the surrounding softer rock has over time been eroded to reveal cooled magma hardened into igneous rock, appearing as fluted shafts and columns rising over 500 feet in the air. The monolithic tower rises above the Belle Fource River at the edge of the Black Hills region, known in this section as the Bear Lodge Mountains.

History
The Tower was known as "Mateo Tipi" by American Indians of the region, and is considered sacred. "Mateo Tipi" translates as "Bear Lodge", as the Indian legend revolves around the creation of the tower as a refuge for a group of Indian youths being perused by a giant bear. Imploring the great spirit to save them, a rock they were standing on began to rise into the air. The bear tried to reach them, with its claws carving the fluted columns into the rock. The youths then were taken up and became what is known as the seven sisters constellation. A U.S. cavalry scouting party reached the tower in 1876 and incorrectly translated the name to mean "Bad God's Tower" and thus its present name remains. Devils Tower is probably best known as the location of the alien-human rendezvous point in Steven Spielberg's Oscar winning 1977 Science Fiction film, Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Production designer Joe Alves traveled the west looking for a proper landmark and stumbled across the obscure park finding it a perfect fit for use in the film. Devils Tower National Monument is administered by the National Park Service, a part of the Department of Interior, and is a popular place for rock climbing, hiking, and as a tourist waypoint located between popular destinations such as Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Badlands National Park, Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park.

Flora and fauna
Prairie falcons nest on the monument, and some climbing trails are closed yearly to protect the nestlings. Annual information about closings is available on the National Park Service web site. The meadows on the approach roads to the Tower are the home to colonies of Prairie Dogs. Visitors are advised not to approach these creatures due to the risk of contracting rabies if bitten.