# Presentation: 293281

- Bits and Pieces of Historical Deer Lodge

- By Mrs. Witt, Mrs. O’Hara, and Mrs. Christnacht

## This is our Deer Lodge library. 

It is named after Conrad Kohrs’ son, William Kohrs. 

William died of appendicitis at the age of 21 while in New York at Columbia University.

He was Conrad’s only son.

- It is named after Conrad Kohrs’ son, William Kohrs.
- William died of ***appendicitis*** at the age of 21 while in New York at Columbia University.
- He was Conrad’s only son.

- *  Trask Hall was part of the first college in Montana.
- *  It was first named Rocky Mountain College in 1878.
- *  It was later renamed College of Montana.

- Trask Hall

## 

    The Rialto was built in 1921.

    In 1998, the Rialto was added to the National Register of Historic places.

   The Rialto burned down on November 4, 2006.

-     The Rialto was built in 1921.
-     In 1998, the Rialto was added to the National Register of Historic places.
-    The Rialto burned down on November 4, 2006.

- Rialto Theatre

## Montana State Prison

- Where Montana criminals were
- housed for the first time on July 2, 1871.

## Blacksmith Shop

-         This shop can be destroyed if there are “too many irons in the fire”.
- 	    During early ranching the blacksmith made horseshoes. Horses hooves  wear down naturally, and it is necessary to trim them. An iron shoe protects these. The hooves grow like your fingernails. So they need maintained.
-         They were also responsible for creating the branding irons used for marking livestock ownership. Repaired ranching equipment was one more duty they had.

## The church by the railroad tracks was once the depot for the Milwaukee Railroad.

-    The big bay windows were put in so that visitors could see the trains pulling in.

## Who is Johnny Grant?

- This man is credited with being the first to winter cattle in  the Western Montana valleys in the 1850’s.  He was the first owner/operator of the Grant-Kohrs Ranch. He only lived at the Ranch for six years before selling it to Conrad Kohrs in 1866. He felt that Montana was getting too crowded!!!

## Who is Conrad Kohrs?

-      This man bought the Grant-Kohrs Ranch from Johnny Grant for his butchering business in 1866. The deal was complete in 1869. The ENTIRE Ranch was purchased for $19,200?
- That would have been about $500,000 in today’s currency (2008). He was known as the “Cattle King”.
-       Conrad was married to Augusta Kohrs. They had three children, two daughters and one son (William). They were the first to have electricity wired to their addition structure in 1890 and in 1892 it came to the Valley for all to use.

## Who is John Bielenberg?

-      John was the half brother of Conrad Kohrs who ran the operation of the Grant-Kohrs Ranch. He lived with the Kohrs’ family in a simple bedroom. He bred thoroughbred stud horses. John died at the age of 74 from cancer.

## Who is Conrad Warren?

-      This man started the Grant-Kohrs
- Ranch as a hired hand in 1929. He
- purchased the ranch, house, and trust
- in 1940. He is responsible for turning
- the ranch over to the National Park System
- in 1972.

##      Granville Stuart School was named

- after the Stuart brothers. They were
- the first to find gold at the
- mouth of Gold Creek. They moved from
- California to Montana for the mining
- of gold.

## 	Cowboys came from the east and others were immigrants

- from European countries. More than
- 1⁄4 of these people were African
- Americans.
- 	The saddle was their most prized possession. Their wages were $1.00 per day!!!

- Cowboys

## What is a Cattle Drive?????

**	****   ****Moving cattle more than 10 to 12**
**   ****miles per day and up to a five month**
**   ****journey from Texas to Montana was**
**   ****an activity common during the early**
**    ****years. **
**	****  ****The breeds of cattle driven were the Longhorn and Hereford. They crossed the prairie grazing along the trail. **
**	****   ****Conrad Warren had a prized bull Hereford named TT Triumphant that was purchased for $35,000 in 1947.**

**  ****After a long day of driving cattle**
**across the prairie you would find **
**the cowboys at the chuck wagon.**

##          William Garrison was the man that Garrison, Montana is named after. It is a small rural town in Powell County.

        Mount Powell is named after John W. Powell. He was the first white man to climb the mountain. He had a ranch at the foot of the mountain in 1864. 

-         Mount Powell is named after John W. Powell. He was the first white man to climb the mountain. He had a ranch at the foot of the mountain in 1864.

## What is a beaver slide?

-      Hay was stacked using this method.
- The beaver slide is still used today
- on some farms and ranches – even
- at Grant-Kohrs Ranch. Horses are mainly used instead of machines.

## Lewis and Clark were the  two men that President

**Lewis and Clark were the  two men that President**
**Jefferson sent to explore the**
**Louisiana Purchase. They entered**
**Powell County on July 5, 1806.**

## Native Americans were the first to

- inhabit the Deer Lodge Valley.

## Now try the Jeopardy game to test your skills!!