The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1926-01-08
nv nAN r. CONWAY

III Is EeAldEAclDAC AAANo NAC OO
Missouri river, which has played
so important a part in the history
of the United States, should now,
in the present age Of modern sclen-
tific development, become prOmi-
nent in the consideration of those
who seek to further transportation
facilities in the Northwest. The
DIan to open up the channel of this
stream for the handling Of freight
recalls the balmy days of Fort
Benton, Montana.
"HE Missouri river, which has its
source through the joining Of
4 the Gallatin, Jefferson and Mad
isOn rivers near the town of Three
Forks, through it's enormous volume
of water for power and irrigation
purposes constitutes one of MOntana's
most valued assets. These qualities,
though, do by no near represent
the sole significance that the Mis-
souri, river sets forth in Montana de-
velopment. This river has also had
a far more important bearing on the
growth and development of the Unit
ed States than n other stream in
the country, and has served to change
the political and economical history
of the whole world.
In the first place the Missouri RI
yer made possible the exploring of
the vast area between the Mississippi
and the Pacific ocean by Lewis and
Clark in 1804-5-6; by Major ZebulOn
Pike in 1SO5-6-7; and BY Major
Long in 1920.
Secondly the introduction of steam
navigation on the Missouri in 1923
and the use of that stream for pas
senger and freight traffic as far
west as Fort Benton during the en-
suing half-century, vas one of the
most important and f~ar-reaching ev-
ents in the history of the United
States.
The general invasion and over
running of the immense region west
of the Mississippi by English speak
ing Americans took place, roughly
speaking, between the years 1929
and 1870 beginning with the estab-
lishment of a steam packet service
between St. Louis and Fort Leaven-
worth in 1929. This was followed
three years later by the arrival of
the steamer Yellowstone at the mouth
of the Yellowstone river in what is
now Montana.
Then, within a period of 20 years,
the people of the United States add
ed to their domain and settled a
quarter of a million square miles Of
territory known as the Oregon cOun-
try of the northwest; took about
500 600 square miles of territory
in the west and southwest from Mex
leo; established themselves along a
thousand miles of the Pacific coast
and Overran the whole of the inter
vening region between the Pacific
and the Mississippi in an unparallel-
ed series of overland %migratiOns.
Two million square miles of terri
tory were penetrated and occupied
as a result of these overland hegiTas
between 1910 and 1850. Both the
travel movement and the area
affected by it were, in respect of size
the most extensive and largest in
volved in any similar movement re-
corded within a like interval of hU.
MAI history.
The economic and political history
of the world has been, and is destined
to be, more deeply influenced by
these overland travel-surges than by
an other similar movements which
have taken place elsewhere. Among
existing conditions due, either di
rectly or indirectly to the American
peoples sudden occupation of the re
gion between the Mississippi and tn,
Pacific, are, vast addition to thu
worlds stock of gold, the new i'm
p~Ortance of the Pacific ocean anC
bordering countries in the worlds af
fairs, the political expansion of tn,
United States. the increase to thi
country of immigration from all 9th
err lands. a swifter industrial and eco
nOmic development of this nation
it's evolution as a world power, tn.
creation Of the Panama canal am
the ~far-reaching effect of all thes
things upon the affairs of mankind
The men who travelled up the Mis-
souri, river in keel boats and steam
boats, breaking the trail for the pic
neers who followed by boat and wit
Ox-trains, can be seen by us in tw
characters. In n sense, they ar
seen as men and m like OuI
selves, engaged in a long and ted
Gus journey undertaken for persona
reasons of n kind and another an
hopeful of improving their condition
In a broader sense, they do not seer
as individuals, but as a strange an
colossal spectacle moving IN
to a world impulse which summOne
them to play a mighty part in the a.
fairs of men-and left them ignOrar
of what they had done. just Is mos
of US are ignorant of what we co
lectively are doing today.
The First Steam Craft
The first steam craft that appeare
on the waters of the Missouri Wa
the Western Engineer, built at Pitt
burg for Major Stephen H. Lon
for use on his expedition to tt