The Fort Peck press., 1935-10-31
TETON SUN RIVER
VALLEYS OF '7OS
FIRST STOCKMEN OF EARLY SEW
ENTITIES WERE HORSE BREEDERS;
SHEEPMEN CAME LATER
By AL WILKINS

by al VILLAINS
The first StOckmen of the early '7O'S
were horse breeders. At that time
northwest Montana had plenty of
native buffalo, which furnished meat
and clothing to- both Indians and
whites. The range in midsummer,
in those days, was beautiful to look
on. As far as eye could see, the table
and and mountain slopes reSembIed
a waving field of ripening grain, with
the red tops of the %luXuriant buffalo
grass swaying in the wind. Such
range conditions could not escape the
attention of men interested in the
stock industry.
The country was sparsely settled
Most of the inhabitants were hide
hunters. Thousands of buffalo were
slaughtered for their hides, which were
sold for one, one-fifty, or two dollars
apiece. The flesh was poisoned for wolf
bait, and left on the range to rot. At
this rate of slaughter the noble mon
archs of the plains became extinct.
Their disappearance was the OppOr-
tunity for horses, cattle and sheep, as
fast as the Indians could be Subdued
and the land made safe for the white
man and his domestic animals.
New settlers drifted into the Marias,
Teton and Sun river valleys. Horsemen
came first, then the cattle men, then
the sheep men. The coming of each
was resented by his predecessors. For a
few years each settler claimed certain
range on certain creeks, insuring to
himself good range and water. For a
few years these claims held good, and
the mans prestige and priority were
respected. Before long stock, multiply
ing, required more range. More stock
men located their ranches in the val
leys. Homesteaders began to take up
land claimed as range by the stock
men, and then trouble began. Cattle
men saw their doom if the settlers
could homestead and fence their range.
In some cases hOmesteaders or new set
tiers were shot to death or hung on the
pretext that they were cattle rustlers.
All means, fair and foul, were resort
ed to by large cattle kings to hold the
range. -.
Horse growers seemed to remain
neutral in this warfare over range; but
there was no amity between cattle men
and sheep men. Sheep growers kept
mostly to the hilly regions, best adapt
ed to their use. For years they tried
to locate their flocks in remote parts of
the territory to avoid contact with
hostile cattle interests, and to keep clear
of their range. AS the country settled
up and more persons availed them
selves of the free open range, the sheep
men were crowded lower and lower IN
to the valley, inevitably coming into
conflict with cattle men who claimed
the land. A real state of war existed,
and bloodshed was frequent.
The coWman was usually the agrees
sor in these clashes; and often he was
in the right. The sheepmen too often
showed no respect for the cattle mans
once he got strong enough to
oppose them. And when the woolieS
got too close to the wrong range, the
herder was likely to smell powder
burning and feel the sting of a chunk
of lead.
This was the early day way of set
thing bitter disputes, but usually things
were not carried to this extreme. AS
range became overstocked, the tension
grew acute.
By 1875, many persons were n the
stock business ON upper Sun river and
on the Teton. Among them were
Charles RECTOR and George Hunt, who
brought in $500 head of sheep and To-
on the Teton Is miles above Fort
Benton. A few stockmen were there,
and they didn't like the idea of sheep
in any too well. Nevertheless,
sheepmen were allowed to remain
until 1880. By this time a lot OF
big COW outfits were on Sun river, the
Teton and Marias rivers. Sheep out
also had crowded in. It is 35 miles
the Teton to the Marias river,
md the country between con-
of rolling hills well covered with
grass. 1t made fine range for
any kind of stock.
Halfway between the Teton and Sun
rivers was a string of lakes called
Grassy lakes. At these the cattlemen of
he Teton and Sun rivers built great
corrals where they could
handle cattle by the thousands. The
main corral would hold 5000 cattle,
With cutout and branding corrals all
md Sun river roundups met. 1t was
he seen of much activity. The real
belonged here, and could be
cen as he was in his prime, with long :.
oWboy boots, spurs, chaps, and StetSon
lat. There we're no gaudy silk stream /,
RS hanging to the backs of their neckS, /!
'ut each cowboy had a red bandana
handkerchief which he used to blind /:
old his bronze while saddling, or when !
on or off-although sometimes
he cowboy was unloaded without the .
ormality of a blindfold. Here was
he real puncher in full bloom! !
LII OllC ldll VI IOOO, oCOlS sc LULU III r
he firm of Rictor and Hunt, sheepmen
f the Teton, was found dead on the
1rasSy Lake range. He had been shot. !
short distance away lay his horse, /
lso shot dead. 1t was assumed that :
heep men had been looking for more
in the cattle mems territory. The ;
pisode ended the sheep company of .
,ictor and Hunt. Sheep and home 1
anch were sold, and Rictor quit the :
usiness. This is but n characteristic :
lcident of the cattle mems and sheep 1
lens warfare of that period. !:
In the spring of '85, my father and I !
Did our stock ranches on the Teton 4
yer to a man named Donald Bell. He :
a sheep man, and said he intend l
4 to stock the range with sheep. We 4
dvised against it, but he had Scotch |.
perseverance, and brought his sheep in. I
held them on that range till the +
ext spring. One day Bell took the 7
lace of one of his herders, who was Z
ok. He went out on the range with .
is band. That night Bell failed to y