Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1941-11-15

went from there by way of the Mus.
selsheu to the Yellowstone and Wine
river valleys. For so years after thi'
we hear no more of any party having
visited this region until the expedi-
ton of Lewis and Clark in 1804-180f
brought it again into notice This was
followed by the trapping and trading
expedition sent out by the Missouri
Fur Co. in 1903, and this again by
Astor's parties in 1909, 1910 and 1911
First Building in Montana
1t is probable that the first build
ing erected within the limits of what
is now Montana was Lisa's fort, built
by Emanuel Lisa, on the Yellowstone
just below the mouth of the Big
Horn river, in 1909 or 1910. The next
was a post built by General Ashley
on the lower Yellowstone In 1922. In
1882, Alexander Culbertson built Fort
Union on the Missouri about five
miles above its, junction with the yell
lowstone. Subsequently, other trading
posts were established on both rivers,
eliminating in the building by Gull
bertson Of Fort Benton in 1886
During all this time large bands Of
trappers roved all over the Rocky
mountain region; some were outfitted
and employed by the forts on the
Missouri and Yellowstone, and others
who sought to contest this rich field
with them came by way of the Platte
and Green rivers under the Sublettes
and Bridger. The Hudson's Bay Co.
also entered into the contest with the
American companies and from their
old established posts on the Assinni-
boine, Saskatchewan and Columbia
rivers, pushed trading posts into the
region now embraced in Montana and
Idaho, the most southern of their es
adjustments being Fort Hall, on the
Snake river
The rivalry between all these COM
panies was very great and many were
the rough tricks they played upon one
another, which at times almost re-
suited in bloodshed. About 1846-1847
the beaver, owing to the inceSsant
trapping of so many companies, be-
came so scarce as to no longer pay
the trapper for the hardships and
dangers encountered in the wilderness,
and nearly all the rowing bands aban-
doned the country. Many of the forts
were also dismantled, and thus the
relaxed into it's primeval state
of barbarism, from which it was
aroused some is years later by the
discovery Of the a1l-potent civilizer,
gold, which soon brought in a perma-
nent population which the fur trade
could never do, as numbers were
in that particular pursuit.
Discovery of Gold
AS the discovery of gold was the
cause of our territory being created,
it is proper to give a brief sketch
Of that, to us, important event; in
1852 a Scotch half-breed from the
Red River of the North named Fran
co.'s Finley, but who was known
among his associates by the name of
'Benetsee," and who had just returned |
from California to the Rocky noun !
5ains, began to prospect on what is
now Gold creek, in Deer Lodge county, |
and found light, float gold; but as
MS prospecting was necessarily of a /
very superficial character, he found |
40 mines that would pay. The fact |
If gold being found there, however, |
noised about among the few |
still in the country, and |
n the spring of 1856 a party, among |
whom were Robert Hereford, late of /
Helena; John Saunders, called Long |
John," (who could throw stone with ,
almost the force and precision Of a
'if1e BALD; Bill Madison, and one or
wo others who were passing Benetsee /
.reek on their way to salt Lake from /
he Bitter Root valley, where they had /
ipent the winter trading with the In
lians and prospecting q little, found |
more gold than had been obtained by
Finley. One piece weighed about 10 |
,ents and they gave 1t to old Captain
Srant, who used to show it up to the
line of his death in 1862, as the first
,iece Of gold found In the country.
The matter rested here until the
pring of 1858, when Thomas Adams,
2eece Anderson and my brother,
tames, and myself searched for gold
n that vicinity and found as high
S 10 cents TO the pan Of gravel, but
S we had neither provisions (they
we're living on Wild meat straight,
Without salt), nor tools, we could not
ccomplish anything, more especially
S the Blackfeet stole four Of our
orses and so harassed us that we
bsndoned the country for a time,
stunning, however, tn the fall Of 1850
lrm in the faith that this was a rich
old country.
In the meantime, during the summer
I 1850 mining enthusiast by the
anne Of Henry Thomas (out who, as
BON as his peculiarities became
nown, was designated Gold Tom" by
hich he ever afterwards WENT, came
D by the way OF the Pend d'Oreille
Ike and began TO prospect on Benet- I
% creek about enc mile west Of where j