Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1941-04-11
Medicine Wheel Mountain Erected Before Indians Lived in
Montana; Mystery Hints Early Civilization Treasure State

S. c. Simms Of the Field Co.
lumbar museum was told Of the
existence q . medicine wheel" on
the summit q . mountain called
Medicine mountain," situated just
across the Mont n a-Wyoming
boundary line, In the Big Horn
range OF mountains in the latter
state In August, 1902.
OF 1t he wrote:
although I made many inquiries OF
the old men Of the Grow tribe regard
ing the medicine wheel and its sig
nificance. I found not one who had
ever visited 1t. A few Of them had
heard of it through their fathers but
could tell me nothing whatever OF II
excepting that 1T was made by people
who had no iron.' At different times
I CHANGED to meet with two Sioux In
dams who were visiting the Crows
and they also were asked about the
wheel. After inspecting the diagram
OF it, which I had hastily drawn In
order 10 make clearer the questions
asked them through an able interpreter,
each OF the two Sioux drew a dia-
metrical line through the wheel and
pointing to one half. said. 'Arapaho,
and then pointing to the other half
that he had not seen the wheel nor
knew Of its location. but had heard
OF 1t some time ago.
Finds Medicine Wheef'
1.-THE information obtained up to this
time being too meager to warrant an
attempt on my part TO locate the So
called wheel or even Medicine noun
tain, had almost concluded to aban-
don hope of seeing the monument on
this visit. when I was approached by
a white man, known to the Indians
and the whites of the reservation as
'Silver-tip,' who had spent much OF
his life prospecting in the Crow coun-
try lin fact, he had been adopted when
a boy by Grow chief named Sorrel-
horse. and who informed me that as
he was thoroughly familiar with the
surrounding country he could tell ap-
proximately where the medicine wheel
was situated. I therefore engaged Mr..
Silver-tip to conduct me to 1t. We left
the Crow agency. accompanied by
men named Green and Reynolds, and
arrived at the base Of Medicine noun
tain after sunset Of the following Fri
day.
THE ascent of the mountain was
laborious and difficult. After climb
OF about five miles we came upon an
old. we'll worn trail on the north side
OF the height, which is almost perpen-
dicular, the north side is a steep in
cline.
Appearance of Wheel
THE summit of the mountain Is not
extensive in area. and it is irregular
In shape. Within the narrow limits OF
this eastern end we found the medi-
cine wheel as it had been described.
THE peculiar structure consists o!
q large number of limestone slabs and
boulders of various sizes. Directly in
the center. or at what may be termed
the hub. stands a circular structure
about three feet high, of the same
kind of stone. radiating from which
are q lines of stone leading to a well
formed perimeter. Around the outer
edge of this circular rim of the wheel
at irregular distances, are the remains
of seven smaller stone structures, all
Of which come in contact with the
perimeter except the most southerly
one which stands several feet away
although it is met by an extension OF
one of the spokes beyond the rim OF
the wheel Each of these smaller stone