Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1942-09-11
PIERRE WBAUX
WAS OLD VESTS
TOP CATTLE MAN
HIS VAST HERD ONCE NUMBERED
6o.ooo HEAD; CAME AFTER
HARD WINTER

which today has a population of
about 625 persons, was known sue
cessively as Keith, Mcclellan and
Mingusville, before Pierre Wibaux
came over from France to become the
Largest cattle rancher in the world"
and so influential in the area that
both the county seat and county
eventually adopted the name of Wi
baux.
Early residents give the Frenchman
credit for establishing Wibaux' repu-
tation as one of the VESTS great cattle
countries in the nineties. The area still
Is prominent in livestock raising, but
crop production today holds a slight
edge in importance.
The third smallest county in the
state, Wibaux for years held the repu-
tation of having the largest percentage
of acres under cultivation. The ener-
getic Frenchman wouldn't recognize
the area which today bears his name.
When Wibaux was making his mark
as cattle king from 1887 to 1900
the plains and hills were dotted with
well-fed steers, cows and calves. Now
these same flats and hills have gone
under the pillow and are producing
abundant crops of wheat, corn, alfalfa,
flax, barley, beans, rye, sweet clover
and garden vegetables.
Came in 1883
Pierre Wibaux was one of the most
colorful figures to ever enter the area
comprising eastern Montana. He came
in 1883 and engaged in ranching, but
the venture did not prove profitable
and at the end of three years, he
returned to France. The call of the
COW country proved too strong to the
wealthy young son of France, however,
and in the spring of 1887 he returned
with his bride. But it was disap-
pointing sight he saw when he got
there. The winter that had just passed
was one of the most severe in the
history of the country and approxi-
mately IS percent of the cattle had
persisted.
Undisturbed by these facts, Wibaux
bought the remnants of some OF the
large herds that had survived the win
ter and later purchased more cattle
from herds trailed into the state. He
had plenty of money and kept buying
until at one time his herd numbered
10000 head. He enlarged the original
W-Bar ranch, II miles north of WI
baux. built a dwelling house, house
for the ranch foreman, clubhouse for
the 20 cowboys he employed, and
dwelling for the servants he had
brought over from France. In addition
he built up another ranch 60 miles
north of W;baux and had several line
cabins 40 miles apart along the yell
lowstone river. He also had a camp
at which he stationed a wolfer with
about 100 dogs. The dogs were kept
in Enclosures and packs Of them ran
on alternate days.
The W-Bar cattle ranged from the
Little Missouri river west to the yell
lowstone and from the Northern Pa
cific railway north to the big Missouri.
The spring roundup lasted three
months and as many as 10000 calves
were branded in one season.
Pierre Wibaux continued to run his
cattle until 1900 when settlers began
to come in such number that ranch
ing on a large scale was no longer
feasible. He disposed of his ranching
interests and engaged in the banking
business in Miles City and was inter-
ested in mining property III the Black
Hills. Before his death in 1913, Wi
baux requested that he be buried at
Wibaux and today his likeness, cast
in bronze and over nine feet tall, sur
mounts a granite slab above his tomb.
He stands gazing out over the land
which he loved and which still bears
his name.
Different Story Today
That was the Wibaux county of yes
terday. Today it's a different story.
The population is 2,161 and the ma
jority of the people are engaged in
crop production. WibauX has become
known as the Gateway county OF
Montana for through it the Northern
Pacific railway and U. S. highway 10
enter the state.
Wibaux has surmounted many OBJ
stacles in its growth since the early
cattle days. In recent years drouth
and flood have taken heavy toll.
The most spectacular catastrophe 10
visit this area was the great flood OF
June, 1929, which caused the death
of three persons and a large financial
loss. The water rushed through town
with a tremendous force, carrying
buildings and livestock for miles to
the Little Missouri. The water reached
a depth of 10 to IL feet in some
places anu 20 UuoulCoo AiouoSo "SAS
flooded. The viaduct under the North
ern Pacific tracks was washed out, the
bridge just east of the depot was car
ried away and debris was piled three
and four feet deep in homes and
buildings when the water at last re-
coded. Some persons took refuge In
trees and remained on their precarious
perches for as long as IL hours before
being rescued.
Scenic attractions of the more YER
dant variety as supplied by western
Montana are lacking in this area, but
the picturesque bad lands lie not far
away and the Airdrome picnic grounds
on the banks of Beaver creek three
miles north of town are an attraction
for eastern Montana and western
North Dakota residents.
Ignite Is Produced
While farming and ranching pro-
vide most of the income for county
residents, many coal veins produce
enough Ignite coal to furnish most OF
the fuel for the county.
One of the first soil conservation