Uncover the History of Montana's Yellowstone Country
Museum of the Rockies, Bozeman, Photo Courtesy, Wanderlust
The history of Montana’s Yellowstone Country is full of First Peoples, pioneers, miners, trappers and explorers. Those who created homes and set up shops in the middle of a vast and varied landscape with long, cold winters and a short growing season. Their tenacity was impressive, to say the least.
Today, Montana enjoys the same modern conveniences as the rest of the world (no, we do not still commute via horse and buggy), but evidence of our history has been preserved and across the region our museums and historical tours tell the stories of how the West was settled.
The West Yellowstone Historic Walking Tour, a self-guided experience, takes you through 21 site locations along the Oregon Short Line Historic District, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. Here, you’ll find structures built when the railroad connected to Yellowstone National Park from the West, including the Depot and Buggy House.
In Big Sky, the Historic Crail Ranch offers guided tours and self-guided explorations, illustrating the working life of a ranch ranging from 1910 through the 1950s. After the 1890s Homestead Act and Land Revision Act, ranchers began building cabins and staking out 160-acre homesites. Augustus Franklin Crail purchased this homestead for $150 in 1901, and its structures stand to preserve and educate others about this moment in time.
Museum of the Rockies, Bozeman, Photo courtesy, Wanderlust
Bozeman’s Extreme History Project brings seasonal, rotating tours centered around some of the more entertaining stories of Bozeman: “Madams and Mediums: Bozeman’s Dark Side,” “Tents to Town: Bozeman’s Main Street,” “Ghosts of Bozeman’s Past: Bozeman’s Sunset Hills Cemetery,” and “Illuminating the Shadowed World of Bozeman’s Historic Red-Light District.” Also in Bozeman, the Gallatin History Museum offers private group tours of the exhibits and collections housed in what was the old jail, complete with the hanging gallows. Youth tours, and self-guided tour maps of the historic areas are also available.
The Crazy Mountain Museum in Big Timber is part of the Lewis and Clark Trail, and features a replica Norwegian stabbur, a tipi, a one room Sourdough schoolhouse and a Fjare homestead cabin. Visitors can enjoy the acclaimed Lewis and Clark gardens containing plants that Clark named in his journals as he passed through this area in 1806. The garden was planted in 2006 as part of the Lewis and Clark Expedition Commemorative Celebration and is now one of two left in Montana.
Carbon County Historical Society Museum, Red Lodge, Montana
And finally, in Red Lodge, their self-guided adventures include the Historic Walking Tour (be sure to stop in the lobby of The Pollard for some great relics), day-driving adventures and, of course, the Beartooth Scenic Byway, which is a must-do!
Don’t hesitate to visit any of our tourism partners, Visitor Information Centers, or Chambers of Commerce, the staff will gladly give you more information!
Happy history hunting!