Montana
History
Montana has a rich history full of interesting facts and different cultures. It all started years ago when Europeans and Native Americans arrived in Montana. The Lewis and Clark expedition was mostly located in this state. Montana became a state on November 8, 1889. Montana was affected greatly by the Great Depression and the World Wars. However, deal agencies helped provide work and supplies. This state has a different but unique history.
First People
Early Montanans lived in a unique way, a very different way than we do today. Around 12,000 years ago, people arrived in what is now Montana. Most probably came from Asia and entered this continent by The Northwest Passage. Living off of bison, mammoths, deer, elk, fish, and berries these Montanans figured out how to survive this new way of life. When people fell ill they would use plants to cure the illness. Montanans used animals bones and spears for weapons, caves or small houses made out of animal skin for shelter, and wood for fires. One of their main weapons was an atlatl, which is a stick with a cup at one end. Early Montanans were great travelers and amazing traders.
Unlike the Montanans, the Europeans came charging into the state of Montana. Arriving in the 1500s these people came in search of the Northwest Passage. They had been searching for this route since Christopher Columbus in 1492. When the Europeans entered Montana they forced what was left of the Native Americans out of the state into southern Canada. These Europeans were very gretty and unkind.
The Shoshone and Lakota tribes were a few of the major Native American tribes in Montana. The Shoshone Native Americans stormed into Montana from the south on horses that they had acquired from the Spaniards. Even though the Lakota tribe lived east of the state they still used Montana as a hunting ground. The Lakota and Shoshone tribes are not the only ones that settled in the state. In fact, Montana had over nine major tribes. Some of these tribes include the Blackfoot, Atsina, Crow, Assiniboine, Northern Cheyenne, Salish, and the Pend D’ Oreille Native Americans. Most of these people lived in tipis. The Native Americans made a big impact on Montana.
Explorers/Settlers
Not only did Montana have Native Americans but they had early explorers. A few of these explorers are Francois and Louis-Joseph. They may have advanced as far as Montana. They said they saw “shining mountains” to the west. Francois and Louis-Joseph ventured west in 1743 seeking to trade with Native people and find the Northwest Passage. British explorers also probed the nation as well as curious adventurers.
Normal explorers and settlers came to Montana but one big expedition traveled through the state. This big expedition is the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Sacajawea guided Lewis and Clark. They resumed their journey westward in the spring of 1805 after spending the winter in North Dakota. On April 26, the party entered today’s Montana. Lewis called the future state a paradise for its “immense herds” of game animals such as bison, elk, and deer. On June 13, 1805 he heard a roaring in the distance. Lewis had discovered the Great Falls of the Missouri. It was the most powerful waterfall he’d ever seen. Lewis and Clark followed orders and made friendly relations with Native American groups except the Blackfoot people. The expedition covered 8,000 miles most of which was in Montana.
The first people to settle in Montana were trappers and traders. They entered Montana seeking riches after Lewis and Clark. Made from beaver and otter fur, hats and scarves were sold for high prices in the eastern states. Fur was the Treasure State’s first treasure. Manual Lisa was one of the first fur traders that set out for Montana. Groups of trappers formed companies and built forts along Montana’s trading ports. In less than thirty years, beavers and otters had been dramatically reduced through trapping. Hunters next turned to bison. Fur trade also brought disease to Native Americans in Montana. There are different opinions on trappers and traders. I think they were bad because they killed wildlife.
The Progressive Era
The beginning of the 20th century is called the Progressive Era. It was a time when farmers and workers demanded their state governments help poor and working people. The Montana Legislature responded by passing a series of progressive laws. Some of Montana Progressive’s other victories are, limiting the workday to eight hours and regulating mines to make them safer. One of the major progressive issues of the early 1900’s was securing voting rights for women. In 1914, women won their right to vote in this state. Montana was one of the first states to give women the right to vote. Women were also making progress as officeholders. In 1916, Jeannette Rankin became the first Montanan woman to be elected to the US House of Representatives. Aren’t you proud of the victories that Montana accomplished? I know I am.
War and strife
World War I in 1914 affected Montana. The leading combatants were Germany and Austria-Hungary on one side and Great Britain and France on the other. The United States joined in when it declared war on Germany in 1917. Almost 40,000 Montanans served for military forces during the war. Sadly, 939 of these people died. The Montana Government passed laws that called for jail terms for anyone who spoke out against the war. The world was a cruel place during the war.
Montana had many inspirational leaders but there is one in particular. Frank Little was a labor leader who hoped to inspire Montana workers. Little was the industrial organizer for the Industrial Workers of the World War. The Industrial Workers of the World War is a labor union that argued that workers should rule the country. Frank Little was tough and fearless; he believed strongly in rights of workers and in the right of free speech for everyone. He spoke out against America’s entries into World War I during rallies. On August 1, 1917 men entered the house in which Little slept, dragged him out into the street, beat him severely, and hagged him. He had a note pinned to his body that said “Others take notice! First and last warning!”. World War I ended in 1918 and the Roaring Twenties began.
Farming Growth And trouble
The number of farms in Montana doubled between 1900 and 1910. Most farmers came from other states and settled in Montana on the Plains. Many earned free land through the federal government’s Homestead Act. A farmer willing to work the land for at least five years was given 160 acres and married couples inherited 320 acres. Other farmers bought land from the railroads for cheap prices. Most people that came were Americans however, many farmers were from different countries.
Everything was going well so far. In the early 1900s farmers were aided by ample rainfall and high wheat prices. But, these favorable conditions changed and farmers and their families were in disaster. The rains were adequate to grow crops but, in the east rain was scant. Farmers who watered their land through irrigation survived the dry period but, irrigation was expensive and not available to all. The prices for wheat and other food dropped in the 1920s. Most farmers in the east were forced to abandon their fields and move to better conditions in Washington and Oregon. The 1920s has been the only decade in which Montana has lost population.
Depression and war
The Great Depression affected everyone in the country. Factories closed, banks went out of business, and farmers could not sell their goods. The Depression hit in 1929. How did it affect Montana? Cheap copper flooded into the country from Africa and South Africa that caused thousands of miners in Montana to lose their jobs. Montana farms felt the double blow of falling prices and drought.
Deal agencies were built all over to help people. In Montana, a new deal built 7,239 miles of highways, 1,366 bridges, 301 school buildings, thirty public swimming pools, and ten ski jumps. Another deal agency provided work for young people and built many park facilities. The construction of Fort Peck Dam was the biggest New Deal project. Approximately, 10,500 people helped work on it. The Great Depression didn’t end until World War II began in Europe in 1939. More than 1,500 Montanans lost their lives during the war. World War II created a large military need for metals, coal, and other mine products.
The war affected a lot of people but how did it affect Montana? Well, it helped bring Montana’s mining industry back. The logging industry also expanded. Abundant rains helped farmers and crop prices rise. The war also caused massive shifts in the state’s population. Many Montanans left to take jobs in other states. They didn’t return even after the war ended in 1945. This was a depressing time for Montana.
The Mining Frontier
Although Montana had many major historical events, The Mining Frontier changed Montana a lot. Located near present-day Townsend, one of Montana’s early gold strikes were made in Confederate Gulch. It received its name in 1864 when four former Confederate soldiers found gold deposits in a streambed. The stream was so rich it was said a miner panning there could pick out $1,000 worth of gold in just one hour. Diamond City was a town that grew overnight and reached a population of 10,000 people. Often many fights broke out here due to anger from residents who fought in the Civil War.
During the territorial time there was a lot of violence and Bannack was the center of it. Unlike many towns, Bannack had a sheriff and a city government. The cold hearted sheriff was Henry Plummer. He was one of the worst criminals in the territory. Plummer came from the California goldfields where he was known as a criminal and a thief. He was handsome, well dressed, and gentlemanly; he used his charm to get elected. In 1864, a group of vigilantes arrested Henry Plummer and hanged him without a trial. They also gave trials and hanged several other members of Plummer's crew. Henry Plummer and the city of Bannack will always be remembered in Montana.
There were many results to the mining frontier and rules that the miners had to follow. When a miner/s found gold they had to register their claims at an office run by the territorial government. Claims were issued by the office meaning that no other miner was allowed to search for gold in that area. Some of the results of the mining frontier are more women and children arrived, churches and schools were built, and Montana’s mining camps changed. Also, people moved to Montana from many different places. The mining frontier was a grim period in Montana history; it was a time people lived in fear.
The Last Stand
Montana had many powerful groups of Plains Indians but the Lakota people were the most powerful group. They regarded the Black Hills in South Dakota as sacred land. In 1875, a gold strike brought hundreds of white prospectors to the Black Hills. This invasion violated a treaty the government had signed giving the Black Hills to the Lakota Nation for “as long as the rivers shall run and the grass shall grow.” Ignoring the treaty the government sent troops to protect prospectors in the Black Hills. This led to some trouble.
The Lakota people rallied behind their leader Sitting Bull because they were so furious over the betrayal. During a ritual, Sitting Bull had a vision, he saw white soldiers and their horses falling upside down into the Lakota Camp. After that, he led a large fighting force west into Montana Territory. He was joined by Crazy Horse and Cheyenne and Arapaho forces. The Seventh Cavalry Regiment rode into the Montana Territory under the command of Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer. On June 25, 1876, Custer’s scouts spotted the Lakota camp along the Little Bighorn River. Custer had only expected to clash with a few hundred Native Americans but, instead he ran into 2,500 to 5,000 forces. First, Custer divided his regiment into three groups. Next, he called for an immediate attack by the group he commanded. The troops led by Custer, retreated to a hillside where, Native Americans surrounded them; 225 men were killed. This ended the fighting force.
This force was definitely a major event in history. The battle of Little Bighorn came to be called Custer’s Last Stand. After the battle, US infantry and cavalry units began pursuing Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse. The Plains indians returned to the reservations and Sitting Bull fled to Canada. Never again would Native Americans in the USA assemble and fight US forces in a major battle.
The Railroad arrives
Montana needed a way for settlers to be brought into the state. How did they do this? The railroad is simply the answer. The first railroad to extend into this area is the Utah and Northern Railway. Work began in Utah but was stopped in 1871 because of a national economic crisis. It finally reached Butte in 1881. The second railway that was built in Montana is the Northern Pacific Railway. It would run through the center of the state. The aim of building this railway was to link Seattle to Chicago. The railway arrived in 1883 in the town of Gold Creek. Montana now had a railroad running the length of the state. Goods and settlers could now be brought into towns such as Missoula, Bozeman, and Helena.
Montana now had two major railroads but one more was going to be built. Construction began on the Great Northern Railway in April 1887. It was designed to run along the northern border of Canada and bring Montana’s mines east. James Hill was the director of the Great Northern. Hill was a canadian by birth and an aggressive businessman. He was nicknamed Empire Builder for his ability to transform lands by building railroads. While building the railroad he ran into a problem; many of the land he would be building on was land that was promised to the Native Americans. He finally convinced Congress to strip the land from The Native Americans and grant it to his railroad. The Great Northern Railway was open for business in 1893.
As the railroads were being built in Montana more people moved into the territory. The population increased five-fold between the years 1880 to 1890 because of railroad development. This changed the area tremendously. Soon this territory would become a state- MONTANA.
Executive
One of the branches of the government is the executive branch. Each Lieutenant governor has a four year term and can be re elected any number of times. However, they may not seek re election for the same office if they have already served for eight years in a sixteen year period. The governor has many powers of appointment involving key officials in executive departments and many state institutions. They have strong veto powers over legislation. The attorney general, auditor, secretary of state, and superintendent of public instruction are elected to four year terms. They follow the same term limits as the governor and lieutenant governor. The current governor is Steve Bullock.
Legislative
Another branch of the government is the legislative branch. The Legislature consists of a fifty member senate and a one-hundred member House of Representatives. Each of the senatorial districts in Montana elects one senator, who serves a four year term and may serve no more than two terms in sixteen years. Each of the one hundred representative districts in the state elects one representative, who serves a two year term and may serve no more than four terms in sixteen years.
Courts
There are four different courts. The State Supreme Court is the highest in-state court. It consists of six associate justices and one chief justice. Elected by the voters of eight year terms are the Justices of the Supreme Court. District courts are the trial courts for major civil and criminal cases. District judges are elected to six year terms from each of the twenty-two judicial districts. The municipal courts and Justice of peace courts handle less serious cases.
Local Government
Many of Montana cities and towns have a mayor-council government which is part of the local government. Several other cities in Montana use the commission- manager system. Some of these cities include Bozeman, Great Falls, and Helena. Fifty-six counties elect county commissioners to govern the country.
State Flag
Adopted in 1905, Montana’s flag has a dark blue background. The state seal is located in the center of the flag. MONTANA is spelled out in yellow block letters above the state seal. This word was not added to the flag until 1981.
SState Seal
Montana’s seal has mountains, a river, a field of grass with trees and some digging tools. The sun is rising behind the mountains. It also looks like people have been digging up some of the ground using a plow. The miner’s pick and shovel represent important resources in the state. A long blue river is running between all of the mountain ranges. The Rocky Mountains are located on the left side of the state. On the right side, one will see the Great Falls on the Missouri River. There are all kinds of different colors which makes it exciting to look at. On the outer border of the seal, there are words that spell out THE GREAT SEAL OF THE STATE OF MONTANA. Ore y Planta means gold and silver and is on the bottom of the seal. The outer border background is bronze with a gray and black outline. Montana’s seal was adopted in 1889 when Montana became a state.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Montana had early explorers and settlers who lived a lot different way than we do today. Trappers and traders came into the state ready to begin their journey. Montana’s government has four branches that are still active today. Surprisingly, the treasure state only lost population in one decade. Learning about Montana’s history makes people more interested in the state and may even want to take a visit!