Fort Musselshell
Fort Musselshell was located on the Missouri River about 35 miles north of here. It was a trading post in the ’60s and ’70s and as such had a brief but colorful career. The only whites in that part of the state were woodchoppers for the Missouri River steamboats, wolfers, trappers and Indian trappers.
The River Crows and Gros Ventre Indians traded there. A buffalo robe brought them 3 cups of coffee, or 6 cups of sugar, or 10 cups of flour. It was a tolerably profitable business from the traders standpoint.
The Assiniboine and Sioux regarded this post as an amusement center where bands of ambitious braves could lie in ambush and get target practice on careless whites. Musselshell became a cattle rustlers hangout but after a Vigilance Committee stretched a few of them they seemed to lose interest.
Marker is on Route 200 1.4 miles east of Garfield/Petroleum County line (Montana Route 200), on the left when traveling east.
Courtesy hmdb.org
