Early Cattle History

The following excerpts are from the daily journal of Granville and James Stuart, early pioneers in the Deer Lodge valley. It was originally published under the title Forty Years On The Frontier As Seen in The Journals and Reminiscences of Granville Stuart, Goldminer, Trader, Merchant, Rancher, and Politician. Arthur H. Clark Co.

In 1850 Capt. Richard Grant with his sons, John and James Grant, began trading along the Emigrant road in Utah for footsore and worn-out cattle and horses. This stock was usually of good quality and only needed rest and a little care to make them fine animals.

The Grants spent the summers along the Emigrant road between Bridger and Salt Lake, and in the fall drove their stock up into what is now Montana.

In 1856 Robert Dempsey, John M. Jacobs, Robert Hereford, and Jacob Meek began trading along the Emigrant road and drove six hundred head of cattle and horses up into Montana and they, together with the Grants, wintered on the Stinkingwater.

When we came to Montana in 1858 the Grants and Jacobs had herds of several hundred cattle and horses. These cattle fattened on the native grasses, without shelter other than that afforded by the willows, alders, and tall rye grass along the streams. In the spring they were fat and fit for beef and were driven back to the Emigrant road and traded for more footsore and worn-out animals which in turn were driven back to winter range in Montana, the favorite places being the Beaverhead, Stinkingwater, and Deer Lodge valleys.

In the fall of 1860 we drove in sixty head of cattle and Robert Hereford brought in seventy-five head from the Emigrant road. At this time there was a small herd at St. Ignatius, a few at Fort Owen, and about two hundred head in and near Fort Benton. These herds all Increased rapidly and when gold was struck at Alder gulch every emigrant train brought in a few cattle, ranches were established and by 1863 cattle growing had become an industry of considerable importance.

Nelson Storey of Bozeman drove the first herd of Texas cattle into Montana in the spring of 1866. Storey purchased six hundred head of cattle at Dallas, Texas, and started north with them, arriving in the Gallatin valley on December 3, and camped where Fort Ellis was later located.

In 1878 D. S. G. Floweree purchased one thousand head of stock cattle in Oregon and placed them on the Sun river range and then began the stocking of ranges on a large scale.

The first beef cattle driven out of Montana was a small herd belonging to D. J. Hagan of Sun river. Hagan sold them to Omstein and Popper and delivered them at Salt Lake City In the fall of 1866. That same fall Jerry Mann drove one hundred and thirty head of steers and fat dry cows to Ogden and sold them.

In May, 1874, James Forbis purchased three hundred head of fat beef steers from Conrad Kohrs and drove them to Ogden and from there shipped them to Omaha by rail. Later In the summer Allen drove five hundred choice steers from the Madison valley to Granger on the Union Pacific and shipped them by rail to Chicago. In the summer of 1876 Kohrs drove three hundred head of choice steers to Cheyenne, Wyoming and shipped them to Davenport, Iowa.

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