The first people to inhabit what is now Montana were the American Indians, or Native Americans as they are often called, and they had been around for some time before anyone else showed up interested in the land. Whether they knew that there were other people in the world who might want to live there someday can be speculated on, but it's really not known. Just like in other states, the Native Americans in Montana hunted, fished, raised families, and grew crops as well as participating in other activities in their daily lives. There were different groups, but they all had their own land that they stayed on.
Since there was a large amount of space available, most tribes were able to get along with one another, if only because they didn't see each other that much. The Blackfeet, the Crow, and the Cheyenne were just some of the tribes that made that area their home for a number of years. Some kept to themselves because they were smaller, and others were large and influential, trading with other tribes and occasionally just taking what they wanted. Smaller tribes mostly focused on simply staying clear of the larger tribes.
The part of Montana east of the continental divide was included with the Louisiana Purchase back in 1803. At that time, it was very easy to buy huge swathes of land for what was thought to be very little money. Land wasn't worth that much then, because there weren't any other people trying to get it. No one saw the importance of buying land for resale or for having a lot of land so that they would have something of value later.
Things started to change with the Louisiana Purchase, and people begin to discover the different climates in the new world and how much land was really out there. Some areas of land also had a lot of minerals in them, and that increased their value relative to other areas. Lewis and Clark explored the country and there was gold found in Montana, so in the 1860s Montana was made into a United States Territory. There were other areas that started becoming states, but Montana waited a while.
In the latter part of the 1880s Montana did become a state, and it was the 41st one in the union. Soon army installations like Fort Shaw, as well as other construction projects, were started. The Civil War used Fort Shaw as a valuable base of operations for some of the men. A hospital was there, as well as a parade grounds, stores, a barracks, and other things that the men needed to get by.
There were still vast areas where nothing had been built, so places like Fort Shaw had to be generally self-sufficient so that they could operate and be effective. Fort Shaw became obsolete, was no longer needed, and eventually closed in 1891. After closing down as a military installation it was decided that Fort Shaw would be used as a school. The alternatives were to allow it to decay or to tear it down, both of which seemed to be wasteful, so the school idea was a great alternative.
Industrial training was provided for American Indian youths in the new school. When it opened it used more than 20 of the original army buildings, and there were over 300 students in attendance. Another thing that really affected the people living in Montana was the revision of the Homestead Act in the early 1900s. The Homestead Act of 1862 had provided for the homesteading of a piece of land up to 160 acres, but this new revision increased that to 320 acres.
President Taft made it law and in 1908 there was another homesteading change when the Sun River Irrigation Project was opened up to homesteaders. Located west of Great Falls, that area allowed people to claim 40 acres to use as their homestead but they had to remain there a certain length of time and couldn't even leave very long for travel or vacation. Young couples from the Midwest who wanted to live near the mountains were the most common site there and they hunted and fished and raised their families. Custer's Last Stand was also there.
The Nez Perce Wars are part of Montana's history, too. Most of that history means cattle ranching, which is still popular today. It has grown a lot, and the cattle ranching and Native American influence make it popular with residents and tourists.
Since there was a large amount of space available, most tribes were able to get along with one another, if only because they didn't see each other that much. The Blackfeet, the Crow, and the Cheyenne were just some of the tribes that made that area their home for a number of years. Some kept to themselves because they were smaller, and others were large and influential, trading with other tribes and occasionally just taking what they wanted. Smaller tribes mostly focused on simply staying clear of the larger tribes.
The part of Montana east of the continental divide was included with the Louisiana Purchase back in 1803. At that time, it was very easy to buy huge swathes of land for what was thought to be very little money. Land wasn't worth that much then, because there weren't any other people trying to get it. No one saw the importance of buying land for resale or for having a lot of land so that they would have something of value later.
Things started to change with the Louisiana Purchase, and people begin to discover the different climates in the new world and how much land was really out there. Some areas of land also had a lot of minerals in them, and that increased their value relative to other areas. Lewis and Clark explored the country and there was gold found in Montana, so in the 1860s Montana was made into a United States Territory. There were other areas that started becoming states, but Montana waited a while.
In the latter part of the 1880s Montana did become a state, and it was the 41st one in the union. Soon army installations like Fort Shaw, as well as other construction projects, were started. The Civil War used Fort Shaw as a valuable base of operations for some of the men. A hospital was there, as well as a parade grounds, stores, a barracks, and other things that the men needed to get by.
There were still vast areas where nothing had been built, so places like Fort Shaw had to be generally self-sufficient so that they could operate and be effective. Fort Shaw became obsolete, was no longer needed, and eventually closed in 1891. After closing down as a military installation it was decided that Fort Shaw would be used as a school. The alternatives were to allow it to decay or to tear it down, both of which seemed to be wasteful, so the school idea was a great alternative.
Industrial training was provided for American Indian youths in the new school. When it opened it used more than 20 of the original army buildings, and there were over 300 students in attendance. Another thing that really affected the people living in Montana was the revision of the Homestead Act in the early 1900s. The Homestead Act of 1862 had provided for the homesteading of a piece of land up to 160 acres, but this new revision increased that to 320 acres.
President Taft made it law and in 1908 there was another homesteading change when the Sun River Irrigation Project was opened up to homesteaders. Located west of Great Falls, that area allowed people to claim 40 acres to use as their homestead but they had to remain there a certain length of time and couldn't even leave very long for travel or vacation. Young couples from the Midwest who wanted to live near the mountains were the most common site there and they hunted and fished and raised their families. Custer's Last Stand was also there.
The Nez Perce Wars are part of Montana's history, too. Most of that history means cattle ranching, which is still popular today. It has grown a lot, and the cattle ranching and Native American influence make it popular with residents and tourists.
No comments:
Post a Comment