Near Dillon in Beaverhead County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)

Bannack

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, May 12, 2018

1. Bannack Marker

Inscription. Montana's first gold rush began near here at Grasshopper Creek in the summer of 1862. Prospectors John White and company camped along the insect infested banks as they looked for a shortcut to the Deer Lodge valley. They panned the gravel - as was their habit - and found color, touching off Montana's first gold rush. Miners swarmed to the new placers and a rip-roaring new settlement called Bannack quickly sprang up. The Civil War divided the town into Jeff Davis Gulch and Yankee Flats. By fall its population was 500, eventually rising to 5,000. Upon creation of Montana Territory in 1864, Governor Sidney Edgerton designated Bannack the temporary capital and called the first legislature there in December. But gold discoveries at Alder Gulch stole Bannack's fickle residents and the territorial capital moved to Virginia City. Bannack was the scene of several vigilante hangings in 1864, including that of its infamous sheriff, Henry Plummer. It was the Beaverhead County seat until 1881 when few people remained. Those who did mined for gold with different methods until 1954 when the state of Montana acquired most of the town.

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It became a state park, earning status as a National Historic Landmark in 1961.

Erected by Montana Department of Transportation.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Settlements & Settlers.

Location. 45° 7.536′ N, 112° 44.826′ W. Marker is near Dillon, Montana, in Beaverhead County. It is on Interstate 15 at milepost 55 near Rebich Lane, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Dillon MT 59725, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in andspecifically outhwest Montana, in Gold West Country, in Mining Country. It is also in the American Mountain West

and in the Lewis & Clark Corridor.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Rocky Mountains,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land

and also the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 9 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Old Trail to the Gold Diggin's (a few steps from this marker);

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, May 12, 2018

2. Bannack Marker

Marker on the left

"…we called them the rattle snake clifts" (approx. 0.4 miles away); Entering the Beaverhead River Canyon (approx. 0.4 miles away); Beaverhead Canyon Gateway (approx. 0.4 miles away); Martin Barrett House (approx. 7.8 miles away); U.S. Post Office — Dillon Main (approx. 8.2 miles away); Medicine Tree (approx. 8.2 miles away); Hotel Andrus (approx. 8.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Dillon.

More about this marker. This marker is located at a roadside pullout on Southbound Interstate 25, south of the Rebich Lane exit.

Additional keywords. gold rush

Bannack circa 1900 image. Click for full size.

Montana Historical Society

3. Bannack circa 1900

Credits. This page was last revised on November 1, 2018. It was originally submitted on October 6, 2018, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 1,460 times since then and 153 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on October 6, 2018, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.