Wolf Point in Roosevelt County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)

Wolf Point

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 16, 2019

1. Wolf Point Marker

Inscription. The Lewis and Clark Expedition passed by here, westward bound, in May, 1805. Fur trappers and traders followed them a few years later. Steamboats began making it from St. Louis up the Missouri as far as Fort Benton in the early 1860s. Wolf Point was the halfway point between Bismarck and Fort Benton. Wood choppers supplied cord wood for boats stopping to refuel. The American Fur Company packet Chippewa blew up and sank not far from here in 1861. A deck hand tapped a barrel of alcohol by candle light. The fumes, the candle and 25 kegs of black powder did the rest. Fortunately, no lives were lost in the disaster.
Wolf Point originated as a sub-agency and trading post for the Fort Peck Reservation in 1879. The place was named when trappers killed several hundred wolves one winter and stacked their frozen carcasses next to the river, where they were observed by men heading upriver on a steamboat. The name Wolf Point stuck and no one there has been bothered by a wolf a the door since then.

Erected by Montana Department of Transportation.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Animals •

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Disasters • Exploration • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical month for this entry is May 1805.

Location. 48° 5.576′ N, 105° 38.652′ W. Marker is in Wolf Point, Montana, in Roosevelt County. It is at the intersection of U.S. 2 and Blaine Street, on the right when traveling east on U.S. 2. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 430 U.S Highway 2, Wolf Point MT 59201, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Montana’s Fort Peck Indian Reservation

and in Missouri River Country.

It is also in the American Mountain West,

in the Lewis & Clark Corridor,

on the prairies,

on the Great Plains,

and specifically on the Northern Plains.

Globally, it is in North America,

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 3 other markers are within 10 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Lewis and Clark Bridge and Interpretive Site (approx. 5½ miles away); The Wolf Point Bridge (approx. 5½ miles away); The Homestead Acre

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 16, 2019

2. Wolf Point Marker

(approx. 10 miles away).

More about this marker. This marker is located in Triangle Park.

Credits. This page was last revised on November 26, 2019. It was originally submitted on November 26, 2019, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 712 times since then and 92 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on November 26, 2019, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.