Near Shelby in Toole County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)

The Baker Massacre

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 22, 2020

1. The Baker Massacre Marker

Inscription. On January, 23, 1870, soldiers commanded by Colonel Eugene Baker killed 173 Blackfeet Indians in a surprise attack on Heavy Runner's camp near here on the Marias 1869. A man of peace, Heavy Runner had no quarrel with the US Army. His people did not participate in Clarke's killing nor were they hiding the perpetrators of the crime. Waving his good conduct papers and medals, Heavy Runner was the first casualty of the Baker Massacre that cold January morning. With most of the men away hunting in the Sweet Grass Hills, the soldiers fired into the lodgers where women, children, and elderly slept. The soldiers took more than 100 prisoners, but once they realized many were infected with small pox, released them with no food, clothing or shelter in subzero weather. Many of the refugees froze or starved to death seeking shelter in nearby camps or at Fort Benton. Ironically, the soldiers were in pursuit of a hostile band led by Mountain Chief, who was camped several miles downstream at the time the attack. The Baker Massacre profoundly impacted the Blackfeet people and is very much alive in tribal memory.

Erected by Montana

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

Department of Transportation.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Notable Events • Wars, US Indian. A significant historical date for this entry is January 23, 1870.

Location. 48° 28.812′ N, 111° 47.706′ W. Marker is near Shelby, Montana, in Toole County. It is on U.S. 2 at milepost 283 near Kraft Road, on the left when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 28342 U.S Highway 2, Shelby MT 59474, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is 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 5 other markers are within 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Whoop Up Trail (approx. 0.3 miles away); The Oily Boid Gets The Woim (approx. 1.2 miles away); 1964 Flood (approx. 3.2 miles away); Shelby Town Hall (approx. 3.2 miles away); Rainbow Conoco

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 22, 2020

2. The Baker Massacre Marker

(approx. 3½ miles away).

Also see . . . Baker Massacre -- History.com. When word of the Baker Massacre (now known as the Marias Massacre) reached the east, many Americans were outraged. One angry congressman denounced Baker, saying “civilization shudders at horrors like this.” Baker’s superiors, however, supported his actions, as did the people of Montana, with one journalist calling Baker’s critics “namby-pamby, sniffling old maid sentimentalists.” (Submitted on December 1, 2020, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.)

Lithograph of an Indian Massacre image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Unknown

3. Lithograph of an Indian Massacre

Credits. This page was last revised on December 1, 2020. It was originally submitted on December 1, 2020, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 3,660 times since then and 864 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on December 1, 2020, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.