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

Beaver's Head Rock: Native Road Sign

Lewis & Clark Seek the Shoshone

 
 
Beaver's Head Rock: Native Road Sign Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, July 27, 2021
1. Beaver's Head Rock: Native Road Sign Marker
Inscription. By the time the Corps of Discovery passed through here, the "Valley of the Beaverhead" was already common ground for many Indian tribes. The Beaver's Head was a well-known landmark not only to the Shoshone but other Rocky Mountain tribes who passed through this valley on their way to and from buffalo country. In 1832, the fur-trapper, Warren Angus Ferris noted in Live in the Rocky Mountains,"Aware now of the vicinity of an Indian village (at the Beaver's Head)...some of our boldest comrades with our fleetest horses...rode of in the direction of that village...the village was composed of about one hundred and fifty lodges of FlatHeads, Pen-d'oreilles, and other..."

we proceeded on passed a remarkable Clift point on the Stard. Side about 150 feet high, this Clift the Indians Call the Beavers head, opposit at 300 yards is a low clift of 50 feet which is a Spur from the Mountain on the Lard. about 4 miles... - Captain William Clark, August 10, 1805

"the Indian woman recognized the point of a high plain to our right which she informed us was not very distant from the summer retreat of her nation on a river beyond the mountains which runs to the west.    this hill she says her nation calls the beaver's head from a conceived remblance of it's figure to the head of that animal.   she assures us
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that we shall either find her people on this river or on the river immediately west of it's source..."
- Captain Meriwether Lewis, August 8, 1805

Prominent Exposure of Limestone
The Beaver's Head is a prominent exposure of limestone of the Mississippian Mission Canyon formation that rises above the flood plain of the Beaverhead River.
 
Erected by Camp Fortunate Chapter, Lewis and Clark Trail Historical Foundation and University of Montana Western.
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: ExplorationNative AmericansWomen. In addition, it is included in the Lewis & Clark Expedition series list. A significant historical date for this entry is August 10, 1805.
 
Location. 45° 21.948′ N, 112° 28.433′ W. Marker is near Dillon, Montana, in Beaverhead County. Marker is on State Highway 41 near Diamond O Drive, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 12530 Montana Highway 41, Dillon MT 59725, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 12 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Beaverhead Rock (here, next to this marker); Welcome to Beaverhead Gateway Ranch (approx. 0.8 miles away); Traveler's Crossroads for Centuries (approx. 0.8 miles away); Distant Features (approx. 11.9
Beaver's Head Rock: Native Road Sign Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, July 27, 2021
2. Beaver's Head Rock: Native Road Sign Marker
Beaverhead Rock is visible in the distance.
miles away); Mapping the Way (approx. 11.9 miles away); Reliable Landmarks (approx. 11.9 miles away); William Clark (approx. 11.9 miles away); Clark Pocket Compass Monument (approx. 11.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Dillon.
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on March 9, 2022. It was originally submitted on March 9, 2022, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 255 times since then and 39 times this year. Photos:   1, 2. submitted on March 9, 2022, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.

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Apr. 25, 2024