Lemhi County(74) ► ADJACENT TO LEMHI COUNTY Butte County(30) ► Clark County(3) ► Custer County(62) ► Idaho County(87) ► Valley County(7) ► Beaverhead County, Montana(52) ► Ravalli County, Montana(35) ►
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This traditional Indian route provided access from Montana's buffalo country to Snake and Salmon river fishing streams.
Hudson's Bay Company trapping expeditions came this way after 1822 and prosectors followed searching for mines. Then in . . . — — Map (db m109408) HM
This marker consists of three panels: one map and two historical. Before the Roads
Shoshone Homeland
Native Americans were the first to travel over this rugged country. Most of the year they spent traveling from place . . . — — Map (db m109403) HM
Bricks for the kilns were made from a very light clay and lime, which probably came from deposits in Jump Creek. The lime was burned in nearby kilns and mixed with clay to produce a tough lightweight brick. Though wages were only $1.50-$2.00 a day, . . . — — Map (db m109075) HM
Charcoal is the carbonized residue to wood that has been heated in the absence of air. It was used in smelting because it required less blast than other fuels, was more convenient to obtain, and reacted well with the ore. Wood, cut in four foot . . . — — Map (db m109071) HM
Charcoal for a smelter, active from 1885-1889 across the valley at Nicholia, was produced in 16 kilns 6 miles west of here.
Discover in 1881, the Viola mine became an important source for lead and silver from 1886-1888. Ore also was hauled . . . — — Map (db m109034) HM
A French Canadian who came to southern Idaho in 1818, Joseph Cote found this valley while trapping beaver.
Though he was thousands of miles from his Canadian base in Montreal, he had years of experience in Pacific Northwest exploration. . . . — — Map (db m109032) HM
Lack of a good transportation system delayed serious lead and silver mining at Gilmore from 1880 to 1910.
Construction of a branch railroad from Montana to serve this mining area resulted in a production of $11,520,852 before a power plant . . . — — Map (db m109391) HM
These are three of the four charcoal kilns that remain of the original sixteen that were once located here. These beehive shaped kilns were constructed of brick and designed to stand 20 feet in both height and diameter. The walls were plastered . . . — — Map (db m109070) HM
Four panels in the Birch Creek Campground kiosk deal with the history of Birch Creek Valley
A Prehistory and History of
Lower Birch Creek Valley
a natural travel route between the Salmon River & the Snake River Plain . . . — — Map (db m109050) HM
Sixteen charcoal kilns were built on this site in 1886 by J.W. and W.C. King of Butte, Montana.
The kilns produced charcoal for the smelter at Nicholia for about two years. When the smelter closed suddenly in 1888, operations at the kilns . . . — — Map (db m109038) HM
Archaeological research as traced human occupation to this valley back more than ten thousand years.
The first men here found the valley forested. As the climate became drier, other mountain dwellers -- known to archaeologists as people of . . . — — Map (db m109031) HM
These kilns are the only remaining evidence of important historic events, and efforts have been made to preserve them. Steel pipes support on roof that was bout to collapse and gates have been erected to keep out stock.
These structures are a . . . — — Map (db m109069) HM
Once wood was stacked as high as possible from the front door, loading continued through an opening in the back of the kiln. Wooden ramps that once led up to these doors disappeared long ago. — — Map (db m109072) HM
A side road from Highway 28 leads to Nicholia Townsite and the Viola Mine. Parts of these sites are on private land. Please be especially respectful of private owners rights and wishes.
The Nicholia Ranch is on the site of Nicholia, once home to . . . — — Map (db m109073) HM
During the two years the 16 kilns were in operation, 150,000 cords of wood (about 15,000 loads of today’s logging trucks) were made into charcoal. A supply of 6,000 cords of wood was kept on hand at all times. Some can still be seen lying on the . . . — — Map (db m109077) HM
