USA > Montana > Then and now; or, Thirty-six years in the Rockies. Personal reminiscences of some of the first pioneers of the state of Montana. Indians and Indian wars. The past and present of the Rocky mountain country. 1864-1900 > Part 4
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Deitrick and Brother found a nugget on their claim in Rocker gulch in 1867 worth eighteen hundred dollars. Many other large nuggets were found in different gulches, but these were the largest. The placer gold varies in size from micro- scopie powder to the monster slugs spoken of, and in quality from 600 to 990 in fineness.
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Several hundred bars and gulches were in operation in the years 1865-1866, and were producing thousands of dollars daily. Those mines extended through a region one hundred and twenty-five miles square. The greatest producer of all was Alder gulch, with thirteen miles of pay ground. It is estimated that from seventy to eighty-five million dollars have been taken out of this gulch. Last Chance ranks next. Many other gulches were as rich, but not so extensive. It is safe to say that Confederate gulch produced more gold from the same number of square yards and in less time than any other placer mine ever found in the state. In the summer of 1866 a party of men took out of this gulch two and one half tons of gold worth one and one half million dollars. Early in the fall of the same year it was hauled by a four-mule team, escorted by fourteen armed men, to Fort Benton for transportation down the Missouri river. Mr. Lindiman and Mr. Hieediman, the two men who were the owners of most of the gold, accom- panied the outfit.
Dec. 18, 1898.
ROBERT VAUGHIN.
FROM THE MINES TO THE FARM.
I remained in Nelson gulch over three years; during this time I did some mining, afterwards kept a meat market.
I had not the least idea of establishing a home in ¡Montana, and, in truth, the field was not, just then, an inviting one for the homeseeker. All of us then were seeking gold and nothing else. Nearly everyone had made up his mind as to the spe- cific amount he wanted, after which he was ready to return to the states to enjoy the same. Many made fortunes and carried out precisely this programme, but others were not so suc- cessful-among the latter myself. I was not ready to return at the end of the first or second year. I observed, with others, that our ponies and work cattle fattened readily on weathered bunch grass, and would live on this provender through the winter without care or shelter; that the meat of the deer, elk and buffalo was in prime condition, even in the dead of winter; and that experiments on a small scale in growing vegetables and grain in the valleys were very successful, and that the climate of the country gave health and vigor to both man and beast. In view of these observations, I concluded that Mon- tana was a good enough country for me to live in.
In the fall of 1869 I came to the Sun river valley and located a ranch on the north side of the river, nine miles down the valley from Sun River Crossing, and near the Leaving Stage Station (now Sunnyside), on the Helena and Benton road. I remem- ber well when I made the entry in the land office at Helena, that the register said to me: "Well, Vaughn, this is the first entry made in Choteau county?"
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A few weeks later Colonel Baker made a raid on the In- dians on the Marias river. During the years 1867, 1868 and 1869 the Blackfeet and Piegan Indians caused a great deal of trouble by attacking freighters, killing settlers and stealing their horses. These outrages became so frequent that the war department finally decided that those bands of bloodthirsty In- dians must be taught a severe lesson.
General Sheridan was in command of the military division of the Missouri, which embraced Montana. Direct telegraph communication existed between General Sheridan's office and Fort Shaw. In December, 1869, all the minutiae of the cam- paign were worked out at the division headquarters, and the necessary details sent to the commanding officer at Fort Shaw. Cavalry from Fort Ellis and infantry from Fort Shaw were detailed for the expedition, and the forces were under the command of Colonel Baker of the Second cavalry, with Joe Kipp, Henry Martin and Joe Cobel as guides. Every effort was made to keep the destination of the troops secret. It was late at night when they marched to the point where the guides intended to take them. " On account of frost in the air and a few inches of snow on the ground they had some difficulty in keeping the right course. Finally the command arrived at the bluffs overlooking the Marias river; the tepees of the enemy were hardly observable, but the seouts had located the Indian villages, and, before daylight, they were completely surround- ed by the soldiers. At an early hour the firing commenced and before the bugle called a halt nearly two hundred Indians had joined their ancestors in their happy hunting grounds. Two soldiers were killed in this terrible battle. When the news reached the stations along the Helena and Benton road, there were a few who became alarmed for fear that retaliation would be made by the Indians. But they did not retaliate; the battle was the best thing that ever happened to Northern Montana
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at that time. For several years afterwards the Indians were very shy, although some roving war parties of different tribes would cross the country and kill people and steal horses and cattle.
William Sparks and myself were only farmers in Northern Montana for several years, although some farming had been done in Sun River valley as early as 1858, by my namesake, Colonel Vaughn, who built the first agency for the Blackfeet Indians, which was located on the north side of the Sun river, about one-half mile above the crossing, and was known as the "Government Farm." Here is where Colonel Vaughn, as an experiment in behalf of the government, cultivated a number of acres of land, several acres of which were sowed in wheat. It proved to be a grand success. The colonel estimated that the wheat crop would average seventy-five bushels to the acre, and so reported to the department at Washington. A. story is told on the colonel that, in addition to his agricultural re- port, he also reported that the beavers were so numerous that the wheat crop was in danger of being destroyed by them, and to send him immediately five hundred beaver traps. The traps were sent at once by the fastest express then in existence, and arrived at the "Government Farm" after the wheat was threshed and put in the granary. The traps were used dur- ing the following winter by trappers, as they were intended in the first place. It was a good joke on the officials at Washı- ington, for who ever heard of a beaver eating wheat.
In 1861 Mr. Sam Ford settled and located two miles above where now stands Fort Shaw. In 1862, also. the following named people were living on the government farm : J. IL. Vail and family, a sister of Mrs. Vail's, Miss O'Brien (who, in 1863, married Henry Plummer, the only sheriff then in what is now Montana; but he was a traitor, for at the same
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time he was the leader of a gang of desperadoes, although un- known to the young lady).
The following is from a letter written by Judge F. M. Thompson of the probate court for Franklin county, Massa- chusetts, to a friend in this city :
"It would give me great pleasure to visit your city, the site of which I first saw June 5, 1863, under somewhat interesting circumstances. I was at that time stopping with my friends, Mr. and Mrs. Vail, at the 'government farm' on Sun river, awaiting the arrival at Fort Benton of the St. Louis steamers. Besides us at the farm were Joseph Swift, who had wintered there, my partner, Mr. C. E. Wheeler, Henry Plummer, Miss Electa O'Brien, two Vail children, and a hunter-herdsman. I quote from my diary: 'June 5, 1863 .- About 3 p. m., with Mr. and Mrs. Vail, Miss O'Brien and the two children in the government ambulance, and. the remainder of the party on horseback, we left the stockade in charge of the hunter and started for the 'Great Falls' of the Missouri river. The In- dians are very saucy and are cleaning out small parties of the whites, whom they can intimidate and steal from. We feel somewhat the risk we run in taking the women and children on the trip. Near sundown we had a scare, as Plummer, Wheeler and Swift in advance climbed the top of a knoll and suddenly stopping made signs of Indians, but, fortunately, the moving figures proved to be antelopes. Arriving at the lower falls after dark, we camped in a ravine, so that the light of our campfire might not be seen by the Indians. The next fore- noon was spent in fishing and viewing the falls and building a large stone cairn, in which we deposited a paper claiming that the ladies of our party were the first to view the falls. (In this I think we were mistaken, as probably Mrs. La Barge and a friend visited the falls in the summer of 1862.) After din- ner we started upon our return to the Fort, and, coming within
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sight of the farm, we found that the bottom was covered with a large number of Indian ponies grazing, under the charge of a guard.
Recognizing them as Spokanes, and friendly, we found a large party of their warriors visiting the farm. Finding that only one man was in possession, and he having locked the gates, they parleyed with him at the front, while some young bucks scaled the walls in the rear and took possession of the premises, compelling the hunter to cook from the stores of the station dinner for the whole crowd.
After a full discussion of the situation, by aid of the little 'Chinook' I had picked up, and a vigorous exhibition of sign language on our part, we finally persuaded the chief that it was best for him to 'clatawaw,' which he did much to our relief. (Clatawaw means go away.)
On the 20th of June, 1863, at Sun river, Henry Plummer and Miss Electa O'Brien were married by Rev. Father Min- . atre of the mission of St. Peter, Mr. Swift acting as best man, and, for the only time in my life, I acted as "bridesmaid." The happy couple immediately left the farm in the government ambulance, to which were attached four green Indian ponies.
A few months later Henry Plummer had ended his career upon the gallows at Bannock."
There was no farming done by those settlers except garden- ing on a small scale. In 1867 John Largent bought a cabin from a trader named Goff, and built another one near where now stands his fine residence. The same year Joe Healy built a cabin where now is H. B. Strong's residence. Those two men were the first settlers of the town of Sun River.
In 1872 Ed Dennis, Hod Maine, James Strong and Charley Femeston farmed in Sun river valley. John Largent had then a store and blacksmith shop at Sun River Crossing; J. J. Healy and Al Hamilton kept a trading post on the north bank of the
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river, near the bridge. They had a large trade with the In- dians.
In 1871 R. S. Ford and Thomas Dunn brought the first range cattle to the Sun River country, and, for that matter, to Northern Montana. They had 1,100 head. The following year O. H. and D. H. Churchill brought eight hundred head. These cattle were turned out on the range north of Sun River, between the Leaving and the falls of the Missouri river. The following winter thousands of buffaloes came from the north and we had to cross all domestic stock to the south side of the Sun river, and herd them, to some extent, to keep the buffaloes away. A few years later two brothers named Rock settled near the mouth of the Sun river and were engaged in chopping wood. Near where now stands the Montana Brewery plant was an empty cabin which had been built by hunters (the same cabin, which is made of logs, has been removed and now stands half a mile southwest of its first location, and is the property of the Great Northern Railway company). One morning, as one of the brothers was going to his work, twelve Indians, who had been secreted in the old cabin, rushed out and murdered him. The other brother was on the opposite side of the river, the present site of the city of Great Falls, and saw the Indians perpetrate this cold-blooded murder, but could render no assistance. After shooting him, they all made a rush to see which one would get there first to secure his scalp. Just then the brother, who was across the river, fired several shots. This scared the Indians and they fled before reaching their victim, who was killed instantly by eleven bullets, ten through the body and one in the head. "Scalping" is a cruel practice that these savages commit after capturing an enemy. They take off the crown of the head; sometimes they do this first and the killing afterwards. They preserve the scalp, and the one who has the greatest number to his credit is consid-
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ered the bravest and is promoted in his tribe, and often ob- tains the chief's daughter in marriage. It was not long after the killing of Rock that an Indian, while in the act of skin- ning a young domestic cow, was shot by one of the settlers. At this point on the Missouri river, where now stands the railroad bridge, there was a good ford. Here the Flatheads, Pend d' Oreilles, Nez Perces, Bloods, Piegans and Black feet crossed to get to the Judith and the Musselshell country en route to their winter hunting grounds; returning in the spring laden with dried meats, buffalo robes and pemmican. It was also a lurking place for the Blackfeet warriors when on their way to steal horses from the Crows. In returning the Crows would follow them up and commit all sorts of depredations upon the settlers along the line of their forays. As the buf- faloes were getting scarce and more cattle were being put on the range the Indians became more troublesome by killing cattle. Once, as a party of Sun River settlers were crossing the country, they met eight young warriors on foot and among the cattle. They were on a horse-stealing expedition and well equipped with lariats and guns. The settlers, all well armed and mounted, made a swoop on the Indians and rounded them up. They took their arms and marched them out about five miles on the prairie towards the agency ; then they gave back their guns and released them, telling them to make quick tracks for the reservation. As the Indians expected to be shot, they lost no time in getting away. This put a quietus on their cattle killing, and from that time they became more peaceable.
As more mines were discovered and operated, the population of the territory rapidly increased. The traffic on the Helena and Benton road was very great during the boating season on the upper Missouri, and before there was a railroad nearer than Ogden, Utah, consequently more settlers came into the valley. There were twelve locations between the Sun River
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Crossing and The Leaving. We joined together and construct- ed an irrigation ditch. We succeeded in growing a large crop of oats, wheat and barley; as high as eighty to one hundred bushels to an acre were raised by the writer and others. Also the largest and finest crops of potatoes I ever saw were raised there.
Now the Sun river valley and its tributaries have developed into some of the most extensive and wealthy settlements in the state. It has several towns with populations ranging from one hundred to thirteen thousand, having schools, churches, railroads, telegraph and telephone lines, flouring mills, refineries and smelters, electric lights and power and many public works.
The once hostile Indians have been subdued and are now on their reservations cultivating the soil by following the plow, run- ning the mower and self-binder, raising horses, sheep and cattle, and are fast becoming civilized. Fort Shaw military post has be- come an Indian school. The parade ground, where the soldiers used to drill and prepare for Indian wars, is now used for picnic grounds and for the young Indian students to hold their Fourth of July celebrations.
Jan. 29, 1898.
ROBERT VAUGHN.
A LETTER TO MY LITTLE BABE.
My Darling Little Babe-Your mother died January 13, 1888, when you were but thirteen days old. Today you are seven weeks old. Your tongue and communicative powers are tied with the tie of infancy. You can't tell papa how dear mamma was loved and how sweet her last kiss was. You can't tell papa that mamma said, "Take good care of darling babe," and how she embraced you to her bosom and blessed you for the last time. Neither can you comprehend papa telling you how happy papa and mamma lived together. You are now sleeping in the eradle, and I am sitting alone by your side think- ing of your dear mother and how she loved you before you were born, and the pleasure she had when making your little clothes during the last four months, before she was confined to her bed.
But she has gone to that land where rivers flow over golden sands; where pearls and many .a gem deck the shores. Last night as I was mourning over her and thinking of her loving companionship and her kind words, a still voice came to me say- ing: "Tell our darling babe that we lived happy." This set me to thinking that I may have passed through the "valley" before you will be old enough for me to tell you this happy tale. But, by the grace of God, I comfort myself with the hope that you and I will be companions to each other for many years to come, and that I will have the pleasure of listening to you reading me this letter which I am now writing. God bless you, sweet angel !
Your dear mother was born near Toronto, Canada, March 19, 1855. She was the daughter of Matthew and Jane Dona-
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hue. We were married August 25, 1886, at the home of Uncle and Aunt Spencer (where also she made her home), by Rev. J. H. Little. The same morning we left for Helena. We arrived there next day. It was fair week. We remained five days and met many friends. Here we had our photos taken and purchased our household goods-the organ, sewing machine, etc. And this is the time I had her ring made out of a nugget of gold I had taken from the mines twenty years before. We came home happy and went to work and organ- ized our little home, and in about three weeks we had it-to us, a little palace. And oh! such a welcome she always gave me when I came home! What a heart she had! So large and pure, so kind and womanly! She always kept everything so neat and nice. She made me love home and gave me new thought-how very little happiness depends upon money. Often in the still hour of the evening we would stroll away through the meadows, sometimes down along the banks of Sun river, and carelessly hold each other's hands. She walked closely at my side, telling me some sweet words and sometimes rhymes, and often we sang some favorite hymn. And now it seems to me how beautiful those happy days were. They are like dreams.
Your dear mother was always pleasant. I never left the house to be away all day without her giving me a kiss before I left, and she never failed to meet me at the door to give me a kiss and a welcome on my return. We truly loved each other. No wedded couple ever lived happier. Whatever I would do she always thought was done right, and whatever she would do I could not improve. It was impossible. Any- thing in the house, if it was moved from the place she had for it, I could preceive it at once. Even a picture on the wall could not be moved anywhere else to look as well as the place she already had selected for it. She was a perfect mechanic.
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She was genial. She was gentle and polite in her manners. A more faithful partner never lived. A more true, affection- ate wife and more loving mother never existed. Your dear mother was a Christian. She lived and died as such. The first time we met in our little chamber to go to rest for the first night together, your dear mother knelt by the bedside and prayed to God to give us grace and bless us as we started on the voyage of life together. She asked Him to give us grace to live a happy life, to live so we could die happy. And many, many times I have thought of her prayers during our happy life, and of her sweet words, "Tell the folks I dic happy." From that time until she went to her final rest she always prayed before she retired at night. Also in the morning she kneeled before the Throne of Grace and thanked the Lord for his loving kindness. She always had her bible on the dresser or on the table in our bed room and perused it with carc. She said one day: "If we can't attend church regularly in this country, we can be good by prayer to God and read our bible regularly." And her motto, in her own handiwork, is now over our bed-room door, chosen by her- self years ago. It is this:
Simply To Thy Cross I Cling.
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She illustrated on her death bed how this beautiful motto was engraved on her heart, for among her last sayings was : "Blessed be the Saviour who died on the cross, and I cling to that cross." Oh, what a treasure she was! Our short life to- gether was but a holiday, and a happy one. And here now, I ask you, my dear babe, let your creed be the bible and your ex-
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ample your dear mother. If your father is not with you, ask some one to teach you to pray when you are young, for He said : "I love them that love me, and they that seek me carly shall find me." "The same God who moulded the sun and kindled the stars watches the flight of an insect. He who bal- ances the clouds and hung the worlds upon nothing notices the fall of a sparrow. He who gives Saturn his rings and placed the moon like a ball of silver in the broad arch of the heaven, who gives the rose leaf its delicate tint and makes the distant sun to nourish the violet, the same being notices the praises of the cherubim and the prayers of a little child."
It is He who is the father of the orphan; He whom your dear mother placed her trust in and who comforted her through life and death.
The following is her testimony on her death bed of a happy life ending in a happy death. She said to your sorrowful father: "My dear, do not let this worry you. Trust in the Lord and he will support you. I have trusted in Christ through all my life; now I trust in Him and He comforts me, for the Lord doeth all things well. I am ready to meet Him. I am ready to die. Take good care - of our darling babe and tell her that we lived happy. God bless the little angel. It seems hard to us that we must part after living but a little while together, but it is God's will; it is well. Do not be sad ! be happy. The ring you made for me in Helena I will take to the grave with me. Call my loved ones to my side and let me kiss them and bid them good bye. Tell the folks I die happy. Blessed be the Saviour who died on the cross. Oh Lord! I am ready-take me, Oh Lord! Take me at midnight or in the dawning of the morning. Dear Lord, take me. Let me go home in peace. The valley is lighter. I see the great white throne. I want to go home." She frequently said: "I want to go home" or "Take me
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home," during her last hours on earth. Thus your dear mother passed away in peace, prepared to meet the God in whom she had placed her trust. I imagined hearing the soft wings of the angels fluttering in the room when they came to take her home and their soft whisperings saying: "She is dying happy. She is clinging to the cross;" then a voice: "Open the gates of heaven; she is coming home." Her re- mains are sheltered safe from sorrow in the cemetery at Great Falls. Dear is the spot where she sleeps. "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me." ,
Now, my dear little daughter, I am about to close this joy- mingled-with-grief letter, hoping that you and I will be loving companions to each other to scatter flowers over your dear mother's grave for many decoration days to come.
Remember dear mother's words, her Saviour's cause extend- Live pure and holy here, as through life's way you wend- And when the journey is over and you come to the valley, May her words be your words : "Tell the folks I die happy."
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. May He be your guide. Put your trust in Him. And that He will comfort you in life and in death is the prayer of your affec- tionate father, ROBERT VAUGHN.
P. S .- This letter and your mother's jewels, which she willed to you, I will deposit in the First National Bank of Great Falls for safe keeping for you. R. V.
Sun River, Mont., Feb. 18, 1888.
FROM THE FARM TO THE CITY OF GREAT FALLS.
In the year 1889, after meeting with my great loss in the death of my wife, I sold my farm in the Sun river valley and came to Great Falls, and built the "Arvon Block," and the "Vaughn Building," in which I now live, in rooms fifteen and sixteen, with my dear little ten-year-old daughter. Like the man who chased his shadow, I have chased myself from place to place for the period of sixty-one years, and for the distance of six thousand miles, and at last have caught up with my- self. Now it is in order to give a sketch of my first visit to this spot where I now reside. It was in the winter of 1870, and it was rather a cold day, when, mounted on my gray mustang and looking down from the summit of the hill on the west side, where now stands the residence of Hon. T. E. Collins, I first saw the beautiful landscape, the site of the city of Great Falls. As I bent in my saddle to view the panorama before me, I longed to be an artist, that I might portray it. It was a picture that I shall never forget. On the south side of Sun river lay an Indian village, two tepees were on the north side, and one on Indian hill. The latter, I was afterwards told, sheltered a lookout who watched for the approach of an enemy and to observe in what direction the buffalo herds were mov- ing. On Prospect Hill was a band of antelope, and through the low divide, west of J. P. Lewis,' a herd of buffalo were slowly moving in single file towards the river. In ,the grove some of these monarchs were rubbing against the trees, and, I should judge, were enjoying themselves immensely. Further east, on what is now Boston Heights, several hundred more
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