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Bozeman Trail trickles through time... The Historic Bozeman Crossing is situated on the bank of the Clear Fork of the Powder River. This location played a unique role in the history of the settlement of Wyoming, Montana and Dakota terr-itor-ies in the 1860's and 1870's. The Bozeman Trail, laid out by John Jacobs and John Bozemon in 1863, provided a faster, easier route to the gold discoveries in Montana Territory. You must erase from your mind the bridges, highways, towns and power lines that are a part of the civilization and transportation system today. Imagine only a clear stream coming from the Shining Mountains (as the Native Americans called the Bighorn Mountains) meandering through a sea of grass with only an occassiona1 tree growing on the banks of the stream. Migrating buffalo and prairie fires kept trees from establishing alongside western rivers and streams and the tree-lined streams we know today had a much different look 125 years ago. 
The Bozeman Trail crossed Clear Creek at this naturally low point. This was the crossing used on the military road. The emigrant crossing extended east for a mile or more. At that time in history, man could move through the area only by walking or riding an animal or wagon. This form of transportation required water and grass to feed the animals and this location provided plenty of both. In addition, it was about twenty miles or one day's travel from the next available sources of water both to the north and south.
This campsite is first mentioned in history as the spot where Edward Robinson, John Hoback and Jacob Reznor, employees of John Jacob Astor Fur Company, led the group called the Astorians across the Bighom Mountains using Powder River Pass as the means of passage. This trip in September of 1811 was the first recorded eastward crossing by white men, of the Shining Mountains. The land was occupied primarily by the Crow Indians at that time. In the 1860's, the Sioux and Cheyenne tribes began to push the Crow tribe from the treaty lands awarded to the Crows in the Horse Creek Treaty of 1851. Thus it was the Sioux Indians tnat confronted John Bozeman and his first wagon train at this spot, telling the train to turn back or we will kill you. The year was 1863 and the train turned back to Deer Creek and took the Oregon Trail to Fort Hall then northward to Montana Territory. Bozeman and a few others from the train skirted south around the Bighorns over into the Bighorn Basin country and made their way northward to Montana. 1864 was the peak year of emigrant traffic on the Bozeman Trail and hundreds of travelers and their animals would have camped at this picturesque spot. Then, in 1865, General Patrick Connor Camped here during his ill-fated Powder River campaign. On July 12th, 1866, Colonel Henry B. Carrington camped here on his way to establish Fort Phil Kearney and Fort C. F. Smith. Let your imagination help you visualize 220 wagons being pulled by six mules each coming across the prairie accompanied by various ambulances, mounted cavalry and marching infantrymen. The wagons were painted Prussian blue with white tops and vermilllon-palnted wheels. simple arithmetic shows a minimum of 1,320 mules had to be harnessed and hooked up each morning. This today would be a day's work in itself. The Bozeman Trail fell into disuse when the forts were abandoned and Red Cloud's war was successful in closing the road to emigrant travel. In March of 1876, General Crook's cavalry camped just to the east of here eight days before the poorly executed Reynolds fight on the Powder River. Then on June 12th, 1876, Crook again camped here five days before the Rosebud fight. Crook's expedition had 103 six-mule wagons to supply five companies of infantry and fifteen companies of cavalry. Nine hundred men, 600 mules and 500 head of horses - it must have been quite a sight, now only seen in the movies of today. Crook marched on into history, leaving one of the West's most historic overland routes at Sheridan, Wyoming. The land is much different now, but Interstates 25 and 90 closely follow the Bozeman Trail, a highway of history. Bibliography for this article: A Life Wild & Perilous - Robert Utley; The Bozeman Trail - Robert A, Murray; Battle of the Rosebud - Neil C. Mangum; Powder River Campaigns - LeRoy R. Hafer; A Good Year to Die - Charles M, Robinson, III. 655 Hart Street - Buffalo, Wyoming 82834 (307) 684-2531 - Email  |
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