The Little Rocky Mountains

The Little Rocky Mountains are an island on the northern Great Plains of Montana. About 50 million years ago, an igneous dome pushed its way up through Precambrian basement rocks to form this spectacular mountain range. The mountains are a composite of Precambrian metamorphic rocks, Paleozoic limestone and dolomite, Mesozoic sandstone and shale, and Tertiary intrusive rocks. The loftiest portion of the range is girdled by a steeply dipping wall of Madison Limestone that makes the interior part of the range appear as a fortress. The mountains are rich in Native American lore, tales of gold strikes and fortunes made. Cowpunchers and sheepherders from nearby cattle and sheep outfits made the mining camps of Zortman and Landusky their headquarters. Kid Curry’s outlaw gang often hid out in the Little Rockies after robbing banks and trains in the region. The future as well as the past of the Little Rocky Mountains may still lie underground. Since the discovery of gold in Alder Gulch in 1865, more than $25 million in gold has been taken from the mines at Ruby Gulch, Landusky and Beaver Creek. The names of Charles Whitcomb, Robert Coburn, Louis Goslin and B. D. Phillips are synonymous with the gold mining days. The second largest cyanide mill in the world was once located in Ruby Gulch. Prospectors still comb the mountains for the next big gold strike.