When William Clark passed through this area in July 27, 1806, he described “estonishingly noumerous” bison and elk as well as his last glimpse of the snow-clad Big Horn Mountains. Most importantly, his report of abundant beaver “sign” quickly drew fur trappers and traders to the area, who established several trading posts near the river. They maintained a vigorous trade with the Crow Indians, bartering beaver pelts and bison hides for vital trade goods. By the 1870s, steamboats sporadically plied the waters of the Yellowstone carrying supplies to the posts and, in 1876, the Far West carried wounded survivors of the Battle of the Little Bighorn downriver. The Northern Pacific Railway completed its line through here in 1882.
In 1912, regional Good Roads enthusiasts and county officials created one of the first interstate highways in the United States, the Yellowstone Trail, an interconnected network of county roads blazed by distinctive chrome yellow signs with black arrows. The 4,000-mile highway connected Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts and Seattle, Washington with a branch to Yellowstone National Park. The route was later re-designated U.S. Highway 10 and was bypassed by Interstate 94 in 1977.
Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.