The Judith Basin Country

The panel's renowned DHS was managed by Granville Stuart, and in 1884 its cattlemen answered horse theft with a vigilante campaign. Stuart called a meeting at the ranch in June; through July small parties rode the Musselshell and the lower Judith, hanging or shooting suspected thieves and burning one cabin with its men inside. A careful study counts nineteen to twenty-three dead in about a month, though newspapers claimed far more. No one was ever charged. Stuart was remembered as Mr. Montana and later led the Montana Historical Society.

What the plaque says

The Judith Basin Country The Judith Basin occupies a central place in Montana's history. For centuries, the lush grasses of the region attracted large numbers of buffalo, antelope, and deer. The abundant game, in turn, drew Indian hunting parties to this area. By the late 1870's, the Indians had been confined to reservations outside the basin and most of the buffalo were gone. Montana cattlemen moved into the area in 1880. By 1885 cattle grazed in this valley. Outfits active in the area were the Judith Cattle Company, the re- nowned Davis-Hauser-Stuart (DHS) Ranch, and Conrad Kohrs and Nick Bielenberg. Artist Charlie Russell, who gained much of his early experience as a cowboy here during the 1880's, later captured the area's rich and colorful history in some of his most famous paintings. After the cattlemen came the homesteaders, many of them drawn to this agriculturally fertile area by the marketing of the Great Northern and Milwaukee Road Railroads.

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• Lewistown Army Airfield — steps away
• The Nez Perce Conflict of 1877 — steps away
• Lewistown — 3.8 mi
• The Queen of the Judith Basin — 10 mi