Archaeology and Cultural Resources

In 1877, the Wallowa Band of Nez Perce (Nimíipuu) fled their homelands in northeastern Oregon to avoid being forced onto a reservation. Pursued by the U.S. Army over five months, they traveled a circuitous 1,170 miles through Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana, before surrendering.

The Main Boulder Ranger Station is one of the oldest facilities in the Forest Service System and has been restored to its original character. Visitors can look into the past and experience what it was like to live and work in the Boulder area in the early days, at what was once a remote ranger station. View full-sized photo on Flickr.

The Meyers Creek Work Center complex was listed April 14, 2023 on the National Register of Historic Places. 

Shenango and Poker Jim formalized on National Register September 1, 2022. 

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Near midnight August 1959, a 7.5 magnitude earthquake near the Madison River triggered a massive landslide, moving over 100 mph in less than 1 minute. 80+ million tons of rock crashed into the narrow canyon, blocking the Madison River and forming Earthquake Lake. At the time, it was the second largest earthquake to occur in the lower 48 states. Twenty-eight people lost their lives in the event. This earth-changing event is known as the Hebgen Lake Earthquake.

Completed in fall of 1920, the Lodge opened. As the first dude ranch in the state of Montana, the OTO ranch was one of 26 in Montana and Wyoming at the formation of the "Dude Ranch Association” in 1926.
USDA Forest Service photo. 
View full-sized photo on Flickr