During one of our trips to visit the sites of "The Corps of Discovery" (Lewis and Clark Journey) we were looking for a place to camp where it would be fairly cool. I also wanted to visit "The Big Hole Battlefield (massacre) National Historic Site." Both of these places were on the same mountain range we would cross in getting to several Lewis and Clark sites.
There are campgrounds near Bannack State Park, so that seemed a logical choice, and we could visit the Ghost Town as well. As a result of this visit I learned more history of the area, history which included Road Agents, Vigilantes and secret societies of the era.
The two campgrounds are named after the opposing forces at work in the early years of the area; The Vigilante Campground and The Road Agent Campground. We opted for the Vigilante Campground partly because it was right there where we could see it. When my mother saw the authentic Tipi we could pay to stay in she really wanted to, she said "When will we get another chance?" So that's what we did, it cost a little more and boy was it roomy and with no floor and space at the bottom it was cold!
We spent much of the next morning exploring the ghost town of Bannack.
There is a small, but nice bookstore/visitor center in what was once the home of a skilled carpenter, George French. We picked up a brochure to embark on a self- guided tour of the remaining 50 buildings that still stand here in what was once a fourteen mile city of 10,000 people.
There is a small, but nice bookstore/visitor center in what was once the home of a skilled carpenter, George French. We picked up a brochure to embark on a self- guided tour of the remaining 50 buildings that still stand here in what was once a fourteen mile city of 10,000 people.
Of course Bannack sprang up literally overnight with the discovery of gold, this was not ordinary gold as it was 99% - 99.5% pure and the town started as tents, wagons, and shacks. In two years it had grown to thousands with more substantial homes, businesses, and organization. A petition separated the area from Idaho, and the Montana Territory was born with Bannack as the capital.
By 1866, however the capital was moved to Virginia City with the discovery of gold there and many moving on to that area.
Bannack still held the position of Beaverhead County seat, and the stately, brick Meade Hotel was built as the Beaverhead County Courthouse in 1875. After the county seat was moved to Dillon in 1881 the building was empty until bought and converted to an elegant hotel in 1890.
In 1874, the need for a permanent school house was recognized and the Masonic Society built a new lodge in town which was used for that purpose as well as for the lodge activities. Today there are about 1,000 masons who belong to Bannack Lodge 3-7-77 and meet there once a year.
Curiously, 3-7-77 was a warning used along with a skull and crossbones by the Vigilantes when visiting suspected outlaws in the middle of the night. Today Montana State Police wear that number on their uniform shoulder patches.
The Montana Vigilantes were reportedly citizens of Virginia City, Nevada City, and Bannack who organized in December of 1863 after a particularly violent year of robberies and murders, to put an end to the lawlessness of a group of Road Agents who called themselves The Innocents.
This gang of road agents was supposedly headed by Bannack's sheriff Henry Plummer who had also been appointed in September of that year to US Deputy Marshall of the eastern Idaho Territory and had expanded his reach into the Virginia City area. (see an interesting article about this mysterious lawman here)
The Vigilantes dispensed their own justice by hanging over 20 men suspected of crimes, including Erastus Yeager who named Plummer as leader of the gang.
On January 10, 1864 a group of Vigilantes rounded up Plummer and two other men and hanged them at the gallows Plummer himself had had built in the town of Bannack.
Staircase in Hotel Meade
The Vigilantes ruled the region by violence and intimidation for three more years until the miners warned in March of 1867 that if any more were hanged they would retaliate five to one. The vigilante days were over.
The bar in Skinner's Saloon
By 1870 the golden days also ended for Bannack and only a few hundred people remained in town. Mining was revived several times during the next decades especially in 1895 with the arrival of the electric dredge which still sits in a pond near the creek. By 1940 the community was a ghost town and in 1954 it was saved from complete deterioration when it was declared a state park. Since then buildings have been undergoing stabilization and preservation.
Although Bannack like Garnet is not being restored and the buildings are not used commercially as they are in Virginia City, there are many activities to enjoy here. Bannack Days is held the third week-end in July and the Bannack Ghost Walks are the Friday and Saturday before Halloween each year. During the summer guided tours are available as well as gold panning, and special programs on Saturdays. A Junior Ranger program is available for the kids, and in the winter there is week-end ice skating on the old dredge pond.
Directions
Bannack State Park
located 24 miles southwest of Dillon, Montana
From I - 15
take exit #59 to state hwy 278
travel 17 miles west
turn left (south) on Bannack Bench Road
travel 4 miles on dirt and gravel road
the park entrance is on the left
Hours and Fees
Open in May 8:00 am to dusk
Memorial Day to Labor Day
open 8:00 am - 9:00 pm
Sep 1st - Oct 30th
open 8:00 am to dusk
Nov 1st - Apr 30th
open 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
VISITOR CENTER HOURS
May-Aug
open week-ends only 10:00 am - 6:00 pm
Labor Day - Oct 31st
open week-ends only 11:0 am- 5:00 pm
FEES
$5.00 per car not registered in Montana
$3.00 per person bike, walk in, or bus passengers
Free entrance for all Montana residents through vehicle registration
There are two developed campgrounds
near Bannack State Park
open year-round
first come first serve- no reservations
AMENETIES
picnic table
fire ring
trash containers
firewood available
water
restroom (accessible)
The Road Agent Campground
is shaded by big cottonwood trees
The Vigilante Campground
is more suitable for larger RVs
has tipi for rent (accommodates 8 persons)
CAMPING FEES
Regular summer season $15.00 per night per site
Montana senior citizens or
Montana disabled $7.50 per night per site
Oct 1st - Apr 30th $13.00 per site per night
Montana senior citizens or
Montana disabled $6.50 per site per night
TIPI
Available Mid-May to beginning of Oct
$25.00 per night up to 8 people
call for reservations 406-834-3413