Product Overview
From its establishment in 1846 until the turn-of-the-century, Fort Benton's primacy in the history of the northern plains is unequaled. Called the Birthplace of Montana, Fort Benton is the oldest continuously occupied white settlement in Montana. The rich and famous, scoundrels and killers, merchants and gamblers rubbed elbows on Front Street and the levee as they arrived and embarked aboard mackinaws, keelboats and steamboats. Three-fourths of all freight that came into the region was unloaded on Fort Benton's levee and transported to all points of the compass. Until the coming of the railroad, Fort Benton was the Chicago of the Plains. In 1965 Fort Benton was designated a National Historic Landmark; the Upper Missouri became part of the National Wild and Scenic River System in 1975. The significant role they played in settlement of the American and Canadian West accorded them national and international importance in the history of both nations.
