Phillip Thorpe, A. F. Nichols and D. H. Ketchum were appointed by Governor Edgerton as County Commissioners of Gallatin County. The county was organized by these men at the Nichols’ ranch near Gallatin City on March 11, 1865. W. M. Wright was appointed clerk. The commissioners were sworn in by … Read more
The Gallatin County Courthouse was built in 1880 at a cost of $25,000, the lots on Main Street near the corner of what is now Third Avenue, being donated to the county. A separate building was erected a few years later for the office of the clerk and recorder. This … Read more
Hot springs that have proved beneficial for health and recreation have been discovered in what was formerly Gallatin County. Hunter’s Hot Springs, now in Park County, were discovered by Dr. A. J. Hunter, an early Montana pioneer, in 1864, while he and his family were traveling overland from Missouri on … Read more
Gallatin County Census Records It seems hard to imagine today, that our ancestors made the long, hard journey from their comfortable homes in the East to the wilds of Montana. Census Records are a wonderful resource for following your Ancestor across the country. Sometimes hard to read, often hard to … Read more
The first school in Gallatin County was taught by Samuel Anderson, in the winter of 1865 and ’66, in the back room of a log store in Bozeman, the store built and owned by Squire Fitz, being on ground where the Fechter building was erected a few years ago. The … Read more
One of the first pioneers to raise wheat in the Gallatin Valley was the late John Thomas, stepfather of Henry Davis, now living in Bozeman. He had a bushel of wheat, which he brought with him from Utah, planted it in the spring of 1864 on land about 12 miles … Read more
The first white man known to have explored this region is Sieur de la Varendry, who made his way up the Missouri River during the years 1730 to 1744, and reached the Rocky Mountains in January 1743. He did not remain, and did not contribute any valuable historical information about … Read more
Gallatin City, located near the three forks of the Missouri River, a town not now in existence, was the first county seat of Gallatin County, being so named by the legislative assembly when the county was created. An act authorizing the people of the county to vote at the general … Read more
According to articles written by the late W. W. Alderson, an early Gallatin Valley pioneer, and corroborated by other pioneers, it was in the fall of 1863, and the spring of 1864 that the first settlements were made in Gallatin Valley by a few mountaineers. Joe Wilson, Al Nichols, J. … Read more
Early Gallatin County Towns Gallatin City Gallatin City, sometimes called East Gallatin, was the first town located in Gallatin County, through the efforts of pioneers organizing in the winter of 1862 and 1863, and a charter was granted for the city by the first legislature in February 1865, and this … Read more