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Crossing the Missouri on the Fort Peck Reservation
The Lewis and Clark Bridge located near Wolf Point, MT (seen at right, unfinished, in 1930) is one of the largest, if not the largest, structure on the Fort Peck Reservation. Although it is known by all local residents, its history and prehistory is not as widely known. This bridge stands unused as a remnant of both.
This historic bridge is located in Wolf Point, Montana. Wolf Point was established as an agency and trading post of the Fort Peck Reservation. It served as an agency for the Assiniboine people. The photo at right was taken by the Wolf Point Indian Agency in 1880.
Crossing the Missouri is not just a modern undertaking. The area in which the Lewis and Clark Bridge was built has been a crossing since before European immigrants landed on the shores of this continent. According to the interpretive site marker, for centuries herds of Buffalo (like the 3 at right, taken circa 1910-1930) would cross the river at this location.
After the arrival of settlers in Montana the area's most common form of crossing the Missouri River was by ferries and in the winter by foot over the ice. The photo on the right was taken near Wolf Point in 1880.
Ferries and steamboats continued to be used as methods of transportation for some years even after the arrival of the Great Northern Railway in 1887.
In 1913, the U.S. Government opened the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes Reservation land to settlers in the form of a lottery. More than 40,000 people registered for the opportunity to obtain land on the reservation. This 1913 proclamation from the Great Northern Railway provides some context.
With the arrival of European descendant homesteaders, hazardous conditions gained attention. In 1926 two non-native teens attempted to cross the iced over Missouri near Wolf Point. They drowned in their attempt, bringing forth efforts to create a solution. Successful lobbying by the non-native settlers brought about a safe year-round method of crossing the river.
In 1929, construction of the new Wolf Point bridge began. It was funded by the United States Government as Federal Aid Project 253A2. The first photo below shows construction during the fall of 1929. The second photo was taken near the end of construction in the beginning of 1930.
During the 140th year anniversary of the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1945, it was decided to rename the Wolf Point bridge. Today it goes by the Lewis and Clark Bridge and is currently a pedestrian bridge owned by the Montana Historical Society. You will find it to the right of the “Entering Fort Peck Indian Reservation” highway sign. The historical society provides an interpretative sign with prehistoric and historic information.
Created by: Cindy Morales
Photo and Document Credits:
Billings Public Library
Montana Historical Society Research Center
Bibliography
The Montana National Register Sign Program, “Lewis and Clark Bridge,” Historic Montana, https://historicmt.org/items/show/2385, (Accessed August 2, 2022).
City of Wolf Point, “Wolf Point Bridge,” Wolf Point, Montana, https://ci.wolf-point.mt.us/community/page/wolf-point-bridge, (Accessed August 2, 2022).
City of Wolf Point. “History of Wolf Point,” Wolf Point, Montana, https://ci.wolf-point.mt.us/community/page/history-wolf-point, (Accessed October 20, 2022).
Crossing the Missouri on the Fort Peck Reservation. Montana History Portal, accessed 10/06/2023, https://www.mtmemory.org/nodes/view/102222
