First Discovery of Gold in Montana

I-90 Mile Post 169

Montana’s oldest was located near here on Gold Creek. In 1852, Francois “Benetsee” Finlay, a Hudson Bay Company fur trapper, found gold in the creek. The company put a tight lid on the news fearing it would cause a stampede to the area and ruin its business. Despite the company’s best efforts, word got out about the find and prospectors occasionally panned the creek’s gravels in search of the yellow metal.

Rumors of gold brought brothers James and Granville Stuart to Gold Creek in 1858. Using kitchen pans, a mallet and a broken shovel, the men found enough gold to pique their interest. Staking claims on what they called American Fork, the brothers eventually built the log store near the mouth of the creek and made a good living selling supplies to travelers on the nearby Mullen Road. By the summer of 1862, the mining camp, now called Gold Creek, included 15 log cabins, two stores, two saloons and two blacksmith shops. Around 45 people lived in the area. One visitor dubbed the camp “a hard looking place.”

It was difficult keeping people in the camp. While gold was widespread, it was scanty; nobody ever got rich from the Gold Creek diggings. Other gold strikes in southwestern Montana emptied Gold Creek. But the camp held on. By the early 20th century, only “the old log buildings hide behind false fronts; an abandoned 1890s gold dredge decays on the banks of the creek, and travelers rush past oblivious to the fact that a little town marked the cradle of Montana’s great mining industry.”