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Deer Lodge is a city in and the
county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...
of Powell County,
Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...
, United States. The population was 2,938 at the 2020 census.


Description

The city is perhaps best known as the home of the
Montana State Prison The Montana State Prison is a men's correctional facility of the Montana Department of Corrections in unincorporated Powell County, Montana, about west of Deer Lodge. The current facility was constructed between 1974 and 1979 in response to the ...
, a major local employer. The
Montana State Hospital Montana State Hospital is located in Warm Springs, Montana, just off of I-90 near Anaconda, Montana. The hospital is the only publicly operated psychiatric hospital Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental health hospitals, behavioral hea ...
in Warm Springs, and former state tuberculosis sanitarium in nearby
Galen Aelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus ( el, Κλαύδιος Γαληνός; September 129 – c. AD 216), often Anglicized as Galen () or Galen of Pergamon, was a Greek physician, surgeon and philosopher in the Roman Empire. Considered to be o ...
are the result of the power the western part of the state held over Montana at statehood due to the copper and mineral wealth in that area. Deer Lodge was also once an important railroad town, serving as a division headquarters for the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad ("the Milwaukee Road") before the railroad's local abandonment in 1980. The current Montana State Prison occupies a campus west of town. The former prison site, at the south end of Deer Lodge's Main Street, is now the Old Prison Museum. In addition to a former cellblock building, the museum complex includes a theater, antique and automobile museums, and a former
Milwaukee Road The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (CMStP&P), often referred to as the "Milwaukee Road" , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwest and Northwest of the United States from 1847 until 1986. The company experienced ...
" Little Joe" electric locomotive. Deer Lodge is also the location of Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site, dedicated to the interpretation of the frontier cattle ranching era. This site was the home of
Conrad Kohrs Conrad Kohrs, born Carsten Conrad Kohrs (August 5, 1835 – 23 July 1920) was a Montana cattle rancher (cattle baron) and politician. Biography He was born in Holstein, a province that was ethnically and culturally German and part of the ...
, one of the famous "Cattle Kings" of Montana whose land holdings once stretched over a million acres (4,000 km2) of Montana,
Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to t ...
, and
Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest T ...
, Canada. The Grant-Kohrs ranch was built in 1862 by Johnny Grant, a Scottish/French/
Metis Metis or Métis may refer to: Ethnic groups * Métis, recognized Indigenous communities in Canada and America whose distinct culture and language emerged after early intermarriage between First Nations peoples and early European settlers, primar ...
fur-trader and trapper who encouraged his people to settle in Deer Lodge because of its pleasant climate and large areas of bunch grass prairie, ideal for raising cattle and horses. The city's name derives from a geological formation known as Warm Springs Mound which contained natural saline that made for a natural salt lick for the local deer population, the protected valley in which Deer Lodge is located was where most of the local wildlife would winter as the temperatures lowered in the high country. Deer Lodge was the site of the College of Montana, the first institution of higher learning in the state.


History

Extant mentions of the Deer Lodge Valley prior to 1860 are found as occasional remarks in records written for other purposes. Consistent record-keeping begins with the writings of Granville Stuart and others in the early 1860s., pp 46-56 1860 marks the beginning of permanent occupation of both the valley and the future site of the city of Deer Lodge by
European-Americans European Americans (also referred to as Euro-Americans) are Americans of European ancestry. This term includes people who are descended from the first European settlers in the United States as well as people who are descended from more recent Eu ...
., p. 118, Chapter 26


Fur trade era

Before 1860, the Deer Lodge Valley was not the territory of any American Indian group. Gatherings were held there, including horse races. American Indian groups from the west, Flatheads, Pend d'Oreilles et al. passed through the valley as an alternative route to and from the buffalo hunting grounds to the east., Chapter XIX The first documented visit to this area by European-American explorers occurred in 1805–1806, when
Lewis and Clark Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * "Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohead ...
's
Corps of Discovery The Corps of Discovery was a specially established unit of the United States Army which formed the nucleus of the Lewis and Clark Expedition that took place between May 1804 and September 1806. The Corps was led jointly by Captain Meriwether Lew ...
expedition passed by the Deer Lodge Valley without entering it. Evidence of earlier incursion, probably by Spaniards, was noted by miner James B. Beattle on Sugar Loaf mountain in the Race Track mining district on the west side of the Deer Lodge Valley., p. 67 Early European trapper/traders passing through the valley referred to it as "the Deer House Plains". The Clark Fork river was called the Arrow Stone river in the 1830s. By the 1850s it was called the Deer Lodge Creek/Hellgate River. Catholic Father Pierre-Jean De Smet brought the first wagons known to have passed through the valley, in 1841. In 1846, the Deer Lodge Valley became part of the United States and
Oregon Territory The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Oregon. O ...
with the signing of the
Oregon Treaty The Oregon Treaty is a treaty between the United Kingdom and the United States that was signed on June 15, 1846, in Washington, D.C. The treaty brought an end to the Oregon boundary dispute by settling competing American and British claims to ...
by the U. S. and
Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...
. From 1853 to 1863 it was in
Washington Territory The Territory of Washington was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington. It was created from the ...
, then briefly part of
Idaho Territory The Territory of Idaho was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1863, until July 3, 1890, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as Idaho. History 1860s The territory ...
until the creation of
Montana Territory The Territory of Montana was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1864, until November 8, 1889, when it was admitted as the 41st state in the Union as the state of Montana. Original boundaries ...
in 1864., p. 94 European-American settlement of the valley gained momentum during the 1850s and 60's, with the primary site being at present-day Deer Lodge. During the 1850s, trapper/traders from Fort Hall began wintering herds of horses and cattle in the valley. Also during that decade placer gold finds were made near present-day Gold Creek, first in 1852 by Francois (Bennetsee) Findley, followed in 1856 by Hereford, Saunders, Madison et al.,, p. 209 and in 1858–61 by James and Granville Stuart, Reese Anderson et al. In 1860–62, Lt. John Mullan oversaw construction of the Mullan Road, which connected
Walla Walla, Washington Walla Walla is a city in Walla Walla County, Washington, where it is the largest city and county seat. It had a population of 34,060 at the 2020 census, estimated to have decreased to 33,927 as of 2021. The population of the city and its two su ...
Territory with Fort Benton, then in
Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of N ...
. The Mullan Road passed through the north end of the Deer Lodge Valley.


European-American settlement, Montana gold rush

John Francis (Johnny) Grant built the first permanent structures in the valley in 1859–60, at Grantsville near present-day
Garrison A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mili ...
. Grant had begun grazing cattle and horse herds in the north valley several years previously and "wintered over" there in 1857–58. In 1860, feeling as he said "lonely", he returned to Fort Hall for summer trading and induced several fellow trader/trappers and their families to return to the valley with him at the end of the season. Instead of locating at Grantsville, his friends chose to build at the site of present-day Deer Lodge, where several Mexican trapper/traders and their
Metis Metis or Métis may refer to: Ethnic groups * Métis, recognized Indigenous communities in Canada and America whose distinct culture and language emerged after early intermarriage between First Nations peoples and early European settlers, primar ...
families had already established the seasonal settlement of Spanish Fork. While Johnny Grant had been at Fort Hall, several people had come from Fort Union down the Mullan Road route and begun building homes at Grantsville. In 1861, the Stuart brothers and Reese Anderson established American Fork near present-day Gold Creek. Also in that year Johnny Grant moved his large family to his newly built house at Deer Lodge, at the present-day site of Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site. During the next two years, placer gold discoveries at Grasshopper Creek, Alder Gulch and other locations to the south caused a population decline in the valley, including the abandoning of Grantsville and American Fork. Beginning in 1864 with gold strikes to the north, Deer Lodge City grew rapidly as a base for supplies to mines in the surrounding mountains.


Montana Territory

By 1861–1862, Spanish Fork was more often referred to as Cottonwood. In 1862, a Deer Lodge Town Committee was established to lay out the town site, to be called LaBarge City, after Missouri River steamboat Captain Joseph LaBarge whose firm, LaBarge, Harkness & Company, had proposed to start a business in Cottonwood. Creation of Idaho Territory in 1863 induced a name change to Idaho City. And with the 1864 designation of Montana Territory, Deer Lodge City became the choice. Montana's first territorial legislature defined most of the boundaries of
Deer Lodge County Deer Lodge County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Montana. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 9,421. It forms a consolidated city-county government with its county seat of Anaconda, Mon ...
, establishing the county seat at the placer mining camp of Silver Bow City, near Butte. In September 1865, county voters transferred the seat to Deer Lodge City., p. 65 During the first half of the 1860s, Granville Stuart described valley social life as including many gay dances and parties, which was the way of the Metis. By 1866, Johnny Grant and many of his fellow Metis had become disenchanted with their increasingly numerous neighbors from "the States". In that year, Grant sold most of his Deer Lodge Valley holdings to
Conrad Kohrs Conrad Kohrs, born Carsten Conrad Kohrs (August 5, 1835 – 23 July 1920) was a Montana cattle rancher (cattle baron) and politician. Biography He was born in Holstein, a province that was ethnically and culturally German and part of the ...
and in 1867 led a mass exodus of Metis families to the Red River country of
Manitoba, Canada , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...
. In 1869, the Territorial Prison was located at Deer Lodge. Also that year, the town site plat for Deer Lodge City was recorded. In 1878, Montana Collegiate Institute was established at Deer Lodge City. It opened for classes in 1883 and closed in 1914. Attorney Horace Clagett, of the Deer Lodge firm Clagett and Dixon, was elected U.S. Representative from Montana Territory for the 1871–73 term. He was defeated for reelection by
Martin Maginnis Martin Maginnis (October 27, 1841 – March 27, 1919) was a nineteenth-century politician, soldier, publisher, editor and miner from Minnesota and the Montana Territory. Origins and early life Maginnis was born in 1841 on his family's farm ...
. Clagett was noted for introducing the legislation establishing
Yellowstone National Park Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in the western United States, largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U.S. Congress with the Yellowst ...
. Clagett's partner,
William W. Dixon William W. Dixon William Wirt Dixon (June 3, 1838 – November 13, 1910) was a U.S. Representative from Montana. Born in Brooklyn, New York, Dixon moved to Illinois in 1843 and to Keokuk, Iowa, in 1849. Dixon pursued preparatory studies an ...
, later moved to Butte and upset Thomas H. Carter in 1891 to serve a single term as U.S. Representative from the State of Montana. Clagett and Dixon platted the first addition to Deer Lodge City, in 1872. Perhaps its most prominent building was the former St. Joseph's Hospital.


State of Montana, Powell County

Deer Lodge City was incorporated in 1888,, Book 1 with a mayor and aldermen as officers. Montana achieved statehood in 1889 and a battle ensued between Helena and Anaconda over the location of the capitol in which Helena finally triumphed in 1894., p. 95 In 1896, Anaconda took the Deer Lodge County seat away from Deer Lodge. This began a battle which culminated in the creation of Powell County in 1901, with its county seat at Deer Lodge.


Frank Conley

After statehood, the State of Montana let a contract to run
Montana State Prison The Montana State Prison is a men's correctional facility of the Montana Department of Corrections in unincorporated Powell County, Montana, about west of Deer Lodge. The current facility was constructed between 1974 and 1979 in response to the ...
, which was awarded to Frank Conley and Thomas McTague., p. 70 They held the contract until 1908. In that year, the State took over running Montana State Prison, appointing Frank Conley as warden. Conley remained in that capacity until 1921, when Governor
Joseph M. Dixon Joseph Moore Dixon (July 31, 1867May 22, 1934) was an American History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican politician from Montana. He served as a U.S. House of Representatives, Representative, United States Senate, Senator, and th ...
replaced Conley with M. W. Potter. The Governor then commissioned an investigation of Conley's administration. This resulted in the
MacDonald Report Macdonald, MacDonald or McDonald may refer to: Organisations * McDonald's, a chain of fast food restaurants * McDonald & Co., a former investment firm * MacDonald Motorsports, a NASCAR team * Macdonald Realty, a Canadian real estate brokerage ...
, which would be used as the basis for a civil lawsuit by the State of Montana against Conley. The year following,
Montana Attorney General The Montana Department of Justice is a state law enforcement agency of Montana. The Department is equivalent to the State Bureau of Investigation in other states. The Montana Attorney General, currently Republican Austin Knudsen, heads the age ...
Wellington Rankin sued Conley for misuse of state funds and materials, in the case ''
State of Montana vs Frank Conley State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...
'' The case took three months to try and resulted in the State of Montana being ordered to reimburse Conley., Chapter 8: THE CONLEY CASE Deer Lodge City celebrated with a victory party. Frank Conley was elected the fifth (1892–93), seventh (1895–1903) and tenth (1907–1928) mayor of Deer Lodge City. When he resigned for the last time, an article in the ''
Billings Gazette The ''Billings Gazette'' is a daily newspaper based in Billings, Montana that primarily covers issues in southeast Montana and parts of northern Wyoming. Historically it has been known as the largest newspaper in Montana and is geographically one ...
'' called him 'the longest serving mayor in American history'. Mayor Conley was instrumental in bringing the division headquarters and shops of the
Milwaukee Road The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (CMStP&P), often referred to as the "Milwaukee Road" , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwest and Northwest of the United States from 1847 until 1986. The company experienced ...
to Deer Lodge City in 1910. Over the next decade, he presided over upbuilding the town's infrastructure to accommodate the rapidly expanding population. He was also responsible for the building of the City Hall.


Montana State Prison

In 1908, inmates W. A. Hayes and George Rock killed guard John Robinson and seriously wounded Warden Conley in an attempted prison breakout. In 1959, a prolonged riot occurred at the prison, led by Jerry Miles and
Lee Smart Lee Mitchell Smart (born 5 April 1988) in Swindon, Wiltshire, is a former motorcycle speedway rider from England. Career Smart raced for the Mildenhall Fen Tigers in the Premier League in 2008 after being released by the Birmingham Brummies ...
, which resulted in the slaying of Deputy Warden Ted Rothe and the eventual suicides of Miles and Smart. All inmates were moved in 1977–79 to a new state prison facility outside of Deer Lodge. The town of Deer Lodge employs the Powell County Museum & Arts Foundation to manage the old facility as a museum.


Superfund site

In the 1870s, Butte developed into a rich silver mining camp.
Marcus Daly Marcus Daly (December 5, 1841 – November 12, 1900) was an Irish-born American businessman known as one of the three " Copper Kings" of Butte, Montana, United States. Early life Daly emigrated from County Cavan, Ireland, to the United States ...
's discovery of rich copper veins in his Anaconda mine launched the Copper Kings era at Butte. In 1883, Daly established his smelter facilities at newly platted
Anaconda, Montana Anaconda, county seat of Deer Lodge County, which has a consolidated city-county government, is located in southwestern Montana, United States. Located at the foot of the Anaconda Range (known locally as the "Pintlers"), the Continental Divi ...
. Anaconda immediately became Deer Lodge County's major population center and employer. Smelting activities at Butte and Anaconda left behind enormous amounts of toxic wastes. Flooding on
Silver Bow Creek Silver Bow Creek is a headwater stream of the Clark Fork (river) originating within the city limits of Butte, Montana, from the confluence of Little Basin and Blacktail Creeks. A former northern tributary, Yankee Doodle Creek, no longer flows d ...
and Warm Springs Creek, particularly in the great valley flood of 1908, spread toxic wastes from Butte through Deer Lodge City, to the Milltown Dam, just east of Missoula. As a result of legal actions begun in 1983 and culminating in 2008, the course of the Clark Fork River from Anaconda to the Milltown Dam was declared to be a Superfund cleanup site. Cleanup costs are financed from the settlement with
ARCO ARCO ( ) is a brand of gasoline stations currently owned by Marathon Petroleum after BP sold its rights. BP commercializes the brand in Northern California, Oregon and Washington, while Marathon has rights for the rest of the United States an ...
(now BP-ARCO).


Economic decline

Interstate 90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West, Great Plains, Midwest, and ...
bypassed Deer Lodge in 1960. In 1961, the Milwaukee Road ended its Olympian Hiawatha passenger trains. Limited passenger service between Minneapolis and Deer Lodge continued until 1964, at which time all Milwaukee Road passenger service to Deer Lodge ended. In the 1970s, the
Anaconda Copper Company The Anaconda Copper Mining Company, known as the Amalgamated Copper Company between 1899 to 1915, was an American mining company headquartered in Butte, Montana. It was one of the largest trusts of the early 20th century and one of the largest mi ...
suffered financial setbacks which ultimately caused its 1977 merger with ARCO. By 1982, ARCO had closed down the smelter at Anaconda and stopped mining copper at Butte. In 1980, the Milwaukee Road shut down its western extension. All of its infrastructure from
Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region ...
to Miles City, Montana was torn out, including the rails themselves.


Geography

Deer Lodge is located at (46.396183, -112.732922). According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of th ...
, the city has a total area of , all land.


Climate

This climatic region is typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot summers and cold—sometimes severely cold—winters. According to the
Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...
system, Deer Lodge has an Alpine influenced climate
Semi Arid climate SEMI is an industry association comprising companies involved in the electronics design and manufacturing supply chain. They provide equipment, materials and services for the manufacture of semiconductors, photovoltaic panels, LED and flat panel ...
,


Demographics

As of the
census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...
of 2020, the city of Deer Lodge had lost more than one third of its peak census population of 1960.


2010 census

As of the
census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...
of 2010, there were 3,111 people, 1,386 households, and 847 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...
was . There were 1,549 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.8%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...
, 0.6%
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.8% Native American, 0.6% Asian, and 1.1% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...
or Latino of any race were 1.2% of the population. There were 1,386 households, of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.9% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...
living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 38.9% were non-families. 35.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.79. The median age in the city was 45.7 years. 22.3% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 20.3% were from 25 to 44; 30.4% were from 45 to 64; and 20.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.7% male and 50.3% female.


2000 census

As of the
census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...
of 2000, there were 3,421 people, 1,442 households, and 911 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...
was 2,369.3 people per square mile (917.3/km2). There were 1,593 housing units at an average density of 1,103.3 per square mile (427.1/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 95.67%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...
, 0.03%
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 1.02% Native American, 0.61% Asian, 0.61% from other races, and 2.05% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...
or Latino of any race were 1.84% of the population. There were 1,442 households, out of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.7% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...
living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.8% were non-families. 32.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.93. In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.3% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 19.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 93.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.2 males. The median income for a household in the city was $29,859, and the median income for a family was $36,108. Males had a median income of $27,903 versus $20,227 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...
for the city was $14,883. About 8.7% of families and 10.9% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 13.3% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.


Media

The ''
Silver State Post Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...
'' is Powell County's only newspaper.
KQRV KQRV (96.9 FM, "The River") is a commercial radio station in Deer Lodge, Montana Deer Lodge is a city in and the county seat of Powell County, Montana, United States. The population was 2,938 at the 2020 census. Description The city is ...
(96.9 FM) is a local radio station licensed in Deer Lodge.


Government and infrastructure

The
United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the ...
operates the Deer Lodge Post Office. The Montana Department of Corrections operates the current
Montana State Prison The Montana State Prison is a men's correctional facility of the Montana Department of Corrections in unincorporated Powell County, Montana, about west of Deer Lodge. The current facility was constructed between 1974 and 1979 in response to the ...
facility in a nearby
unincorporated area An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either hav ...
in Powell County, near Deer Lodge. Deer Lodge-City-County Airport is a public use airport located 2 miles west of town.


Education

Deer Lodge Schools educates students from kindergarten through 12th grade. High school education in Powell County is served by
Powell County High School Powell may refer to: People * Powell (surname) * Powell (given name) * Powell baronets, several baronetcies * Colonel Powell (disambiguation), several military officers * General Powell (disambiguation), several military leaders * Governor Powel ...
located in Deer Lodge. In recent years the school has had an enrollment of about 300 students. The school currently competes athletically in the 6B conference with Superior, Missoula Loyola, Valley Christian, Darby and Florence. Although being in existence since 1903 the school won its first athletic team state championship in
golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...
in 2005. The team name is the Wardens. The William K. Kohrs Memorial Library, built in Deer Lodge in 1902, is "the only dedicated public library in Powell County." The Kohrs library is modeled after the Carnegie Libraries. "It was built "for $30,000 by pioneer cattle baron
Conrad Kohrs Conrad Kohrs, born Carsten Conrad Kohrs (August 5, 1835 – 23 July 1920) was a Montana cattle rancher (cattle baron) and politician. Biography He was born in Holstein, a province that was ethnically and culturally German and part of the ...
and his wife Augusta as a memorial to their son." , the library was struggling financially, and was operating without a library director.


Film credits

Deer Lodge has been a filming location for a number of movies including: * ''
Rancho Deluxe ''Rancho Deluxe'' is a 1975 Neo-Western comedy film directed by Frank Perry. Jeff Bridges and Sam Waterston star as two cattle rustlers in modern-day Livingston, Montana, who plague a wealthy ranch owner, played by Clifton James. The film als ...
'' (1975) * '' Heaven's Gate'' (1980) * ''
Fast-Walking ''Fast-Walking'' is a 1982 American prison drama film directed, produced, and written by James B. Harris, based on Ernest Brawley's 1974 novel ''The Rap''. The film stars James Woods, Tim McIntire, Kay Lenz, Robert Hooks, and M. Emmet Walsh. ...
'' (1982) * '' Runaway Train'' (1985) * '' Diggstown'' (1992) * '' F.T.W.'' (1994) * ''
Love Comes to the Executioner ''Love Comes to the Executioner'' is a 2006 American film directed and written by Kyle Bergersen, starring Jonathan Tucker, Jeremy Renner, and Ginnifer Goodwin. Plot summary A young man becomes the executioner at a prison, where his brother sit ...
'' (2006) * '' Iron Ridge'' (2008)


UFO documentary

In a 2004 documentary titled ''The Secret of Redgate'' by Lynda J. Cowen and
Jim Marrs James Farrell Marrs Jr. (December 5, 1943 – August 2, 2017) was an American newspaper journalist and ''New York Times'' best-selling author of books and articles on a wide range of alleged cover-ups and conspiracies. Marrs was a prominent ...
, a number of Deer Lodge residents explain about their experiences with extraterrestrial beings and the rumours surrounding these events. These occurrences which date back some fifty years took place at a location named ''Redgate'' on the eastside of Deer Lodge. Many of the locals have had their fair share of bad experiences with "redgate". Henry Huber had this to say about the subject: "one time I drove a girl up there and after parking she touched my left leg, I came instantly just from the touch, I believe an alien possessed me and made me do it."


Notable people

The following individuals are either notable current or former residents of Deer Lodge (R), were born or raised in Deer Lodge in their early years (B), or otherwise have a significant connection to the history of the Deer Lodge area (C). * Mary Stuart Abbott, daughter of Granville Stuart and Aubony Stuart, wife of (E. C.) Teddy Blue Abbott *
John Bozeman John Merin Bozeman (January 1835 – April 20, 1867) was a pioneer and frontiersman in the American West who helped establish the Bozeman Trail through Wyoming Territory into the gold fields of southwestern Montana Territory in the early 1 ...
, founder of
Bozeman, Montana Bozeman is a city and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States. Located in southwest Montana, the 2020 census put Bozeman's population at 53,293, making it the fourth-largest city in Montana. It is the principal city o ...
*
William H. Clagett William Horace Clagett (September 21, 1838 – August 3, 1901) was a nineteenth-century politician and lawyer from various places in the United States. He was the uncle of Samuel B. Pettengill. Born in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, Clagett mo ...
, lawyer, U.S. Representative from
Montana Territory The Territory of Montana was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1864, until November 8, 1889, when it was admitted as the 41st state in the Union as the state of Montana. Original boundaries ...
in 1871–1873, introduced legislation to establish
Yellowstone National Park Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in the western United States, largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U.S. Congress with the Yellowst ...
, law partner of William W. Dixon, friend of
Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has pr ...
(Samuel Clemens) *
William Andrews Clark William Andrews Clark Sr. (January 8, 1839March 2, 1925) was an American politician and entrepreneur, involved with mining, banking, and railroads. Biography Clark was born in Connellsville, Pennsylvania. He moved with his family to Iowa in 1 ...
, United States Senator from Montana – 1901–07, Copper King at
Butte, Montana Butte ( ) is a consolidated city-county and the county seat of Silver Bow County, Montana, United States. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the sole entity of Butte-Silver Bow. The city covers , and, according to t ...
, became one of America's richest people, partner in Donnell, Clark and Larabie Bank at Deer Lodge, Montana in the 1870s, father of Huguette Clark * Frank Conley, warden of
Montana State Prison The Montana State Prison is a men's correctional facility of the Montana Department of Corrections in unincorporated Powell County, Montana, about west of Deer Lodge. The current facility was constructed between 1974 and 1979 in response to the ...
1890–1921, mayor of Deer Lodge, Montana 1892–93, 1895–1903, 1907–1928, chairman of Montana Highway Commission 1919–1921, provost marshal of Butte, Montana, in 1914, defendant in ''State of Montana vs Frank Conley'' in 1922 * Father Pierre-Jean De Smet, first wagons known to have traversed Deer Lodge Valley in 1841, established St. Mary's Mission in the
Bitterroot Valley The Bitterroot Valley is located in southwestern Montana, along the Bitterroot River between the Bitterroot Range and Sapphire Mountains, in the Northwestern United States. Geography The valley extends approximately from Lost Trail Pass in Ida ...
, performed American Indian baptisms at Warm Springs thermal mound in Deer Lodge Valley in 1840s, drew early maps including the Deer Lodge Valley *
William W. Dixon William W. Dixon William Wirt Dixon (June 3, 1838 – November 13, 1910) was a U.S. Representative from Montana. Born in Brooklyn, New York, Dixon moved to Illinois in 1843 and to Keokuk, Iowa, in 1849. Dixon pursued preparatory studies an ...
, lawyer, U.S. Representative from State of Montana in 1891–1893, law partner of William H. Clagett; final author of Montana's 'Alien Law' of 1872 (overturned by Territorial Supreme Court in 1874) * Eric Funk,
Composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Def ...
and professor at
Montana State University Montana State University (MSU) is a public land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's largest university. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's degrees in 68 fields, and doctoral degrees in 35 fie ...
* Kevin S. Giles, newspaper journalist and author of ''One Woman Against War: The Jeannette Rankin Story'' (2016), ''Summer of the Black Chevy'' (2015), ''Jerry's Riot: The True Story of Montana's 1959 Prison Disturbance'' (2005) and ''Flight of the Dove: The Story of Jeannette Rankin'' (1980) * John Francis Grant, built first permanent house in Deer Lodge Valley, co-founder of Deer Lodge, Montana, livestock trader on
Emigrant Trail In the history of the American frontier, overland trails were built by pioneers throughout the 19th century and especially between 1829 and 1870 as an alternative to sea and railroad transport. These immigrants began to settle much of North Amer ...
near Fort Hall, cattle rancher, leader of 1867 exodus from Deer Lodge Valley to the Red River country of
Manitoba, Canada , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...
, participant in first Riel Rebellion *
Phil Jackson Philip Douglas Jackson (born September 17, 1945) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and executive. A power forward, Jackson played 12 seasons in the NBA, winning NBA championships with the New York Knicks in 1970 a ...
, NBA player, coach, 13-time NBA champion; born in Deer Lodge *
Conrad Kohrs Conrad Kohrs, born Carsten Conrad Kohrs (August 5, 1835 – 23 July 1920) was a Montana cattle rancher (cattle baron) and politician. Biography He was born in Holstein, a province that was ethnically and culturally German and part of the ...
, cattle rancher, co-founder of Deer Lodge, "Montana's Cattle King", brother of Henry Kohrs (founder of Kohrs Packing Co. of
Davenport, Iowa Davenport is a city in and the county seat of Scott County, Iowa, United States. Located along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state, it is the largest of the Quad Cities, a metropolitan area with a population of 384,324 and ...
) * James H. Mills, pioneer Montana newspaperman, publisher of the Montana Post at Virginia City, Montana from 1866 until 1869 and The New Northwest at Deer Lodge City from 1869 until 1897, "The Father of Montana Journalism", Secretary of the Territory of Montana 1877–82 under President Hayes * John Mullan, military rank of captain, surveyor of possible transcontinental railroad routes in what is now Montana in 1850s, oversaw building of the Mullan Road linking
Walla Walla, Washington Walla Walla is a city in Walla Walla County, Washington, where it is the largest city and county seat. It had a population of 34,060 at the 2020 census, estimated to have decreased to 33,927 as of 2021. The population of the city and its two su ...
and Fort Benton in 1860–62 *
Jean Parker Jean Parker (born Lois May Green; August 11, 1915 – November 30, 2005) was an American film and stage actress. A native of Montana, indigent during the Great Depression, she was adopted by a family in Pasadena, California at age ten. She ...
, actress, known for such films as ''
Little Women ''Little Women'' is a coming-of-age novel written by American novelist Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888). Alcott wrote the book, originally published in two volumes in 1868 and 1869, at the request of her publisher. The story follows the live ...
'', ''
The Navy Way ''The Navy Way'' is a 1944 American war film directed by William Berke concentrating on US Navy recruit training with many sequences filmed at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center. The film had its premiere at the Genesee Theatre in nearby Wauke ...
'' and ''
The Gunfighter ''The Gunfighter'' is a 1950 American Western film directed by Henry King and starring Gregory Peck, Helen Westcott, Millard Mitchell and Karl Malden. It was written by screenwriters William Bowers and William Sellers, with an uncredited rewri ...
''; born Lois Mae Green in Deer Lodge *
Edgar Samuel Paxson Edgar Samuel Paxson (April 25, 1852 – November 9, 1919) was an American frontier painter, scout, soldier and writer, based mainly in Montana. He is best known for his portraits of Native Americans in the Old West and for his depiction of the ...
, frontier artist * Jean'ne Shreeve, chemist * Aubony (Tookanka) Stuart,
Shoshone The Shoshone or Shoshoni ( or ) are a Native American tribe with four large cultural/linguistic divisions: * Eastern Shoshone: Wyoming * Northern Shoshone: southern Idaho * Western Shoshone: Nevada, northern Utah * Goshute: western Utah, easte ...
, wife of Granville Stuart * Granville Stuart, co-founder of Deer Lodge, Montana, co-discoverer of gold at
Gold Creek, Montana Gold Creek is a creek in southwestern Montana, United States, on Interstate 90 northwest of Garrison, between Butte and Missoula. It flows through parts of Granite County and Powell County and empties into the Clark Fork (river) at the ownof Gol ...
, co-owner of
DHS Ranch The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior or home ministries of other countries. Its stated missions involve anti-terr ...
, leader of vigilante group
Stuart's Stranglers Stuart's Stranglers was a well-known vigilante group in Montana that was founded in 1884 and led by Granville Stuart in response to widespread livestock theft at that time. They were also less commonly known as the "Montana Stranglers." History ...
in 1880s, author of "Forty Years on the Frontier", "Mr. Montana" *
Tendoy Tendoy is an unincorporated rural service point in Lemhi County, Idaho, United States, located at (44.9593700, -113.6447780) on State Highway 28, at an altitude of 4,842 feet (1,476 m). It consists of a small general store and house. ...
, Lemhi Shoshone leading chief, brother-in-law of Johnny Grant *
Patricia Nell Warren Patricia Nell Warren (June 15, 1936 – February 9, 2019), also known by her pen name Patricia Kilina, was an American novelist, poet, editor and journalist. Her second novel, ''The Front Runner (novel), The Front Runner'' (1974), was the first w ...
, writer, great-granddaughter of Conrad Kohrs * Powder River Jack Lee, cowboy Western singer, songwriter, poet, rodeo cowboy, performer with Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show, along with spouse Kitti; lived in Deer Lodge in 1930's (see
City of Mesa Cemetery The City of Mesa Cemetery is a historic cemetery located at 1212 N. Center Street in the city of Mesa, Arizona. It is the final resting place of various notable early citizens of Mesa. Among those who are interred in the cemetery are early pioneer ...
) * Gem Kee, successful Chinese immigrant merchant entrepreneur of Deer Lodge 1870–1888; owner/operator of 'the China store' & Kim Chung Lung Co.; married to Ida, first little foot ( Foot binding) Chinese woman in Montana * August F. Thrasher, built & ran the Sun Pearl Gallery on Main Street in 1869–1872, Deer Lodge's first photography shop; early photographer of Montana, Idaho, Yellowstone Park; toured Montana with Montana Stereopticon show in 1871 * Shigeo (Shig) Nishimura, born and raised in Deer Lodge's Japan Town; briefly famous in
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
for getting his future wife, Yaeko Nakamura, released from internment camp at Tule Lake, CA; MD at Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, WA, specializing in obstetrics - 1952–1987; track physician at Spokane's Playfair Race Course - 1969-1987 *
Elizabeth Lochrie Elizabeth Davey Lochrie (July 1, 1890 – May 17, 1981) was an American painter, sculptor, and muralist born in Deer Lodge, Montana. She is best remembered for her portraits and portrayal of Native Americans and their lifestyle in the Montana ...
, born and raised in Deer Lodge. Famous artist, muralist, and lecturer, in Montana and nation-wide. Painter of 'the fading frontier'. Cartoonist for Deer Lodge newspaper Silver State Post. Inducted into Piegan Blackfeet tribe as Netchitaki (Lone Woman).


See also

* List of municipalities in Montana


References

;Notes ;Citations


External links


Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site

Montana State Prison

Clark Fork Watershed Education Program

Old Montana Prison Museums

Powell County Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Cities in Powell County, Montana County seats in Montana 1860 establishments in Washington Territory Populated places established in 1860 Cities in Montana