Distinctly Montana Magazine

w w w . d i s t i n c t l y m o n t a n a . c o m 79 er to serve the line that ran from Deadwood, South Dakota to Fort Keogh (today's Miles City). In 1879, Cheyenne at- tacked two repair men, killing one, in the Mizpah Creek In- cident. This was near present-day Powderville in the north- eastern portion of the county. The Indian wars did not end with Little Bighorn, and as late as 1897, Cheyenne men killed a white sheepherder and his dog. In response, the settlers sent their women and chil- dren to Miles City and Sheridan, Wyoming, and the menfolk built a fort for protection. The Cheyenne tribe turned over the men responsible, and no further Indian attack happened. Today, you can see the remains of Fort Howes near the junc- tion of Otter Creek Road and Taylor Creek Road, in west central Powder Riv- er County. While you're out enjoying the back roads of Montana, turn west from Fort Howes and drive through the Custer Na- tional Forest to Blacks Pond. The man- made pond is a favorite of bird watchers and has its own campground. Today, two highways cross Powder Riv- er County. U.S. Highway 212 crosses the county east to west and serves as a short- cut from Interstate 90 at the Little Bighorn Battlefield to Belle Fouche, South Dako- ta, and eventually Rapid City. Montana Highway 59 crosses the county north to south, and runs from MT 200 near Jor- dan to Gillette, Wyoming. It is the main connection between Powder River Coun- ty and what passes in these parts for city life. Where the two roads cross lies the Powder River seat, Broadus. The Broadus Post Office was estab- lished in 1900 but a clerical error in Washington, D.C. misspelled the name. Oscar Broaddus came to the area in the mid-1880s as a cowhand. He built the first school and eventually sold his land to the Trautman fam- ily. With the creation of Powder River County, Mrs. Traut- man donated 80 acres to serve as county seat. Today, Broa- dus is the only incorporated town in the county, with a 2020 population of 456. Looking at the map, you'll find many town names strewn across the coun- ty. Most of them are just that: names on the map. All have a history of high hopes, but today little more than a der- elict building or two along the road. The exceptions are Biddle and Powderville. Roughly five miles south of the coun- ty seat, on Montana Highway 59, you'll find Biddle. The 2020 Census counted 48 people in Biddle proper, and 112 to- tal served by the Biddle Post Office, zip code 59314, which covers 281 square miles and most of southeastern Powder River County. Biddle has an elementa- ry school which serves 11 children in a single room, and, at least based on what I've found online, a store and gas station. I must admit I've never been to Biddle, Montana. Sixty-two miles from Biddle, and 33 from Broadus is Powderville, in the north- eastern corner of the county. Like so many other Powder River communities, Powderville had its own post office from 1885 to 1911. The town became a stage stop on the Deadwood (South Dakota) to Miles City line and had an establishment familiar to anyone who grew up watching TV Westerns—the main floor saloon with a hotel upstairs. History buffs are drawn to the communi- ty's Boot Hill Cemetery, overseen by the Power River Histor- ical Society. BROADUS POST OFFICE WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1900 BUT A CLERICAL ERROR IN WASHINGTON, D.C., MISSPELLED THE NAME.

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