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D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA N A M A G A Z I N E • S P R I N G 2 0 2 4
W
HEN AND WHERE WAS MONTANA'S FIRST ROAD
CREATED? That's a big question that could use a
little more precision. Taken broadly, it could be ar-
gued that Montana's very first road was a pathway worn by
indigenous peoples who were following the migration of
buffalo 13,000 years ago. Narrow the definition of "road"
to include any thoroughfare designed to carry wheeled ve-
hicles, and you have to zoom forward in time to 1859-60,
when the 624-mile Mullan Trail was built as a military road
between Fort Walla Walla, Washington, and Fort Benton.
It's considered Montana's first officially engineered road.
If your qualifier is pavement, the answer doesn't coincide
with the appearance of the automobile. Far from it. As the
steam- and gas-powered vehicles began to appear back
East, it took a while for autos to become widespread under
the Big Sky. Even after the smoke-belching, horse-terrify-
ing rattletraps became more commonplace in Montana,
auto enthusiasts had to put up with roads that were little
by EDNOR THERRIAULT
photos by TOM RATH
MONTANA
PAVING
