PART 1: GEOLOGY AND FAUNAS 



GEOGRAPHY 



The region here primarily considered is comprised in Tps. 3-6 N. 

 and Rs. 13-16 E. (Montana principal meridian), an area of about 575 

 square miles. It is approximately included in latitude 45°55' to 46°20' 

 N., longitude 109°40' to 110° 10' W., and is in central Montana, 

 Tps. 3-5 N. in Sweetgrass County and T. 6 N. in Wheatland County, 

 The principal commercial center is Hariowton, seat of Wheatland 

 County, 8 miles due north of the designated area. This town, popula- 

 tion about 1,500, is on the north side of the Musselshell River and is a 

 division point on the main line of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, 

 and Pacific Railroad. About an equal distance south of the area is 

 Bigtimber, population 1,200, on the south bank of the Yellowstone 

 River. The only settlement in the limited region here primarily 

 treated is Melville, an old town once of some importance but now 

 reduced to little more than a post office and crossroads store. It is in 

 sees. 11 and 14, T. 4 N., R. 14 E. 



There are main east-west motor highways and railroads in the 

 Musselshell and Yellowstone Valleys, north and south of this area, 

 but just here east and v/est through travel is blocked by the impassable 

 mountains immediately to the west. There is, however, a secondary 

 north-south highway from Hariowton to Bigtimber through the area, 

 and this is now being improved and graveled (1935). There are 

 several county roads, graded but unsurfaced, as shown on the map, 

 and also many private roads and wagon trails, which permit approach 

 to within a mile or less of any point in the field. 



Much of the land has been plowed for dry-land wheat raising, but 

 a great deal of it was not suitable for this purpose and so most of the 

 wheat farms have been abandoned. A little wheat and some hay or 

 alfalfa are still raised, but most of the region is given over to grazing, 

 mainly as winter range for sheep and some cattle. The population is 

 sparse and in recent years has not been prosperous. There are a few 

 dude ranches in and near the mountains in the western part of the 

 field. There are no known mineral resources. 



Topographically the area lies immediately east of the Crazy Moun- 

 tains, a very rugged and beautiful isolated range 25 or 30 miles long, 

 north to south, and 10 to 15 miles in width, rising to 11,178 feet in 

 Crazy Peak. The area specifically treated extends from the foothills 

 of the mountains eastward about 25 miles. The divide between the 

 Musselshell and Yellowstone Rivers runs through the field. The 

 northern part is drained mostly by Fish Creek, here running eastward, 

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