Quick Facts
Location:
Located 1 mile west of Stevensvhille
Significance:
The site of the first Jesuit mission in the Northwest, Fort Owen takes visitors back to 1850 to the first white settlement and trading post in Montana.
Designation:
National Register of Historic Places
Amenities
11 listed
Entrance Passes for Sale, Fire Extinguisher, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Information, Information Kiosk/Bulletin Board, Parking - Auto, Parking - Bus/RV, Picnic Table, Recycling, Restroom, Toilet - Vault/Composting
Fort Owen State Park is the site of many "firsts" in Montana history and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was home to Montana's first Catholic church founded by Father DeSmet in 1841, and the state's first permanent white settlement. Also located here was Montana's first sawmill, first grist mill, first agricultural development, first water right, and the first school for settlers. Major John Owen arrived in the Bitterroot Valley in 1850 and established the fort and began trading with the Indians and the growing number of immigrants.
Period furnishings and artifacts are displayed in the restored rooms of the east barracks. Take your time to browse the interpretive signs and exhibits that detail the state park's history.
Fort Owen State Park is 1.9 acres in size and sits at an elevation of 3,398 feet.
This are was entirely submurdged multiple times by Glacial Lake Missoula of the Ice Age floods.
Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail
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Tags
* ice age floods national geologic trail
* fort owen
* montana state parks
* ice age floods
* glacial lake missoula
* historic site
* historic structures
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
