by Allan Tooley
Dog Gulch is a few miles “upstream” from McKinley, and was the site of a minor gold rush in 1869. Things didn’t go particularly well, and there was never a whole lot of gold there anyway. But more than most Montana ghost towns, Dog Gulch’s story warrants a roadside history marker. If you haven’t been through the area lately, here’s a photo:
From the PREHISTORIC AND HISTORIC OVERVIEW: McKINLEY NATIONAL FOREST. By Lance M. Foster, for the McKinley National Forest, USDA, 2009.
THE MEDICINE RIVER RANGER STATION: 1896-Today
1896-1904: Swanson Family Cabin
Medicine River Ranger Station (now usually known locally as the Medicine Station Cabin) was originally built by Joseph (Old Joe) Swanson about 1896 as a home for himself, his wife, Elizabeth and daughter, Edna. Swanson was born in 1874, a son of James Swanson who came into the McKinley area from Helena, as part of the Dog Gulch Rush of 1869 and settled here. Joe Swanson did a little placer mining in Little Medicine Creek and ran a few head of cattle, but the country was so remote and harsh that it was too hard on his family, and hungry Blackfeet Indians from the reservation nearby sometimes ran off with a cow or two. A young son named Robert was born there in 1896, but he died under a year old of a fever. A year later, another baby was born, another boy, Joseph Jr. He lived to the age of three, when he became ill as well and died in 1900. Both Swanson boys are buried close to the cabin, where their grieving mother would often visit them. In 1901, the Swansons moved to McKinley, where Elizabeth Swanson ran a boarding house. Elizabeth died in 1926, after giving birth to three more children, all of whom survived and lived in the McKinley area. Swanson never remarried. Old Joe served as a handy man and worked seasonal jobs including ranch work at the Sorenson Ranch, along with a little mining until his death in McKinley in 1957 at the age of 83.
1905-1954: Medicine River Station, McKinley National Forest
In 1905, the Medicine River Forest Reserve was formed and between this date and the forming of the McKinley National Forest in 1908, the Swanson Cabin was taken over by the U.S. Forest Service for administrative use and renamed the Medicine River Station. The cabin is the oldest administrative log structure on the McKinley National Forest and, in fact, predates the establishment of the Forest. Medicine River Station was used by the Forest Service on a regular basis until 1954.
1954-1992: Local Use, Greenway Livestock Association and local hunters and snowmobilers
Although still owned by the Forest Service, riders from the Greenway Livestock Association and local hunters and snowmobilers used the Medicine River Station over the years from 1955 up until 1992. A photograph from 1973 shows the cabin as it existed after decommissioning and during local use. An agreement between the U.S. Forest Service and the Greenway Livestock Association provided for its use and maintenance. During this time, the cabin became known as the Medicine Station Cabin by locals, although its legal name was still Medicine River Station.
1992-Present
The Medicine River Station Cabin is the oldest administrative log structure on the McKinley National Forest. Because of its historical value relating to the early history of the National Forest and its integrity, Eagle Cabin has been determined eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. From 1992-1996, the Forest Service, with the help of volunteers and donated materials, restored the cabin. Primitive building skills and materials were used to restore the cabin’s original features.
There is a $25 a night usage fee with a two-night minimum stay on holiday weekends. The cabin will accommodate up to six people with three bunk beds. The last four miles up to the cabin is not open to motorized vehicles. The site consists of the cabin, a woodshed, toilet, barn, horse corrals, a fire ring, and is surrounded by a jackleg pole fence. An artesian well accessed by hand pump provides potable water, but there is no electricity. The cabin is heated with a wood stove. A propane camp stove is provided for cooking. Also available are dishes, silverware, cooking utensils, pots and pans, firewood, axe, shovel, outhouse and cleaning supplies.