They built Fort Shaw along that route in 1867 in the Sun River Valley. Detachments from Camp Cooke guarded major transportation routes in Southwestern Montana, including the roads between Fort Benton and Helena. As a result, soldiers were dispatched from Camp Cooke to other more strategic locations in the Montana Territory. Except for the high water months of May, June and July, Missouri River steamboat traffic was limited. Once the fort was constructed the garrison had little to do. The fort was also located deep in the remote badlands, called the Missouri Breaks, which parallels the Missouri River for hundreds of miles. The location of the fort was along the upper Missouri River as it crossed the broad eastern plains of Montana, far from the gold camps and boom towns in southwest Montana. The boats carried passengers and freight to supply swiftly growing boom towns at the site of rich gold strikes in the western mountains of the Montana Territory. The army established the post to protect steamboat traffic en route to Fort Benton. By 1867 Camp Cooke had a strength of approximately 400 men. The camp was established on July 10, 1866, just upstream from the mouth of the Judith River by the 13th Infantry Regiment. Army military post on the Missouri River in Montana Territory. Andrews (1867–70)Ĭamp Cooke also known as Fort Claggett was a U.S. Major William Clinton (1866–67), Lieutenant Colonel George L. Not to be confused with Vandenberg Air Force Base § Camp Cooke (1941–1953).
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