Fort Ellis (Gallatin County, east of Bozeman, Montana)

Gallatin County, east of Bozeman · Montana · Indian Wars

Quick BriefFort Ellis was established on August 27, 1867, east of Bozeman by Captain R. S. LaMotte and three companies of the 13th U.S. Infantry to protect miners and settlers in the Gallatin Valley. The post played a major role in Indian Wars campaigns, including the 1870 Marias Massacre, the 1876 Great Sioux War, and the 1877 Nez Perce War. The fort closed in 1886.

History & Significance

Established on August 27, 1867, by Captain Robert S. LaMotte and three companies of the 13th U.S. Infantry, Fort Ellis was positioned east of Bozeman to protect miners and settlers moving through the Gallatin Valley. The post was named for Colonel Augustus van Horne Ellis, killed at the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863.

The garrison consisted of five troops of the 2nd Cavalry Regiment and infantry companies from the 7th Infantry Regiment. Troops from Fort Ellis participated in major Indian Wars campaigns: the 1870 Marias Massacre against the Piegan tribe, Colonel John Gibbon's 1876 Montana Column expedition during the Great Sioux War (which was engaged at the Little Bighorn), and the 1877 Nez Perce War.

Fort Ellis also provided military escorts for prominent exploration expeditions into the Yellowstone region, including the 1870 Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition led by Lieutenant Gustavus Doane. After the Northern Pacific Railroad arrived in 1883, Bozeman settlers petitioned to close the post to open its 26,000-acre reservation for private settlement.

Fort Ellis was closed on August 2, 1886. After decommissioning, Bozeman citizens salvaged most buildings; by August 1924 the Commanding Officer's quarters remained intact, and was later renovated and occupied by Montana State University's Agricultural Experimental Station.