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In 1805 when Lewis, Clark, and other explorers were still searching for Montana, Lewis heard something. He vividly remembered hearing the sound of water tumbling down rocks. It was a part of the Missouri river that goes through Montana. The Lewis and Clark Expidition had found what they were looking for.
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One of Montana's gold strikes was made at Confederate Gulch near what is now Townsend. It got it's name in 1864 when a couple formor soldiers found gold deposists inside a stream bed. That streambed was so rich people said you could get 1,000 in gold dust in just one hour.
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The Battle of the Little Bighorn happened becuase the native americans thought that the U.S. government was unfair. So in 1876, the Battle of the Little Bighorn broke out. George Armstrong Custer led the americans, and Sitting Bull led the native americans. It was a very bloody war, but in the end the native americans won.
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Crongress made a rule in 1889, that if western states had proper constitutions, they could join the Union. So a group of Montanans wrote a constitution and tried to reapply for statehood. In the end, Montana became the 41st state in the Union
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Early in the 1900's farmers were aided by high wheat prices and ample rainfall. But when these conditions change it was really bad for farm families. There was rarely ever rain, so some farmers used irrigation, but irrigation was expensive. Montanas that were farmers were forced to move to Washington and Oregon hoping for greener land. 1920 was the only year Montana lost population.
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The Great Depression started in Montana when stores and factories began to close, and farmers and many other people could not sell thier goods. In 1932 Americans chose Franklin Roosevelt to be president. Things got a little better after a while but the Great Depression itself did not end until 1939.
