Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site
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Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site
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Grant-Kohrs Ranch
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| Location | Powell County, Montana, USA |
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| Nearest city | Deer Lodge, MT |
| Coordinates | 46°24′30″N 112°44′22″W / 46.40833°N 112.73944°WCoordinates: 46°24′30″N 112°44′22″W / 46.40833°N 112.73944°W |
| Area | 1,618 acres (6.55 km2) |
| Built | 1863 |
| Visitation | 17,095 (2012) |
| NRHP Reference # | 72000738 |
| Significant dates | |
| Designated NHLD | December 19, 1960 |
| Designated NHS | August 25, 1972 |
The Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site, created in 1972, commemorates the Western cattle industry from its 1850s inception through recent times. The original ranch was established in 1862 by a Canadian fur trader, Johnny Grant, at Cottonwood Creek, Montana (future site of Deer Lodge, Montana), along the banks of the Clark Fork river. The ranch was later expanded by a cattle baron, Conrad Kohrs (1866–1920). The 1,618 acres (6.55 km2) historic site (originally designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960) is maintained today as a working ranch by the National Park Service.
Johnny Francis Grant was born at Fort Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. His mother died when he was only three years old, so he was sent to Trois-Rivières, Quebec, to be raised by his grandmother. His father, Captain Richard Grant, was a Hudson's Bay Company employee, and therefore, in his mid-teens, he left for Fort Hall, Idaho, to meet up with his father. There he learned the trading business. However, in the 1840s the fur trade was dying out, so Johnny Grant and his brother James turned to trading with emigrants traveling west along the Oregon Trail. He made a considerable profit by trading travelers one healthy cow or horse for two trail-wearied ones. He then fed and rested the tired animals and the following season traded them again. This is how he got into the cattle business.
Grant started using the Deer Lodge Valley in 1857 to graze his cattle during the winter along the banks of the Clark Fork river near Cottonwood creek. In 1859 he decided to permanently locate a ranch and constructed a permanent residence in 1862. He convinced traders to settle around him, forming the town of Cottonwood (later to become Deer Lodge). Johnny was initially successful, but found that when gold miners arrived in the area, he was at a disadvantage, because he spoke French and the newcomers spoke English. He was taken advantage of in contracts and felt that he could no longer be successful in the area. In August 1866, he sold his ranch to a cattle baron, Conrad Kohrs, for $19,200 and returned to Canada.
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