National Register of Historic Places

Bones Brothers Ranch

Birney, Rosebud County, Montana
Listed
March 19, 2004
Type
District
Period
Listed
Ref No.
04000220

About this property

The Bones Brothers Ranch, in the Tongue River Valley in Rosebud County, Montana near Birney, Montana, also known as the Z.T. Cox Ranch, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004. The listing included 22 contributing buildings, two contributing structures, and six contributing sites. It is located at the confluence of Hanging Woman Creek and the East Fork of Hanging Woman Creek. The buildings in the listing are mostly log and stone structures. These include a group of four ranch family log houses along the East Fork. It was deemed significant for itshistoric association with the evolution of the livestock industry and land settlement of the Tongue River Valley and its tributaries in southeastern Montana. In 1896, Zachary T. Cox received his homestead patent for 160 acres at this present-day ranch location where he had resided since 1889. Therefore the genesis of the Bones Brothers Ranch or the former Z. T. Cox Ranch occurred after the "Hard Winter" of 1886-1887 during the transition from open range to fenced pastures. The ranch developed at the end of the open range boom period of the 1880s in eastern Montana where the large corporations overstocked and overgrazed the ranges. The winter of 1886-1887 devastated the existing herds and brought a new consciousness regarding ranching. The Z. T. Cox Ranch (Bones Brothers Ranch today) represents the beginnings of small cattle operations that incorporated summer and winter pastures and supplemental feed.

Location

Birney, Rosebud County, Montana
45.28865, -106.48766

Categories

EXPLORATION/SETTLEMENTAGRICULTUREENTERTAINMENT/RECREATIONARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Native Heritage
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Nearby Historic Sites

Poker Jim Butte Fire Lookout
Modern
6.4 mi
OW Ranch
Listed
10.5 mi
Lee Homestead
Industrial
17.2 mi
Wold Barn
Industrial
25.5 mi
Moncure Tipi
Industrial
28.3 mi

Nearby Battles

Battle of Wolf Mountains (Last Sioux War)
1877Indian Wars
4.9 mi
Battle of the Tongue River 1876
1876Indian Wars
6.2 mi
Powder River — Pony Herd Recapture
1876Indian Wars
6.7 mi
Battle of Powder River — Reynolds Attack
1876Indian Wars
7.2 mi
Reynolds Fight at Powder River
1876Indian Wars
7.2 mi

Questions about this property

When was Bones Brothers Ranch listed on the National Register?

Bones Brothers Ranch was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 19, 2004.

What type of historic resource is Bones Brothers Ranch?

Bones Brothers Ranch is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Bones Brothers Ranch?

The period of significance for Bones Brothers Ranch is recorded as the listed era.

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