Thomas Moore, a pioneer of Radersburg, speaks of the early days in an article written in 1947:
Permit me to follow the foot prints of time back, say 76 years, to give you a few details of the little city and a very lively mining town with a population of perhaps 1,000 souls with various methods of gaining a livelihood characteristic to mining towns, as they weer then known. Radersburg was a very popular and convenient stopping place for the travelers, being located on the Bozeman and Helena .
As for Radersburg being a convenient stopping place for travelers, it was that. Any place would have been. However Radersburg did have hotels and accommodations for the very weary travelers. Travel by stage coach was not nearly as romantic as it sounds, not as it looks as we today view it on TV westerns(1).
The first cabin was built by Jim Watters in the very early 1860s and was of cottonwood logs. Soon other cabins were under construction and about 1865 the Government let a contract for carrying mail from Bozeman to Radersburg, a distance of sixty miles, and on then to Helena, another fifty miles. This was known as the Bozeman Trail(2). Concord coaches were used to carry passengers, mail and express. Express was consigned under the name of Wells Fargo Express Co. From two to six horses were used, depending on the condition of the roads and the size of the load. Teams were changed every 15 to 20 miles and the tired horses just in from their run would be stabled and cared for. Radersburg was the layover station where all were put up for the night. The following morning The Bozeman driver would return to Bozeman, and the Helena driver would return to Helena. At the same time, drivers would leave Bozeman and Helena for Radersburg, making a total of four coaches and drivers on the road at all times. The mail was handled in a very primitive manner by the shoemaker, a German by birth named Carroll. Men were not accustomed to wearing shoes, all wore boots, most of which were made by the shoemaker.
By this time Radersburg had become the business center and hub of most all the business of the surrounding territory, which added to the growth of the then active little city. About 1868 it was the center of a tremendous stock and dairy region and at the time supplied Helena with milk. The first houses in Radersburg had dirt roofs and the walls were covered with newspapers, and being scarce, it was a lucky woman who had all her walls covered.
There was a government owned and maintained telegraph line which added much to the convenience of active communication. The telegraph was first completed from Salt Lake City to Virginia City by John Creighton in 1866, but besides being very expensive - $1.00 per word - was not very reliable until 1870.
Mule teams of sixteen animals were amount the interesting sights as well as milk cows, chickens, horse racing, bronc riding and sometimes a fight, all led to excitement on our Front Street.
There were two streets in the "Burg", the other being known as Back Street. Peaceable Indians and many soldiers also went to make up the traffic. Oh, Yes! I should not fail to speak of the prospector with his pack horse and sometimes one horse to ride. Wood was the fuel at $6.00 per cord. Sunday was the real commercial day. Farmers came to town with their poultry, dairy and vegetable products. This was the big day for the stores, but most every day they stayed open until 9:00pm and sometimes later. (Note: after 1902 when Ed Spangler operated his store, he was the first to begin closing on Sunday. Soon the others followed suit.)
Corinne, Utah some 500 or 600 miles away was the closest railroad and a round trip would require 4 to 6 months. Apples have been known to sell for 25 cents each, soap 25 cents a bar, and one time flour was $1.00 a pound. Kind readers, should anyone tell you that they were the good old days, you will not make a mistake to ignore the assertion. Admitting hospitality was a ruling factor and the latch string was always out in comparisons with these times, we are living in luxury. In these GOOD OLD DAYS, a few of the people were blessed by having a coal-oil lamp -- providing they could get the coal-oil (kerosene). Others less fortunate would have some grease in a small container in which was placed a rag to answer in the place of a real lamp wick. Compare that if you will with your electric lights of today and all the other conveniences - the ox team with your automobile, a washboard with your washing machine and so on down the line.
Should it be decided that some very undesirable individual should be dismissed from the country entirely, the figures 3-7-77 were placed on the outside of his cabin door. Arriving at his place of abode he would recognize it to be the demand of a well-organized Vigilante group(3). Without losing any time he rolled his bed. His pack horse was soon loaded with the usual paraphernalia - frying pan, coffee pot, pick, shovel, gold pan, bacon, flour, baking powder, bedding, etc. All he left behind were his tracks, which were far apart for the first mile which indicated his running. Thoughts of the hangman's rope gave him courage to make haste. Realizing others had met the fate awaiting him should he ignore the warning, he was never seen in those diggings again.
In the earliest days of Radersburg as well as Keatingville, there were many altercations, some of which proved fatal. One occasion in Keatingville, in 1871, two men known as Baker and Mann became enemies. Later, as Mann was entering a boarding house, Baker stabbed him, which resulted in his death. Baker was then taken to Radersburg, found guilty of murder, and there not being a jail, was placed in a little cabin with a guard who had a gun in a position of being pointed at the prisoner. Relief guards were changed quite often. Authorities decided to take Baker to Helena for further trial, as was a custom in those days.
The prisoner was placed on not too good a horse, and was accompanied by a posse of 10 or 12 men, all of whom were riding good mounts. After getting to Hog'em(4), a ride of about 15 miles, the posse decided to return to the pace where this fellow Mann was killed. Later that afternoon the posse could be seen in the distance returning with the prisoner. My mother said, "Just look, they are bringing the prisoner back. My God, they sure are gong to hang him!". This is the way they did it. They had Pete Schaler, who owned a span of mules and a wagon to drive directly under a beef scaffold. A big dry goods box was placed on the wagon, a rope suspended from the top of the scaffold, then placed around the neck of the prisoner -- the lower end of the rope was securely fastened near the ground. Then Pete was given the signal to drive on, which left the body hanging. Your writer remembers seeing the body hanging in mid-air.
From Leeson's History: "Execution of Baker, 1871"
In August or September 1871, a man named Baker stabbed Dr. Mann, who died the next day. It was a cool and seemingly unprovoked murder. All medical aid could do was done to save the doctor, without avail, and the citizens of Radersburg dealt a summary vengeance on Baker by executing him.
Notes:
(1): Read a short description of some of the trials of stage coach travel
(2): The Bozeman Trail actually went from Fort Laramie, Wyoming to Virginia City, Montana. It didn't go from Bozeman to Radersburg to Helena. The Bozeman Trail description.
(3): The Montana Vigilantes were necessary part of frontier law. Arising in the Bannack - Virginia City corridor, the vigilantes were needed to clean up the lawlessness of Sheriff Henry Plumber and his gang. For information about Montana Vigilantes visit Montana Vigilantes
(4): The 'Ems were towns along the Elk Mountains front west of Townsend: Hog'em, Beat'em and Cheat'em. For further reading on the 'Ems click on Hog'em, Beat'em and Cheat'em