The Poplar Standard

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-by S. A. Remington, publisher, The Belt Valley Times

In the Lewis and Clark journal it is recorded that from the north side of the Missouri river near where the village of Carter now stands and looking south across the river, a creek could be seen flowing into the river.

It is also noted that midway between two ranges of mountains a low butte could be seen which was almost surrounded by a belt of rock which seemed quite prominent at a distance.

Early settlers named this Belt Butte and the creek which flowed down from the little Belt mountains through a narrow valley 400 feet deep was called Belt creek. They also discovered that the only passage from northwestern Montana to the Judith basin came close to Belt Butte.

In those days in the spring the creek was a raging torrent. There was no railroad in the Judith Basin. The nearest was at Great Falls. Immense sheep and cattle ranches covered the Basin. Wool had to be hauled to market and freighters had a bad time crossing the valley of Belt creek. Buffalo trails pointed to the best ford on the west while Otter creek became the route from the east.

After crossing the ford freighters had to swing way around back of Belt Butte to follow a precarious road to Otter creek. It was the only route and bull teams and cayuse teams struggled through the pass until the Neihart branch of the Great Northern was built in 1892.