In August 1864, three emigrants who came to Montana on the Bozeman Trail arrived here and found men already mining the creek. They tried their luck farther up the rugged gulch and found pay dirt high on the side of Emigrant Peak. The strike set off a stampede that brought several hundred miners and a few women into this remote area deep in Crow Indian country. The miners worked the gravel with moderate success for several weeks until cold weather drove them down to Yellowstone City near the mouth of Emigrant Gulch. That settlement consisted of fifty rough log cabins with dirt roofs and elk hide floors. During the winter, supplies ran short, flour was scarce, and tobacco cost $300 a pound, making it worth its weight in gold, while venison was the one plentiful food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. In the spring, the shortages ended and the men returned to their claims. By 1866, most of the miners had drifted away because of hostile Indians and dwindling placer gold, but although the strike was not a fabulous one, many of the pioneers earned snug stakes for their energy and hardships.