Dead Indian Hill Summit

Dead Indian Hill Summit was a high pass through which great herds of wild game seasonally migrated from the mountains to the plains. It served as a gateway for countless Indian hunting and war parties, and in 1877 Chief Joseph led his Nez Perce Indians through this portal in a strategic and defensive retreat while pursued by U.S. Army soldiers. Over this one opening at the end of valleys to the west traveled a vast army of miners seeking the wealth of Cooke City, and down this steep hill the early settlers of Sunlight Basin braved its dangers. The first road improvement there was made possible in 1909 by dwellers of Sunlight Valley including Adolphus J. Beam, Wm. V Campbell, Siras J. Davis, Wade W. McClung, Augustus A. LaFond, Oliver Whitney, Hervey G. Marvin, Samuel Thompson, John R. Painter, Evelyn T, Painter, Mary E. Painter, Wm. T. Painter, Marguerite M. Painter, John K. Rollinson, and Willard D. Ruscher.

Wyoming · United States