History of the Big Hole Valley: MT Pioneers of the Old West - Volume 3 by the Big Hole Valley Historical Society, who works diligently to preserve the history of the Big Hole river valley.
A little about Montana's Big Hole river valley:
"Native Americans who frequented the area called it the “land of big snows.” In 1806, William Clark christened it Hot Springs Valley. Early trappers used the French word trou (hole), to describe a wide-open basin between mountain ranges, and the homesteaders and ranchers, who moved into these bottomlands in the 1880s, adopted this term for the Big Hole Valley.
Later, in the days when hay was piled high like giant loaves of bread, it was often referred to as the “valley of 10,000 hay stacks.”
Legendary for its fishing, haystacks, tough winters, and multi-generation ranches, southwest Montana’s Big Hole country is still the real west. Considered one of Montana’s most beautiful valleys, this sparsely populated landscape is home to some of the largest and oldest working ranches in Montana. Cowboys are alive and well here. Many of the cow-calf operations are still roping, herding, and branding like they have done for 150 years.
Sprawling in a most beautiful setting, the Big Hole’s east side touches the Pioneer Mountains. On the west, topped by the Continental Divide, the Beaverhead and Anaconda ranges rise. At 15 to 20 miles across, nearly 75 miles long, and 6,000 plus feet and in elevation, this is the state’s highest and broadest valley." (Visit Southwest Montana - Rick and Susie Graetz)
