Pistol Creek Ranch History commemorates one hundred and thirty-one years of settlers at Pistol Creek Ranch on the Middle Fork of the Salmon River. The first homesteader came to the area in 1892, but a cabin wasn't built until sometime around 1910. It is difficult to establish the exact date due to lack of records in Valley County where Pistol Creek Ranch is located.
The county was established in 1917, and the county recorder has few records of property transactions before that date. The Ranch was deeded as a homestead in 1920.
The demand for information on Pistol Creek Ranch's history caused us to "step up" and research the beginning of the property. This was also a good time to add geological features and expand the reader's "Pistol Creek Ranch Knowledge."
We will take you back to the earliest known Americans on the Middle Fork and show that pioneers and miners in the region supplanted the Native Americans. In the last half of the twentieth century, Pistol Creek became the retreat that we know now, a relief from the "hustle and bustle" of life in the "States."
Pistol Creek Ranch (PCR) known as Pistol Creek (PC) or simply The Ranch, has a rich history. In addition, the Middle Fork is a microcosm of American's western expansion. It was the site of Indian wars, frontier soldiers, mining, hunting and trapping, Chinese immigrants, homesteads, and ranching. It is our intent to give you background information to add to your "Pistol Creek Knowledge."
