4 Brothers: Deer Lodge Valley and the Sun River Country

As early as 1867, Conrad Kohrs raised stock in the Deer Lodge Valley and the Sun River country with his half brother, John Bielenberg. Kohrs settled in the Deer Lodge Valley in 1862 but soon moved to Virginia City and Bannack, and worked as a butcher. He later managed shops in Deer Lodge, Helena, Blackfoot and Pioneer City, and married Augusta Kruse in 1868. Kohrs was an integral part of the infrastructure for mining and agricultural irrigation, creating the Rock Creek Ditch along with William Irvine and others. The ditch is quite an engineering feat, as the ground that was dug is made up of quartz conglomerate and was nearly impossible to dig. It was reported that even dynamite didn't help to construct the ditch and that the ditch was dug with iron gads, chipping off only small pieces at a time, and whipsawed lumber was utilized for flumes. The water company formed by Kohrs was profitable, as the water was sold to scrip-holders, and the water was sold about four times a year, amounting to $72,000.00 in 1867 (Courchene, 1989:21).

The Bielenberg Brothers include Nick, John and Charles, all half-brothers of Conrad Kohrs. Butchers by trade, they ended up settling in Deer Lodge after arriving at Fort Benton. Their start in Deer Lodge came by invitation from Kohrs, who offered them jobs operating his butcher shops throughout the territory (National Park Service, 2006). Charles H. Bielenberg came to Deer Lodge in 1866 and opened the City Market. He ran that business for many years and married Mary Wilhelm in 1869.

Nick, the most prominent businessman of the three brothers, came to Deer Lodge and married Annie Bogk, who's parents owned and operated the McBurney House in Deer Lodge. Nick bought and sold ranches and butcher shops, and established large livestock and butchering operations that were known throughout the northwest, including a wholesale business that became the Butte Butchering Company. The Beilenbergs and Kohrs became involved in large cattle operations in the 1880s and Nick soon entered into the sheep industry, handling more than 130,000 sheep in one year (Courchene, 1989:48). Nick’s large dwelling, constructed in Deer Lodge in 1883, became the high school, but was removed in 1917 to make room for a larger, more modern building. The residence he constructed later, is currently on the National Register of Historic Places.

In addition to his involvement in the stock and butchering business, Nick served as President of the Champion Mining Company and Vice President of the Deer Lodge Mining and Reduction Company. Along with his son-in-law, W.I. Higgins, he helped build a 12-mile, 50,000 volt transmission line to the B and H Mine, putting it on the map as one of the first mines in the country to operate electrically (Courchene 1989:48). Nick was a delegate to the National Convention in 1892, and as a friend of Theodore Roosevelt, was a delegate to the National Progressive Convention that nominated Roosevelt for President in 1912. His interests at home were diverse. He was one of the founders of the Citizens Water Company where he served as President; he was involved in the construction of the new Hotel Deer Lodge; he was financially involved in the completion of the Deer Lodge Woman's Club House, in which his wife, Annie, was a Charter Member; he was a member of the Masonic Order; and he headed the fight for the area's farmers and ranchers against the powerful Anaconda Copper Mining Company's air-pollution. The suite was known as the famous "Smoke Case" that began in 1905 (Fred J. Bliss vs. The Washoe Copper Company and the Anaconda Copper Mining Company, 1905-1909).

Reference

United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet. Retrieved May 26th 2009 from http://montanahistoricalsociety.org/shpo/register/DeerLodgeCBD.pdf