The Mullan Road Conference (MRC), hosted by the River and Plains Society, is held along the 624-mile historic Mullan Military Wagon Road between Fort Benton, head of navigation on the Missouri River, and Fort Walla Walla, head of navigation on the Columbia River.

This year, the MRC in Fort Benton will commemorate the completion of the eastern segment of the Mullan Road, the era, and the Native American presence along the way. On Saturday, June 11, speakers will present the history and culture of the times with the following presentations:

8:45-9:30: Dr. Bill Youngs, professor of history at Eastern Washington University

9:30-10:15: Jon Axline, MT Department of Transportation Historian

10:30-11:15: Dr. Janet Thomson, an independent scholar researching the Mullan Road

11:15-12:00: Dr. Charlene Porsild, Executive Director, Montana History Foundation and Pete Brown, State Historic Preservation Officer

12:00-1:15: Lunch and Molly Kruckenberg, Director of the Montana Historical Society

1:15-2:00: Jake Rehm, graduate student at Eastern Washington University

2:00-2:45: Chris La Tray, member of the Little Shell of Chippewa on the Little Shell at the time of Mullan

3:00-3:45: Bill Weikel, Surveying the Mullan Road

3:45-4:30: Kim Robison & Kirby Hoon- “Lieuts. Mullan & Kautz Reunite” & Touring the Mullan Road

5:30-6:30: Mullan Road Reception

6:30-8:00: Dinner and speaker Dr. Ellen Baumler- Ghosts, Murder & Mayhem Along the Mullan Road

For more information, contact the River & Plains Society at 406-622-5316