A Spring Sprung It: Tracing and Understanding the True Genesis of North America’s Longest River

Published in Journal of The West • Vol. 58, No. 3 (2019), pp. 6-21

Abstract

Allison identifies and discusses key locations relevant to the utmost source or headwaters of the Missouri River. The majesty of the Missouri River and its impact on the history of the West is unmistakable. The watershed alone extends from St. Louis to just beyond the Canadian border, and its encompassing tributaries reach a large portion of the central and northern plains and Rocky Mountains. North America's longest river emanates from an elevated canyon nestled in the Centennial Mountains and Centennial Valley of southwestern Montana and meanders through miles of mountains, forests, and plains to discharge ultimately into the Gulf of Mexico more than 3,700 miles downstream. However, as it stands today, the Missouri River officially begins at the confluence of the three rivers that come together at the Missouri Headwaters State Park near Three Forks MT: the Jefferson River, the Madison River, and the Gallatin River. While these three rivers have carved unique histories of their own, this junction is not the true origin of the waters of the mighty Missouri.