The Mullan Road

The History of its Construction and Early Use

"Palouse Falls in Washington Territory"

Artist: Gustavus Sohon

Source: John Mullan, Report on the Construction of a Military Raod from Fort Walla Walla to Fort Benton

Mullan Road Historical Overview:

• The Mullan Road, constructed between 1858 and 1862, was the first wagon road to cross the Rockies to the Inland Northwest.
• Often it was in such disrepair that only foot travelers and pack animals could follow its course, especially through the mountains.
• The building years were a momentous time in American history. In particular:
  -- The United States Army had just fought the Coeur d'Alene War.
  -- The section of the trail in eastern Washington passed by the sites of recent Coeur d'Alene War of 1858, including "Pyramid Butte" (site of the Battle of Steptoe Butte), Hangman Creek (where Col. George Wright summarily executed several Indians), and "Horse Slaughter Camp" (where Colonel Wright slaughtered 700 horses, owned by the local tribes).
  -- In his report on the road-building (see below), the reader can discern Capt. John Mullan's concern that his expedition would encounter still-hostile Indians.
  -- Before the end of the road-building, the United States was engaged in the Civil War -- Mullan calls it the "civil troubles."
• The story of the Mullan Road provides a window onto many historical topics including American road-building, the Indian history of the Inland Northwest, the American wilderness, the white settlement of the Inland Northwest, and the story of America at the mid-nineteenth century, including the Civil War.

Timelines:

• Native Americans in the Inland Northwest: Wars and Treaties -- provides a detailed overview of Indian-white relations in this period.
• Native Americans and the Inland Northwest -- gives an overview of Native American history of the region, set in the context of national events.

Fast Facts about the Mullan Road:

• Click here for basic information about the road.

The Mullan Report:

• In 1863 the United States Congress published Capt. John Mullan's. Report on the Construction of a Military Raod from Fort Walla Walla to Fort Benton. The report was illustrated with drawings by Gustavus Sohon (1825-1903). The report is on line on our site.
• You can access a reading of the report at this location on the site -- ready to download to your computer or digital music player.
• And a glossary with information about people, places, and historical themes mentioned in the report.

More about the Mullan Road:

• Click here to view modern articles about the road....
• And here to see historical descriptions of travel on the road ....
• This exploration is a work in progress, and here are some of the other topics we will be examining.

More about John Mullan:

• Anecdotes and Descriptions: Views of John Mullan in the Primary Sources

Related Literature:

• An earlier "Mullan Report" — Another document detailing work on the Mullan Road is available at the University of Michigan Digital Library (UMDL): "Military road from Fort Benton to Fort Walla-Walla. Letter from the Secretary of war, transmitting the report of Lieutenant Mullan...." was published in 1861, two years before the larger Mullan Report. Click here for more information.

• Before building the first important wagon road in the Inland Northwest, Capt. John Mullan needed the assistance of the original inhabitants of the land. This chapter, "Waiting for the Indians," from The Fair and the Falls, provides an overview of Indian-White relations during the years before, during, and after the building of the road -- and it shows how dependent the white pioneers were on the original Indian trail and ferry system of the region.