Did You Know

The Historic Mullan Road

The “Mullan Road” was the first wagon road into eastern Washington via the Rockies, connecting Fort Benton in the Dakota Territory (present-day Montana) with Fort Walla Walla in the Washington Territory.  US Army Lieutenant John Mullan commanded a workforce of 200 to build the more than 600-mile road, beginning his survey in 1854, starting construction in 1859, and finishing the effort in 1860 at a cost of $230K.  Lt. Mullan’s vision was extraordinary for the day…as recognized by stretches of modern-day Interstates 15 and 90 that overlap the original Mullan Road across what is now Montana, Idaho, and Washington.

Mullan Road is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has been designated a historic civil engineering landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers.