Hebgen Lake Earthquake
Posted by: 
Volcanoguy
N 44° 49.822 W 111° 25.773
12T E 466045 N 4964196
Memorial to the victims of the Hebgen Lake Earthquake on August 17, 1959.
Waymark Code: WMCQKN
Location: Montana, United States
Date Posted: 10/03/2011
Views: 17
On the night of August 17, 1959 at 11:37 p.m. a magnitude 7.5 earthquake occurred near Hebgen Lake in Montana. This was the largest earthquake in recorded history in Montana. The most spectacular effect of the quake was a huge slide from the south wall of the Madison River Canyon. Nineteen campers in the Rock Creek Campground on the Madison River in the area of the slide died (and remain buried beneath the slide) and nine others died at other locations. Some 250 people were trapped in the area due to destroyed and flooded roads and had to be rescued. The slide dammed the Madison River and created Earthquake Lake.
On August 17, 1960 the Gallatin National Forest dedicated this memorial to the victims. The memorial consists of a plaque with the names of the 28 victims attached to one of the large boulders on the slide deposit. The Gallatin National Forest also operates the nearby Earthquake Lake Visitor Center.
Text of Plaque:
THIS BOULDER IS A PART OF THE HUGE SLIDE CAUSED BY THE EARTHQUAKE OF AUGUST 17, 1959. IT IS DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF THE MEN, WOMEN AND CHILDREN WHOSE LIVES WERE LOST AS A RESULT OF THE EARTHQUAKE.
IN MEMORIAM
| SYDNEY D.A. BALLARD | | MERLE M. EDGERTON M.D. | | EDGAR H. STRYKER |
| MARGARET BALLARD | | EDNA M. EDGERTON | | ETHEL M. STRYKER |
| CHRISTOPHER T. BALLARD | | MARGARET D. HOLMES | | ROBERT J. WILLIAMS |
| PURLEY R. BENNETT | | MYRTLE L. PAINTER | | EDITH C. WILLIAMS |
| TOM O. BENNETT | | ROGER G. PROVOST | | STEVEN R. WILLIAMS |
| CAROLE BENNETT | | ELIZABETH F. PROVOST | | MICHEAL J. WILLIAMS |
| SUSAN BENNETT | | RICHARD PROVOST | | CHRISTY L. WILLIAMS |
| BERNIE L. BOYNTON | | DAVID PROVOST | | HARMON WOODS |
| INEZ D. BOYNTON | | THOMAS M. STOWE | | EDNA M. WOODS |
| | MARILYN W. STOWE | | |
DEDICATED BY USDA FOREST SERVICE, AUGUST 17, 1960
Text of nearby signs:
Nineteen people lie buried beneath the landslide that you are standing on. Tragedy struck 250 campers in the Madison River Canyon when the 7.5 Richter scale earthquake shook these mountains. Choking dust clouds filled the air. Waves coursed Hebgen Lake and the Madison River. Boulders crashed, mountains slid, families were separated; some members injured, others lost forever. Escape was blocked until help arrived after daylight.
A memorial plaque on the large dolomite boulder above and behind this sign commemorates the 28 men, women and children who lost their lives as a result of the Madison River Canyon Earthquake.
Memorial Boulder
This 3000 ton dolomite boulder rode the crest of the slide across the canyon. Undisturbed lichens on its side to your left indicate it did not roll or tumble while crossing.
The bronze memorial plaque can be seen on the other side of the boulder.
Dolomite Boulder
These dolomite boulders slid from the opposite side of the canyon. They were probably part of a supporting buttress that held the mountainside in place before the earthquake. The earthquake cracked the buttress and a mass of older brittle rock behind it pushed and carried the boulders across the canyon. The circular outcrop across the canyon on the right side of the slide is a remnant of the dolomite buttress