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Ekalaka is a town in and the county seat of Carter County, Montana, United States. The population was 399 at the 2020 census. [edit] History
Ekalaka was named after a Sioux girl, Ijkalaka, who was the wife of David Harrison Russell, a scout. Ijkalaka (Restless or Moving About) was an Oglala Lakota and the daughter of Wombalee We-chosh (Eagle Man).[1] She was born in 1858 on the Powder River.,[1] while she was living with a cousin, Hi Kelly, at a ranch on Chugwater Creek, near Laramie Wyoming.[1] She was 16 when she met Russell, who was a scout and frontiersman.[1] The town was created by Russell on the edge of his ranch. A man named Carter bogged down in mud the spring of 1885 opened a saloon and is credited with saying "Anyplace in Montana is a good place to open a saloon". The site became a trade center for cattle ranchers and sheepherders.[2] He put up houses to house freight workers and hunters who ran the local freight line (team and horses), and other added to it. [edit] Research Tips
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