701 River Rd Townsend, MT 59644

Positioned along the western bank of the world-famous Missouri River, between the agricultural communities of Toston and Townsend, Corps of Discovery Ranch offers a rare opportunity to own a piece of American history. Evidence suggests that on July 24, 1805, the Corps of Discovery camped on this very ground, part of a journey in search of a passage to the Pacific. Long before Lewis and Clark arrived, the river and its tributaries had already served as vital hunting grounds and trading routes for the Blackfeet, Crow, Salish, and Shoshone.

Spanning approximately 2,357 acres, the ranch delivers over 6 miles of Missouri River frontage and 2.5 miles of private spring creek—a combination of history, water, and wildlife habitat unmatched in today’s Western land market. Elk, whitetail deer, pheasants, and waterfowl thrive across its riparian bottoms and sagebrush uplands, while the river itself holds brown trout, rainbow trout, walleye, and northern pike. The ranch is nestled between the Elkhorn and the Big Belt ranges, with Hollowtop Mountain and the Tobacco Root Mountains defining the southern skyline.

The ranch is equipped with the practical infrastructure needed to support day-to-day operations, from working corrals, a historic airplane hangar suitable for a shed, a calving barn, and hay and equipment storage to a heated shop and office. The property also includes a main house, a small ranch manager’s house, and a rental. It’s ready-made to continue as a tremendous cow-calf operation–all while preserving a premier wildlife sanctuary.

Corps of Discovery Ranch offers its next owner the rare flexibility to shape a legacy on some of Montana’s most storied ground.

Deeded Acreage & Amenities
2,357± Deeded Acres
6± Miles Of Missouri River Frontage
2.5± Miles Of Private Spring Creek

For decades, the ranch has been used as a cow-calf and farming operation. It is currently leased to a neighboring rancher whose cattle, along with a small number owned by the sellers, are rotated through the ranch’s pastures during the summer months.

The ranch carries approximately 225 cow-calf pairs and has carried upwards of 300 pairs given the tremendous amount of sub-irrigated pasture and grass regrowth throughout the season.

The current lessee has expressed interest in continuing the arrangement; year-to-year agricultural and grazing leases with neighboring ranchers may remain available to future owners.

With abundant water and secure water rights, five pivots irrigate the ranch’s hay ground, producing an average of 1,400 tons of hay annually. One of the five pivots is owned by a neighbor and partially irrigates a field owned by the seller.

Recognizing the ranch’s agricultural, open-space, and historic significance, the current landowners have placed a conservation easement with The Montana Land Reliance on the property. The easement is landowner, agriculture, and habitat-improvement friendly — built to give future owners meaningful flexibility while protecting the ranching legacy of this exceptional property in perpetuity.