Fort Belknap Indian Reservation

Updated: February 3, 2026

The Fort Belknap Indian Reservation in north-central Montana is home to two tribes, the Aaniiih (Gros Ventre) and the Nakoda (Assiniboine), with a combined enrollment of roughly 4,000-5,000 tribal members. The reservation and additional tribal lands encompass about 675,000 acres of plains, grasslands, and breaks between the Milk River and the Little Rocky Mountains.

The Fort Belknap Indian Community government and federal agencies remain major employers, along with schools, health services, and ranching. Tribal leaders and local entrepreneurs are growing tourism by offering guided cultural tours, wildlife viewing, and sales of Native-made arts and crafts. Fort Belknap is also known for its buffalo program: since the 1970s the tribes have rebuilt bison herds, including animals descended from Yellowstone National Park, and today several hundred buffalo range on tens of thousands of acres for cultural, conservation, and hunting purposes. Visitors who wish to hunt antelope or other game must obtain licenses and follow tribal regulations; in some cases guides are required.

Aaniiih Nakoda College (formerly Fort Belknap College) is located at Fort Belknap Agency. It offers a wide range of associate degrees-such as Allied Health, American Indian Studies, Business, Computer Information Systems, Early Childhood Education, Environmental Science, Human Services, Liberal Arts, Nursing, Psychology, and Welding-as well as certificate programs in areas like Health Science, Tribal Management, and Welding. The college also houses tribal archives, a library, and programs such as Aaniiih Nakoda Ecology that focus on caring for local lands and waters.

Points of Interest

• Mission Canyon and its natural arches and rock formations in the Little Rocky Mountains, a scenic and culturally important area.
• Bear Paw Battlefield (south of the reservation), the site where Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce surrendered in 1877, interpreted through the National Park Service and local museums.
• The Blaine County Museum and local wildlife displays in nearby towns, which provide context on regional history, homesteading, and tribal life.
• The Fort Belknap Buffalo Reserve and Aaniiih Nakoda Tours, where visitors can learn about tribal history, see bison, deer, antelope, and sometimes rare black-footed ferrets, and hear stories from local guides.
• Faber Reservoir and other local fishing and recreation spots used by community members and visitors.

Events

Fort Belknap hosts several powwows and community celebrations each year, including Milk River Indian Days in July and local community powwows in Hays, Lodge Pole, and Fort Belknap Agency. The Fort Belknap Veterans Powwow honors Native veterans and their families with dancing, drumming, and giveaways in the fall. Visitors are welcome at public events and are asked to follow local etiquette, listen to arena announcers, and ask permission before taking photos of dancers or ceremonies.

History and Culture

The Aaniiih and Nakoda have related but distinct histories. The Nakoda (Assiniboine) are a northern branch of the Sioux who split from the Yanktonai in the 1600s and moved west and north onto the Northern Plains, where they became skilled buffalo hunters and horse people. The Aaniiih (Gros Ventre) likely separated from the Arapaho in earlier centuries and by the late 1700s lived on the northern plains, at times allied with the Blackfeet and at other times in conflict with them. Both nations suffered heavy losses from smallpox and other epidemics in the late 1700s and early 1800s, and like many Plains tribes they were devastated by the near-extinction of the buffalo.

Fort Belknap was established as a reservation in 1888 and is what remains of much larger ancestral territories. The Aaniiih and Nakoda signed treaties in the mid-1800s that recognized large homelands, but later federal acts reduced those territories and concentrated both tribes at Fort Belknap. Today, much of the reservation is used for cattle ranching and grazing, while tribal programs work to restore buffalo, protect cultural sites like Snake Butte, and strengthen language, ceremonies, and community health for future generations.

For more information about the Fort Belknap Reservation contact:

Fort Belknap Tourism Office
R.R. 1
Box 66
Fort Belknap Agency, Harlem
MT 59526
406-353-2205

Fort Belknap Indian Community

VisitMT - Fort Belknap Reservation

Updated: February 3, 2026