1942-1958 Sherriff John "Jack" Bradley was born in 1882 in Minnesota. When He was 5 months old, his father died suspiciously. The death was suspected of being murdered then the body was thrown under a train. John married Inez Ramey in 1905 in Dassel, Minnesota. The young family was next found in 1911, residing in Montague, where John worked on a Ranch in the Ridge section. While living in the Ridge area, their names were listed numerous in the social columns of the Chouteau County Independent newspaper as entertaining or visiting friends in the area. In 1915, John purchased a new Aultman-Taylor threshing machine. John's name can be found all over the newspapers as a witness for Homestead claims. Events in 1917 affected the young family. August John sells his ranch to Wesley Kunz, and the community throws a farewell party for John and Inez since they planned to "start for Minnesota immediately after harvest". In November of that year, an article about John buying the Montaque Hotel. He plans to move the building to his Lepley Street lots and remodel it into apartments. 1918 brings sorrow. The family continues to grow with four children in fourteen years of marriage when Inez falls ill with influenza. On December 29, their fifth child is born, and Inez dies on December 30.
Throughout the 1920s, John continued to work with his thrasher during harvest. In 1926, John and Helen Nellie Malmady were married in Bellingham, Washington. Once again, Mr. and Mrs. Bradley were in the social columns of the area newspapers. During the 1930s, the family moved from Montague to Fort Benton, and John worked with Beckman's Furs of Great Fall. The ads he placed in the papers told of paying 13 cents for an unskinned jackrabbit and 15 cents for a skinned rabbit. Each fall, Jack was appointed Deputy Game Warden during hunting season. Also, during the '30s, John was a local manager and promoter for professional and amateur wrestling matches. He set up matches with some of the top names from around the county. In 1940-1941, John placed large ads in the Fort Benton River Press for 'stock bones' at $13 per ton and scrap iron at $4.00 per ton. All trucks carrying bones or iron were weighted at the Montana Elevators in Montague or Fort Benton. John's furs, and later iron and bones, were connected with the Pacific Hide and Fur Company out of Great Falls.
When John won the election, a new Sheriff of Chouteau County was elected in 1942. Before the election, John had placed an ad in the local papers that said, "Tire rationing makes it impossible to make an extensive campaign." The crimes that John and his deputies covered in the 1940s were frequent and varied, with articles written about numerous stolen vehicles and a couple of safe crackers who made off with large amounts of cash. Arsonists were busy also, and multiple vehicle crashes. In 1948, there was a murder in the NW corner of the county with a resulting life sentence given. During the beginning of WW2, John was also appointed as Chouteau County Fire Warden. In August of 1949, it was reported that the County Jail had broken the record for the largest jail population. The following year, the headings included 'No Stolen Cars for the entire year' (1950). John was happy to report that 1951 brought in the first short-wave radio equipment in county offices and officers' automobiles, allowing quick communication when time was of the essence. July of that year, a robbery at Western Bar left the business $1800 short. However, the most significant loss was $20,000 due to cattle thefts. The following few years included more grand larceny, stolen cars, robberies, and burglaries; on a sad note, in 1955, a mother and 4 small children died of exposure in the Missouri Breaks area. This tragedy required days of large groups scouring the area. In 1958, John was recovering from a cold when he suffered from an asthmatic attack at home and died. He was survived by his wife, seven children, fourteen grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
1958 Sheriff Frank W Anderson was born in Simms, Montana, in 1925. During WW2, he served in the US Navy; after his service, he moved to Fort Benton in 1948. He married Cecelia Kraft in 1951. They were married 38 years before Cecelia died. Anderson served as Geraldine Marshall in 1952-53 and was hired as a Deputy Sheriff under Sheriff Bradley. Frank was appointed Sheriff on February 5, 1958, when his predecessor died while in office. By the end of February, he filed for the Sheriff. During the primary election, there were several names on the ballot. He lost to John Saksa, so he filed, this time as an Independent. In November 1958, Frank again lost to Saksa with more than 200 votes. After his term as Sheriff, he served as Chief of Police and was elected as Justice of Peace, which he served until the time of his death in 1997. Judge Frank Anderson spent 42 years serving the people of Chouteau County. Frank married Patricia Johnson in 1991. Frank was a father to 8 children and a true community citizen.
