(no audio) (no audio) (wind blowing) (birds chirping) (gentle music) - [Narrator] "Beaver Creek, September 26th, 1883.

My dear little brother, here I am.

This has been home for within six weeks, and time has flown by very quickly.

As soon as I got here, I had to take care of setting up our ranch, and then our cattle.

Nowhere in my life have I woken up as happy and ready.

We have a little kitchen where we take turns cooking.

Today, it's buffalo meat.

Tomorrow, antelope.

I assure you that I have no regrets.

In the evening while smoking or cigarettes, we talk about home.

For the moment, the days are splendid, but the nights are cold.

It's one of the advantages of this climate.

The sky is always clear.

The air is light.

We have neither the fog nor the rains of the north of France, nor the droppings of the streets of Roubaix.

Embrace Daddy for me.

Pierre Wibaux."

(gentle music continues) (birds chirping) (Loic and guide chattering in French) - [Interpreter] It's not in a very good condition.

(Loic speaking in French) - [Interpreter] Wow, look at this.

(Loic speaking in French) - [Loic] In memory of Pierre Achille Valery Wibaux.

Knight of the Legion of Honor, born in Roubaix on the 12th of January, 1858, died suddenly in Chicago, USA, on the 21st of March, 1913.

Pierre Wibaux was my great-great-grandfather's cousin.

So, he was my great-great-great uncle.

And now, I'm going to follow his footsteps in America to see what's left of Pierre Wibaux in the United States.

Oh, time goes by.

(both speaking french) - [Interpreter] If you scratch a little bit, you can see it better.

(rock scratching) - Like that?

(rock scratching) (guide speaking French) - [Interpreter] Yes, like that.

(rock scratching continues) (Loic blows) (gentle music) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) - [Interpreter] Did you used to suck your thumb?

- Me?

- Yeah.

- No, I don't think so.

- No.

(relative speaking French) - [Interpreter] 'Cause the boy down there is sucking his thumb.

This is the last photo we took of a family gathering.

(relative speaking in French) - [Interpreter] Look there.

There's Pierre Wibaux's signature.

(gentle harmonica music) - [Loic] Wow, great signature.

(relative speaking in French) - [Interpreter] This is all about the lives of cowboys.

And then, you see?

(relative speaking in French) - [Interpreter] Pierre Wibaux.

Pierre Wibaux, who traveled from France at the age of 25, settled in a shack with an earthen roof on the Montana-Dakota border, (relative speaking in French) - [Interpreter] And you see the Cowboy's life, how well it's described.

What a life.

We're still not sure why Pierre Wibaux set off on such an adventure.

In the beginning, the Wibaux were, uh, they had their feet in the mud, and they were farmers near Tourcoing.

(relative speaking French) - [Interpreter] Here it is.

That's Desire Wibaux, our ancestor.

He worked in textile.

Here you see?

This is the Wibaux-Florin factory.

You see that it wasn't a small factory.

It's Desire who started this factory.

(Loic speaking French) - When was this, roughly?

- 1810.

1810.

(gentle music) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (wheel squeaking) (machinery beeping and humming) (machinery beeping and humming continues) (relative speaking French) - [Interpreter] I've always heard stories about Uncle Pierre ever since I was a child.

These letters were filed by my father and his brother, Silvan.

So it goes from 1981 to 1913.

- Uh, 18?

- Yes.

From 1881 to 1913.

(relative speaking French) - [Interpreter] "I recommend that you don't destroy these documents concerning Pierre Wibaux, or at least not without having first had a thorough sort through them.

Because Pierre's life, especially his early beginnings in Montana, will be of great historical value, in particular for his family as they look back at their ancestry."

(pages rustling) (relative speaking French) - [Interpreter] He was sent to England to learn the trade of weaving and cloth trading.

(relative speaking in French) - [Interpreter] It was over there that he met people who had made their fortune breeding cattle in America.

And that is probably what made him want to go there and see what could be done.

He was probably a bit of a hot head who didn't want to take over the family business, which would have been his father's wish.

(relative speaking French) - [Interpreter] He went on a year-long fact finding mission to see how the cattle markets worked in Chicago, and this was even before he went to Montana to see how he could possibly settle there.

(relative speaking French) - [Interpreter] I think this was the logical conclusion of his wish not to go into the family business.

And it was also an opportunity that he felt was in line with what he believed he was capable of achieving.

(relative speaking French) - [Interpreter] The first letter he sent was from Bolton in the north of England, and this is where I think he met Nelly, who would later become his wife.

(gentle music) - [Narrator] "April the 8th, 1883.

My dear brothers, the days seem to follow each other with frightening rapidity.

And it is not without a small pang of the heart that I think of the day of separation.

This will be the last, but not the least painful.

Well, it was planned, and I'm still determined to leave everything and face all the obstacles to bring my projects to a successful inclusion.

Between us, I never cared for filature, and I cannot stand it now.

I will in all probability embark on the Servia, which will leave Liverpool on the 21st of this month.

If I succeed, it'll be one of the best days of my life.

(gentle music continues) Your devoted brother, Pierre Wibaux."

(gentle music continues) (announcement dings) - [Pilot] Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen.

From the flight deck, this is your captain to welcome you aboard our Delta connection flight to Billings.

(gentle music) (people chattering softly) (gentle music continues) (lively music) (lively music continues) (plane soaring) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (hoofbeats thumping) (lively music continues) (truck horn blows) (traffic humming) (cows lowing) (wind blowing) (water splashing) - [Narrator] On June 29th, 1883.

"My dear Joseph, I work very hard.

The days seem too short for what I have to do.

That's because, you see, time flies.

I've only been here two months and I'm happy with myself.

I gained some experience and learned a lot.

With the cowboys, I put on a cocky air that could make me pass for one of them.

And with the cattle merchants, a heavy and cunning air.

I wish you could see me.

I look pretty much like a Brigante.

But in America, nobody pays attention to how you look.

People are judged by what they say and what they do.

This country is incredible from a business point of view.

If a man is smart and brave, he must earn money.

There are no lazy people here, and only fools stay poor.

My self-esteem, my happiness and my future are engaged in the struggle I have undertaken, and I will only return victorious.

(birds chirping) (gentle harmonica music) (gentle harmonica music continues) (gentle harmonica music continues) (gentle harmonica music continues) (gentle harmonica music continues) - I grew up about 150 miles from here on my mom and dad's ranch.

It's right down against the Wyoming and South Dakota border.

In town, we don't have a police department here.

Wibaux is really too small for a police department and a sheriff's department.

So I contract with the city, and we cover the town law enforcement needs and also the county.

The last census was somewhere in the neighborhood of 1400 people in the entire county and that include the town.

So yeah, and Wibaux is the only town in the county, so it's kind of unique that way.

- That's a big gun.

- Yeah.

You always hope you don't run into a guy with one bigger.

(laughs) But compared to some places, it's very peaceful.

(gentle guitar music) (gentle guitar music continues) - [Narrator] "Mingusville.

September 30th, 1893.

My dear Joe, I decided to start the process to rename Mingusville, which will be called Wibaux.

There's already a place with this name on the line.

I'll change it to Roubaix.

That way our city will be on the map of the United States, and my name, applied to the actual city, will remain as a memory of what I've done for this country, of which I'm the oldest pioneer.

I have the whole population on my side, without exception.

I need the approval of Montana State legislature, and it can't happen until January, 1895.

Regards to all the family.

Pierre Wibaux."

Hello.

- You must be Loic.

- Yeah, Loic.

- Relative of Mr. Pierre Wibaux.

- Yeah, exactly.

- Nice to meet you.

So you just came to see if the stories are true?

- [Loic] Yeah, and see- - Oh, the stories are very true.

Here you go.

This is all on Wibaux.

It was a big part of the American dream.

History is fiction, and everybody forgets that, and it's like whoever is writing it at the time, they write what they think or what they feel.

And you can get whatever documents you want to prove how you think or you feel.

So to me, you gotta read a lot of books and sort it out for yourself, so that's history.

Here's Pierre, his wife.

There was nothing here.

It was open land.

You look at how they lived and the winters and losing all of your livestock in a snow storm.

And I probably would've gone back east and said this was enough fun.

So (laughs) yeah.

You know, he was a big part of the community.

He was a big part of developing the whole livestock market.

He's one of the first ones who had the railroad actually stop on his property and put the cattle right on, and then the cattle went to Chicago, to the meat market.

So he's best known for being a rancher, for developing the meat market in Eastern Montana, which is one of the largest in the world, so yes.

(gentle harmonica music) (gentle harmonica music continues) (gentle harmonica music continues) (gentle harmonica music continues) (traffic humming) - [Mindy] Are you Loic?

- Yes.

- I'm Mindy.

(laughs) Here's Mike.

- How are you?

Please pronounce your name for me, your first name.

- Loic.

- Loic?

- Yes.

- Loic.

(Mindy laughs) - [Loic] Loic.

- Did I offend you there?

Loic?

Am I doing good?

- Yeah, it's really good.

(Mindy laughs) - Passable.

Loic.

- Yeah.

Perfect, perfect.

- Yeah.

- You can go different places here in town.

It's listed on there.

Like I said, Mike's got everything here, so he can get you lined out.

But yeah, anything you need, just let us know.

Come by.

- Oh, yeah, it's perfect.

- Yeah, whatever we can help with.

- Good beginning!

- Yes!

- We'll jump in my pickup.

- I'm going home.

- Please join me.

(laughs) (gravel crunching) So I want you to look at the statue of Pierre so that you can dream, visualize what, how you want this statue to be in your documentary.

Sunrise, sunset, maybe both.

We will have to watch the time.

And here is Pierre.

right there.

- Yeah.

Okay.

Yeah.

And I believe his ashes are down here someplace.

He was cremated in Chicago, Illinois.

Yeah, so yeah.

Yeah.

(laughs) Quite the man.

(laughs) And he's got his rifle, his binoculars.

He's dressed in his cowboy outfit.

He has his holster and gun on his hip.

Everything I read about him, he was a genuine cowboy.

He could ride his horse, yeah.

In the cattle industry, that's what separated the men from the boys on whether you could ride a horse or not.

Are you riding a thoroughbred, a high-spirited horse?

I belong to the Wibaux family.

(laughs) Wibaux, Montana, family.

(laughs) (trees rustling) Oh, Pierre Wibaux, facing north.

Looking at his ranch.

(train horn blowing) (train horn continues blowing) (gentle music) - [Narrator] "My dear Joseph, everything is going well, and I believe we'll have a good campaign this year, but it's not easy, I can assure you.

It's late, and I haven't slept in three days.

I'm now entering the period when I have the most to do and I can't wait to see the time autumn arrives.

The spring roundup is over.

I've never seen cattle in such good condition at this time of the year.

Thanks to the recent rain, the grass is growing more than ever.

I marked 2,786 calls, and I hope we'll mark around 5,000 calls this year.

I'll make the first shipment between the 12th and the 15th of July.

The next two months will be entirely devoted to receiving and branding the cattle.

We now have 30,000 heads, and the annual increase in the herd gives us nearly 10,000 cows a year.

I'm not exaggerating when I say that I'm doing well, and even better than all my neighbors.

The end of the season keeps me busy.

I'm exhausted, and I have pounds of dust in my lungs.

Regards to all, Pierre Wibaux."

(gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (cows lowing) (cows lowing continues) (cows lowing continues) (cows lowing continues) - As ranchers or farmers in this area, work sun up to sundown.

(laughs) It's just a way of life.

(cows lowing continues) This is my neighbor's place here.

Everybody helps each other when we brand.

So this is just an identification.

That was what it originally started for, years and years ago.

The brand was the mark of ownership for the cattle, so every rancher, everybody had a different brand.

And then that way when they gathered them, they knew who's cattle that that they were gathering, then they'd separate 'em and ship 'em to market.

(cows lowing continues) (cows lowing continues) (cows lowing continues) (cows lowing continues) (cows lowing continues) (ranchers chattering) (cows lowing continues) (iron sizzling) (cows lowing continues) (cows lowing continues) (ranchers chattering) (cows lowing continues) - You know, this hasn't changed much in the last 200 years.

(laughs) I mean, people still branding their calves and everything else, so I mean it's pretty cool to think that things change, but this process has still happens, you know, from back in Pierre Wibaux's time.

(cows lowing) Sorry, I gotta kind of pay attention here.

(laughs) (cows lowing continues) (gate rattles) (cows lowing continues) (cows lowing continues) (gentle music) (gentle music continues) (wind rustling) (gentle music continues) (wind rustling continues) (gentle music continues) (wind rustling continues) (gentle music continues) (wind rustling continues) (gentle music continues) (wind rustling continues) - My grandpa bought it originally.

He had it for two years, and then he died, and my dad took it over when he was 16, and kept it going.

Then he passed in '88, so then I took it over.

So you know, a lot of history here and with our family and stuff, too.

And it's been been pretty cool.

I've been growing up around this, and so it was, it means a lot, being from Wibaux, and being on the home place and everything.

So yeah.

I'd always heard that Teddy Roosevelt used to hang around here, too.

And, yeah, I'd heard that Roosevelt and Wibaux were kind of part of the vigilante.

Kind of deteriorated over years, and there was a flood in '28.

You can see the waterline there kind of, so it all settled.

But they built it pretty good, 'cause if you can look down these walls, they're perfectly still plum and square, so whoever did it did a good job.

And Pierre Wibaux brought his own mason people over, his own gardeners from France, and all these trees around were actually planted, he had his own gardeners, and then the house is just over here a little ways.

That burnt down.

I don't remember when, but.

Right here, this little dugout right here, that's where the house was.

You know, they talked about it as a big white house, a two story house, so it was pretty elaborate for around here in its day, anyway.

(gentle music) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) - Close by, was another individual by the name of Theodore Roosevelt that wanted to experience the ranching life.

Theodore Roosevelt claims that he would not have been President of the United States without his experience here in Western North Dakota and Eastern Montana.

Roosevelt and Wibaux were good friends.

I know that they worked together in the meetings.

They both belonged to the Montana Stock Growers Association.

And deciding how to protect themselves from whatever.

(grass rustling) - [Narrator] "Beaver Creek.

December 15th, 1884.

My dear Joseph, I thought the country was becoming more civilized, but in reality for a few months we've been waging a small war against horse and cattle thieves.

There's a sort of secret society here that hangs all those fellows.

We hanged 80 of them in this part of Montana, including several on our creek.

We were surrounded and spied on for 10 days on the ranch, without them being able to surprise us, or without us being able to fire a shot at them.

I assure you that I was not without concern for Nelly.

Every night, I expected an attack.

She was very brave.

10 days ago, an ambushed individual shot twice at me at 50 meters.

It was evening, and the obscurity made him miss.

(geese honking) I was on horseback at a gallop, and my bullets didn't hit the mark either.

For the moment, everything is calm, but I'm not without wondering who may have an interest in making me disappear, unless they want me to leave the country.

That's definitely a bad way to do it."

(train horn blowing) (train horn blowing continues) (bell dinging) (train squeaking and rumbling) (metal clinking) (paper rustling) - Genealogy is my hobby.

It helps a person understand who they are, where they came from, you know?

Your name's not on here, but we're gonna add it.

(laughs) I think so.

- Here.

- Okay.

- This is my grandfather.

This is my grandmother.

- Uh-huh.

Grandpa Wibaux had three kids, three sons, but each of them had a lot of sons.

Pierre only had the one son, Cyril, and he had no heirs.

So there's no direct descendants of of Pierre Wibaux left.

Cyril was born here.

He was born at the ranch, but once he got a little older, Nelly and Cyril moved back to France for his education.

Pierre's family came from the textile industry, and they were very, very rich, wealthy people.

He was given $10,000, so he came out here in 1883, and in 1886, he went back to France in the fall to raise capital to expand his ranch.

That winter, 1886/1887, is when they had the big, what they call die off when all the cattle died out here.

And Pierre lost most of his livestock, just like everybody else.

(eerie music) (wind whistling) (eerie music continues) (wind whistling continues) But he came back that spring with his contacts and family and business, he raised a half a million dollars.

This is 100 years ago.

It was a lot of money.

He bought up a lot of the surviving stock that had survived that terrible winter.

And that's what made him his fortune, was that decision to invest in a business that everybody was getting out of.

I mean, people were selling for pennies on the dollars just because they were sick of all the animals that had died and stuff.

Estimates run anywhere from 45,000 to 100,000.

I think the 45,000 is probably more accurate.

Some people call it Wibaux luck.

(gentle music) - [Narrator] "Mingusville, May 9th, 1887.

My dear Joseph, last winter was, without doubt, very harsh.

In Indian memory, we've not had such a harsh winter in the country for 300 years.

It started early and ended late.

This, together with a scarcity of grass caused by last summer's drought has caused considerable losses in some part of the country.

All the old cows are dead, and those that resisted last winter will resist many others.

Almost all the cattle brought in from Texas last year died, as did the cattle brought in from the east last summer.

I confirmed this information myself by riding across the prairie to ascertain the sanitary condition of the cattle and how they had spent the winter.

Many want to sell, some because they are short of money, others are influenced by the bad winter we've had, and the price is obtained on the market over the past two years.

The cattle is now very cheap.

I can buy a whole herd at a good price, because I have the money readily available and can pay in cash.

(wind whistling) The result will be a dividend from the first years on, which will please my shareholders.

Your devoted friend and brother."

(birds chirping) (wind whistling continues) (birds chirping continues) (wind whistling continues) (traffic humming) - What we need to remember is that Pierre Wibaux was a visionary.

He was one of those rare individuals that could see what the demand would be in 5, 10, 15, 20 years later, and how do you start planning for that event where it changes your operation?

(lively music) - [Narrator] "Wibaux, July 18th, 1895.

My dear Joe, we're launching a new bank in Miles City.

We opened with a capital of $80,000.

Everything is going well.

On January 1st, we'll have a deposit of $500,000.

When I see you again, I'll explain how we are sure to make a nice profit.

Tell dad I'll write to him soon and send him the first bank note signed by his son.

Regards to all.

Pierre Wibaux."

- We need to remember that these men were capitalists.

They were doing this not for the myth of being a cowboy, but they were businessmen.

They wanted to have a good return on their investment.

It is my understanding that that is the period of time that he invested in a gold mine in the Black Hills, South Dakota.

(gentle music) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (wind rustling) (gentle music continues) (wind rustling continues) (gentle music continues) - I've told people that you were coming here, and they look at me and said, "That's unbelievable."

And I said, "Well, it is kind of unbelievable, but it's happening."

And it's happened, for whatever reason, I can't tell you the reason, but it's picking up ahead of steam for something, which no other place is, tell you that much.

(footsteps crunching) You will know gold because that's been programmed into your DNA since the dawn of time, since the beginning of history.

If you look what people did for gold, there's just really no limits to what people have done for it, and still move mountains to get it.

(footsteps tapping) Mr. Wibaux, he's the individual that stands out, because to buy something like this in 1899, that was a big deal.

That had been many, many, many millions of dollars today.

(gentle music) I know that that town was the one that wanted it to be named Roubaix in his honor.

That's what it says.

You know, I think, I don't think it was maybe his idea.

I think they did that for him.

He provided a lot of jobs out here in the middle of nowhere.

There was 500 people living out here.

The only reason to live out here in that time was this mine.

(gentle music) - [Narrator] "My dear Joe, from the mine, I have only good news.

For three months, we have discovered very important bodies of ore that we did not suspect existed.

These different ores have confirmed our predictions.

That is to say, the further we dig, the richer the mineral gets.

I hope for good results.

Tell dad I often think of him.

Your brother and friend, Pierre Wibaux."

(gentle music continues) (machine rumbling) (machine rumbling continues) (dirt crumbling) (machine rumbling continues) (machine rumbling continues) (machine rumbling continues) (water splashing) (machine rumbling continues) (dirt squishing) - Okay.

Typically you don't see much in here, and you shouldn't, but you never know.

You might see something.

- Right above my finger.

- Yeah, it's very little.

But sometimes you find some big ones.

- Yeah.

When you haven't seen gold at all in your life, and then you just look at it, you know it's gold, it is just instinct.

You just know it's gold.

And then you collect it all.

Put it on a scale and it's heavy.

It's real heavy.

You know if it's gold or not.

That's approximately $10,000 in gold right there.

It still has the mercury attached to it.

Now here's some Cloverleaf gold that we've taken the mercury off of, and it's pure gold.

And boy is it pretty.

And boy is it getting valuable.

$1,525 for a ounce.

So there's probably 13 or $14,000 right there.

(gentle music) (gentle music continues) This pump column went down probably clear to the bottom, 750 or maybe a little more feet straight down.

And what that's used for, that was used to pump the ground water out.

They purchased a steam-powered pump that was the best technology of the time.

Those steam-powered pumps got excessively hot, they quit working, this mine filled up with water so fast, the last guys were swimming out to the shaft to get outta here with their lives.

(explosion blasts) (gentle music continues) - [Narrator] "December 20th, 1905, Roubaix, South Dakota.

My dear Joe, I'm aware that I've left you without news for a long time.

This mine is a burden I would like to get rid of, and I have no one to support me.

For five months, I have devoted my time exclusively to formalities.

Taking advantage of my connections, I went to Denver, Detroit, Chicago, Omaha, New York, and Pennsylvania in the hope of reviving the Cloverleaf Mine.

Often on the verge of success, I have failed everywhere.

I've stopped all spendings, even if it means letting the mine flood temporarily, I hope that I have the strength, and that I don't fall on the way.

I'll do my best to behave bravely, and in a few years, I'm sure that I'll be able to restore myself to a very and viable situation, from a financial point of view.

The weather is awful, and my thoughts are like the weather.

Every time I go to New York, I really want to take the boat.

Let's hope it will be soon, because I have to rest and see y'all again.

Don't forget the exiled.

Pierre Wibaux."

(thunder cracks) (thunder echoing) (crickets chirping) (crickets chirping continues) (birds chirping) (gentle music) (motorcycles rumbling) - [Announcer] How many of you appreciate the freedom of speech?

May I hear from you?

Who likes the right to bear arms in Montana?

Can I hear from you?

(crowd cheers) Who appreciates their freedom?

Consider how they were paid.

Brave men then gave their lives.

We also have the freedom of religion, and that's really (voice muffled) right to have 'em.

Join us, the cowboys and cowgirls in a short prayer.

It is your choice, because this is America.

(hooves clopping) (voice muffled) for this opportunity to come together and.

- My name's Randy Taylor Cherokee saying thank you.

God bless you.

(lively music plays faintly) We'll see you at the rodeo, (indistinct) at 6:30, rodeo at 7:00.

Thank you for coming to the Wibaux County Fair.

(crowd applauds) (cows lowing) (cows lowing continues) - Basically, these individuals with their animal is trying to show the judge the animal in the best condition, that the animal is responding to the commands of this shower.

(cows lowing) You see what the girl's doing here at the end?

- Yeah.

- Okay.

We want all the feet square.

See like the second animal?

And what they do is they walk it.

Okay, so when the animal starts acting up, they walk it around the little circle to calm it down.

The whole idea here, the concept here is improving the production so that you have an animal that is efficient in consuming the grass out on the range.

So basically we want this animal to produce more steaks, and Pierre was one of the leading individuals in bringing registered bulls in to breed to the cows that were on the range.

And through generations, you improve the entire beef herd.

(lively music) (lively music continues) (truck rumbling) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (ranchers shouting) (crowd shouting and cheering) (lively music) (crowd cheering) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (crowd cheering) (lively music continues) (crowd cheering continues) (lively music continues) (announcer calling faintly) (lively music continues) (announcer calling faintly) (bell rings) (wind blowing) - [Narrator] "I thought a lot about the meaning of life and death, about their consequences.

If, as I believe, death is the end of everything, I would be happy to rest and leave behind all my responsibilities.

If, as I hope, there is a life after death, I have no fear, because I tried to follow the right path, regardless of the consequences.

And I sincerely believe that I have been fair and upright in accordance with my beliefs and my understanding of the world.

If at times I have failed, I am sorry.

And if I have unintentionally caused harm to others, I am sorry.

Life is only worth living with ambition.

This is essential.

Like an atom in the universe, I've played my part, and I don't ask to be able to start again.

But if I had the chance, I would try to do better and achieve greater things.

I would like people to say that I participated in building a better world.

Pierre Wibaux."

(birds chirping) (gentle music) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues)