“ORDINANCE NO. 30.

Concealed Weapons.

BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN OF THE TOWN OF RED LODGE.

    Sec. 1: It shall be unlawful after the passage of this ordinance for any person, within the limits of this town, to carry concealed on his person or under his clothes any pistol or revolver, or any other dangerous or deadly weapon, except by permission from the Mayor in writing, which permit shall state the period of time for which it is granted. Any person who shall violate the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction in the Police Magistrate Court shall be fined in any sum not less than twenty dollars, ($20.00) nor more than one hundred dollars, ($100.00), or be imprisoned in the town jail not more than thirty days, (30) or both in the discretion of the Court. Provided, however, that this section shall not be construed as to prevent any United States, State, County or Town officer or any member of the Town Government, for carrying such weapons as may be necessary in the proper discharge of his duties.
   Sec. 2: Any person who shall within the limits of this town discharge, or fire, or cause to be discharged or fired any pistol, revolver, gun, rifle or any other fir arm shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction be fined not less than five dollars ($5.00) nor more than one hundred dollars ($100.00) or be imprisoned in the town jail not more than thirty days or both in the discretion of the Court.
    Sec. 3: It shall be unlawful for any person within the limits of this town to discharge or use any slung shot or other device for shooting pebbles, shot or any other thing; any person violating the provision of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction be fined in any sum not to exceed twenty-five dollars and costs.
    Approved, September 12, A. D. 1893.
        JAMES TURNBULL, Acting Mayor.
    ATTEST. A. E. FLAGER.”

Full Text: 1893, MT, Red Lodge Picket, Ordinance no. 30, §§ 1-3

“Ordinance No. 30.” Red Lodge Picket, September 23, 1893, p. 3. Volume 5, Number 4. “Ordinance No. 30—Concealed Weapons, §§ 1-3. Approved September 12, 1893. (Red Lodge, MT).

“ORDINANCE NO. 22.

    An ordinance relating to concealed weapons and providing penalty for carrying same.
    Be it ordained by the board of aldermen of the town of Harlowton.
    Sec. 1. No person in the town of Harlowton shall wear under his or her clothes or concealed on or about their person, any pistol or revolver, except by special permission from the Mayor; nor shall any person wear under his or her clothes or concealed on or about their person, any slingshot, cross knuckles of lead, brass or other metal, or any bowie-knife, razor, billy, dirk, dirk-knife or daggor, or any knife resembling a bowie-knife, or any other dangerous or deadly weapon. Any person violating any provision of this ordinance shall be deemed guilty of a misdomeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not to exceed one hundred dollars, provided however, that this ordinance shall not be so construed as to prevent any United States, State, County or town officer, or any member of the town government from carrying such weapons as may be necessary in the discharge of his duties.
    Sec. 2. This ordinance shall tie in full force and effect on and after its passage and approval.
    Passed and approved this the 10th day of June A. D. 1909.
                A. T. Anderson, Mayor.
Attest:
    S. K. Campbell, Town Clerk.”

Full Text: 1909, Harlowton, MT, Ordinance No. 22, §§ 1-2

“Ordinance No. 22.” The Harlowton News, June 18, 1909, p. 3. Ordinance No. 22—An Ordinance Relating to Concealed Weapons and Providing Penalty for Carrying Same, §§ 1-2. Passed and Approved June 10, 1909. Volume 3, Number 51. (Harlowton, MT).

“ORDINANCE NO. 2

    An ordinance relating to concealed weapons.
    Be it ordained by the town council of the town of Malta,

    Section 1. No person in this town shall wear under his clothes or concealed on or about his person, any pistol or revolver, except by special permission from the Mayor; nor shall any person wear under his clothes or concealed on or about his person, any slungshot, cross-knuckles of lead, brass or other metal, or any bowie knife, razor, billy, dirk , dirk-knife or dagger, or any knife resembling a bowie-knife, or any other dangerous or deadly weapon. Any person violating any provision or require- of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be fined not less than ten dollars nor more than one hundred dollars. Provided, however, that this section shall not be so construed as to prevent any United States, territorial, county or city officer, or any member of the city government from carrying such weapons as may be necessary in the discharge of his duties.
    Section 2. This ordinance take shall effect and be in force from and after thirty days after the date of its passage and approval.
    Approved Oct. 5, 1909.
                               John A . Tressler, Mayor.

Attest: 
    F . W . Hall,
    Town Clerk.”

Full Text: 1909, Malta, MT, The Enterprise, Ordinance No. 2, §§ 1-2

“Paste these in your Hat: City Ordinances which Should Be Read by Every Citizen of Malta and Vicinity.” The Enterprise, October 20, 1909, p. 1. Ordinance No. 2—An Ordinance Relating to Concealed Weapons, §§ 1-2. Approved October 5, 1909. Volume 12, Number 22. (Malta, MT).

“Section 101. No body of men, other than the active militia and the troops of the United States, shall associate themselves together as a military company or organization, or parade in public with fire-arms in any city or town of this state; nor shall any city or town raise or appropriate any money towards arming, equipping, uniforming or in any other way supporting, sustaining or providing drill rooms or armories for any such body of men; but associations wholly composed of soldiers and soldiers honorably discharged from the service of the United States and the order known as the Sons of Veterans may parade at any time in public with firearms; and students in educational institutions where military science is taught as a prescribed part of the course of instruction, may, with the consent of the Governor, drill and parade with firearms in public under the superintendence of their military instructors. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and punished by a fine not exceeding ten ($10.oo) dollars, or by imprisonment not exceeding six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.”   

Full Text: 1911, MT, Ch. 145, § 101 of Laws, Resolutions, and Memorials of the State of Montana Passed at the Twelfth Regular Session of the Legislative Assembly

–N.B.–

University of California’s Copy	Hein’s Copy

Laws, Resolutions and Memorials of the State of Montana Passed at the Twelfth Regular Session of the Legislative Assembly Held at Helena, the Seat of Government of Said State, Commencing January 2nd, 1911, and Ending March 2nd, 1911 (Helena, MT: Independent Publishing Company), 1911. Chapter 145—An Act Relating to the State Militia of the State of Montana, Providing for the Organization, Regulation, Maintenance and Discipline of the National Guard of Montana, Prescribing Duties of Certain County and State Officers in Connection Therewith, Prescribing Penalties and Repealing Sections 1045 to 1110 Inclusive, of the Revised Codes of Montana of 1907, § 101. Approved March 13, 1911. 

“Sec. 526. Carrying Concealed Weapons an Offense.—It shall be unlawful for any person within the limits of the City of Anaconda to carry or wear under his clothes or concealed about his person, any pistol, revolver, slung-shot, cross-knuckles, knuckles of lead, brass or other metal, bowie knife, dirk knife or dirk, razor or dagger, or any other dangerous or deadly weapon.

Sec. 527. Such Weapons Confiscate to City.—Any such weapon or weapons, duly adjudged by the Police Magistrate or Justice of the Peace acting as Police Magistrate to have been worn or carried by any person, in violation of the foregoing section of this chapter, shall be forfeited or confiscated to the said City of Anaconda and shall be so adjudged.

Sec. 528. Police to Arrest Person Carrying Concealed Weapon.—It shall be the duty of the policemen of the City of Anaconda to arrest without a warrant any person or persons whom any policeman may find in the act of carrying or wearing under their clothes or concealed about their persons any pistol, revolver, slung-shot, cross- knuckles, knuckles of lead, brass or other metal, bowie knife, dirk knife, dirk or dagger, razor, or other dangerous or deadly weapon, and detain him in the city jail until a complaint can be made against him and a warrant secured, and bring him before the Police Magistrate for the trial of such person or persons, and for the seizure and confiscation of such of the weapons above referred to as such person or persons may be found in the act of carrying or wearing under their clothes, or concealed about their persons.

Sec. 529. Trial.—The Police Magistrate, or Justice of the Peace acting as Police Magistrate, before whom the complaint is made, as provided in the foregoing section, shall proceed to the hearing and determination of the matter, and if it shall be adjudged that such person or persons has or have incurred any of the penalties fixed by this chapter, such magistrate or justice of the peace shall so adjudge, and order that the weapon or weapons, concerning the carrying or wearing of which said penalty shall have been incurred, shall be confiscated to the City of Anaconda.

Sec. 530. Penalty.—Any person or persons violating any of the provisions of Section 526 of this Chapter shall pay a fine of not less than ten dollars nor more than three hundred dollars.

Sec. 531. Exceptions; License to Carry.—The prohibitions of this Chapter shall not apply to the police force of the City of Anaconda when on duty, sheriffs and sheriffs’ officers and officers of the State and of the United States, whose several duties may be of a character requiring them to have arms in the performance of their duty, nor to persons whose business or occupation may seem to require the carrying of weapons for their protection, and who shall have obtained from the Mayor a license so to do as hereinafter provided.

Sec. 532. Mayor May Grant License.—The Mayor may grant to so many and such persons as he may think proper licenses to carry concealed weapons, and may revoke any and all such licenses at his pleasure.

Sec. 533. Application for License.—Applications for such licenses shall be made to the Mayor, and when granted, the person applying therefor shall pay to the City Treasurer the sum of two dollars, and thereupon a license shall be issued by the City Clerk and signed by the Mayor. Every such license shall state the name, age, occupation and residence of the person to whom it is granted, and shall expire on the thirtieth day of April next following.

Sec. 534. Penally for Violation.—Any person who shall violate any of the provisions of this Chapter, where no other penalty is prescribed, shall upon conviction be fined in a sum not less than one hundred dollars for each and every offense.”

1905, Anaconda, MT, Ch. 22, §§ 526-534, Codified Ordinances of the City of Anaconda

T. O’Leary, ed., Codified Ordinances of the City of Anaconda: With the Declaration of Independence, Constitution of the United States, Constitution of the State of Montana, Laws Relating to Municipal Corporations, Laws for the Government of Cities (Anaconda, MT: City Council, 1906), 390-392. Chapter 22—Concealed Weapons, §§ 526-534. Passed October 2, 1905.

“Sec. 1. No person shall in this city wear under his clothes, or concealed on or about his person, any pistol or revolver, except by special permission from the mayor; nor shall any person wear under his clothes, or concealed on or about his person, any slung shot, cross knuckles, knuckles of lead, brass or other metal, or any bowie knife, razor, billy, dirk, dirk-knife or dagger, or any knife resembling a bowie knife, or any other dangerous or deadly weapon. Any person violating any provision or requirement of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof before the police magistrate shall be fined not less than five dollars nor more than one hundred dollars. Provided, however, that this section shall not be so construed as to prevent any United States, territorial, county or city officer, or any member of the city government, from carrying such weapons as may be necessary in the proper discharge of his duties.”

1883, MT, Ordinance No. 4, Concealed Weapons

Alexander C. Botkin, The Charter and Ordinances of the City of Helena, Montana with the Rules of Order for the government of the City Council: 1887 (Helena , MT: Journal Publishing Company, 1887), 103-104. Ordinance No. 4: Concealed Weapons. Passed and approved June 14, 1883.

Section 3. If any person shall go into an church or religions assembly, any school room or other place where persons are assembled for amusement or for educational or scientific purposes, or into any circus, show, or public exhibition of any kind, or into a ball room, social party, or social gathering, or to any election precinct or any place of registration, on the day or days of any election or registration, where any portion of the people of the State are collected to register or vote at any election, or to any other place where people may be assembled to perform any public duty, or at any public assembly, and shall have or carry concealed or partially concealed about his person a pistol or other firearm, dirk, dagger, slung shot, sword cane, knuckles, or bowie knife, he shall. be punished by a fine of not less than fifty nor more than five hundred dollars.

Full Text: HeinOnline (subscription required) [General] [Remote]

Sec 1. It shall be the duty of any keeper of the arsenal, military stores, ammunition, arms and ordnance belonging to this territory . . . to report to the governor in writing the amount of such military stores and ammunition, and a list and description of such arms and ordinance in his possession and within his knowledge . . . . Sec. 4. The governor is hereby authorized to collect at the capital all the arms and ammunition, ordnance, military stores and equipments, and place them in a suitable building in charge of a keeper, at a salary not to exceed two hundred dollars per annum. Sec. 5. It shall be the duty of the governor to require of any person to whom such arms, ammunition, ordnance, military stores or equipments may be delivered, to execute a bond to the territory in the sum not to exceed the value thereof with such suretiies as may be approved by him, conditioned for the safe keeping of the same, and the return thereof on the demand of the governor, unless the same shall have been delivered to the county commissioners of any such county when the same shall be charged to such county at the value thereof to be returned when called for by the governor.

§ 1. Within thirty days from the passage and approval of this Act, every person within the State of Montana, who owns or has in his possession any fire arms or weapons shall make a full, true, and complete verified report upon the form hereinafter provided to the sheriff of the County in which such person lives, of all fire arms and weapons which are owned or possessed by him or her or are in his or her control, and on sale or transfer into the possession of any other person such person shall immediately forward to the sheriff of the County in which such person lives the name and address of that purchaser and person into whose possession or control such fire arm or weapon was delivered. § 3. Any person signing a fictitious name or address or giving any false information in such report shall be guilty of misdemeanor, and any person failing to file such report as in this Act provided, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. § 8. For the purpose of this Act a fire arm or weapon shall be deemed to be any revolver, pistol, shot gun, rifle, dirk, dagger, or sword.

It shall be unlawful for any person at any time to hunt, trap, kill, capture, chase or molest any game animals or game birds whatever within the limits of said game preserve, or to discharge any firearms or to create any unusual disturbance tending to frighten or drive away any game animals or any game birds within said preserve; provided however, that permits to capture and destroy mountain lions¸wolves, foxes, coyotes, cats, wildcats, mink and other predatory animals may be issued by the State Game Warden upon the payment of such fee, and in accordance with such regulations as may be established for said preserve by the State Game and Fish Commission. Any person violating any provisions of this Act shall be guilty a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not less than fifty ($50.00) dollars, nor more than five hundred ($500.00) dollars or by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed ninety (90) days, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

There is hereby created a gun license for aliens. No person not a bona fide citizen of the United States shall own or have in his possession, in the State of Montana, any gun, pistol or other firearm without first having obtained from the Game and Fish Warden a license therefor, which said license shall cost the owner of said firearm the sum of Twenty-five ($25) Dollars, and shall expire one year from date of issuance thereof; provided, however, that this section shall not apply to one who has obtained the Twenty-five ($25) Dollar hunting license required by the laws of Montana; provided, further, that the provisions of this section shall not apply to any alien who is a bona fide resident of the State of Montana and the owner of not less than one hundred and sixty acres of land therein, nor shall it apply to any settler on the public lands of the State of Montana who shall have begun to acquire land under the laws of the United States by filing thereon, nor shall it apply to persons engaged in tending or herding sheep or other animals, held in herd.

§ 1. Any person who enters a building belonging to another with intent to commit a felony or other crime by the use of nitro glycerine, dynamite, gun powder or other high explosives or who commits a burglary by the use of such explosives is guilty of burglary with explosives. § 2 Burglary with explosives is punishable by imprisonment in State Prison for not less than fifteen years, and not more than forty years.

If any railroad corporation within this State shall . . . transport within this State on any of its passenger cars, any oil of vitrol, gun powder, Lucifer matches, nitro glycerine, glynon oil, nytroleum or blasting oil, or nitrates oil, or powder mixed with any such oil, or fiber saturated therewith, or duolin or giant powder, or blasting powder, or any other goods in a dangerous nature . . . shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof, shall be fined for the first offense in the sum of one thousand dollars, and for the second violation of the same provision, two thousand dollars, and for every other and further violation of any provision of which it has been twice before found guilty, a sum not less than five nor more than ten thousand dollars.

Crimes Against the Public Peace, § 759: Every person who brings into this state an armed person or armed body of men for the preservation of the peace or the suppression of domestic violence, except at the solicitation and by the permission of the legislative assembly or of the governor, is punishable by imprisonment in the state prison not exceeding ten years and by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars.

Section 758. Every person who within the limits of any city or town carries or bears concealed about his person a dirk, dagger, pistol, revolver, or other deadly weapon is punishable by a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars. This Section does not apply to peace officers in discharge of their official duty.

An Act of March, 5, 1883, § 66. It shall be unlawful for any person within the limits of any city, town or village in this territory, to bear concealed upon his person any dirk, dagger, pistol, revolver, or other deadly weapon. Any person violating any of the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not less than ten dollars, nor more than one hundred dollars. This section shall not apply to peace officers in the discharge of their official duties.

No person, company, or corporation shall store, deposit or keep within the limits of any city, town or village, gunpowder, nitroglycerine, guncotton, dynamite, and other dangerous or powerful explosives exceeding fifty pounds, and no magazine or storehouse where such explosives are stored or kept, shall hereafter be located nearer than one-half mile from such city, town or village; Provided, That this act shall not be construed to prevent the keeping of a reasonable supply of powder in any safe place at a mine.

[I]f any person shall have upon him or her any pistol, gun, knife, dirk-knife, bludgeon, or other offensive weapon, with intent to assault any person, every such person, on conviction, shall be fined not more than one hundred dollars, or imprisoned in the county jail not more than three months.

Every person in this territory having, carrying, or procuring from another person, any dirk, dirk-knife, sword, sword-cane, pistol, gun, or other deadly weapon, who shall in the presence of one or more persons, draw or exhibit any of said deadly weapons in a rude or angry or threatening manner, not in necessary self defense, or who shall in any manner unlawfully use the same in any fight or quarrel, the person or persons so offending, upon conviction thereof in any criminal court in any county in this territory shall be fined in any sum not less than ten dollars nor more than one hundred dollars, or imprisoned in the county jail not less than one month nor more than three months, at the discretion of the court, or by both such fine and imprisonment, together with the costs of prosecution, which said costs shall in all cases be computed and collected in the same manner as costs in civil cases; and all fines and forfeitures arising under the provisions of this act shall be paid into the county treasury for school purposes: Provided, that no sheriff, deputy sheriff, constable, marshal, or other peace officer, shall be held to answer, under the provisions of this act, for drawing or exhibiting any of the weapons hereinbefore mentioned while in the lawful discharge of his or their duties.

If any person shall, by previous appointment or agreement, fight a duel with a rifle, shot-gun, pistol, bowie-knife, dirk, small-sword, back-sword, or other dangerous weapon, and in so doing shall kill his antagonist, or any person or persons, or shall inflict such wound as that the party or parties injured shall die thereof within one year thereafter, every such offender shall be deemed guilty of murder in the first degree, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished accordingly [death by hanging].

That it shall be unlawful for any person to fire any gun, pistol or any fire-arm, of whatever description, within the limits of any town, city, or village in this territory, or within the limits of any private enclosure which shall contain a dwelling house.

[Laws] of Montana Territory, § 59. If any person shall assault and beat another with a cowhide, stick, or whip, having at the time in his possession a pistol or other deadly weapon, with an attempt to intimidate and prevent the person assaulted from defending himself, such person shall, on conviction thereof, be imprisoned in the territorial prison not less than one nor more than ten years.

If any person shall within any city, town, or village in this territory, whether the same is incorporated or not, carry concealed upon his or her person any pistol, bowie-knife, dagger, or other deadly weapon, shall, on conviction thereof before any justice of the peace of the proper county, be fined in any sum not less than twenty five dollars, nor more than one hundred dollars.