Rockwood’s perpetual interest in the sheep business found him hiring a substantial crew of Basque sheepherders who lived in wagons dotted across the Montana prairie near the small town of Ingomar. (Ingomar was 110 miles northeast of Billings and was not known for anything but sheep grazing, grassland and a noted saloon.)
As related by son Neal in family genealogy, “He apparently gave some of them the authority to buy their own goods in the store while he was not present.” Neal continued, “I remember one herder that bought a year’s supply of caviar and other expensive goods. When Dad got the bill, he was very angry, and you can be sure, got rid of the sheepherder immediately.”