Some of the most impressive specimens recovered from the wreck of the Bertrand were the many prospector tools and supplies bound for gold mining towns throughout the Montana Territory. The steamboat was part of a growing transportation network that emerged in the mid-19th century to answer the growing demand for goods in these towns, the most prosperous being Virginia City, which attracted thousands of prospectors and business people after gold was discovered there in 1861.
Among the many tools recovered was a giant bellows, used by blacksmiths to supply steady oxygen to a forge and increase its heat. The bellows may have been used on the ship, but could also have been destined for a blacksmith's shop in the Montana Territory.