The early mission of the hatchery was to hatch and distribute trout in the surrounding area, along with the task of supervising and maintaining Yellowstone National Park's fisheries through the Park's earliest years.
In later years, its mission changed and it became a fish culture training school; a Fish Diet Development Center, and served as the head office of a fisheries complex of the Spearfish National Fish Hatchery (later named D.C. Booth), the McNenny National Fish Hatchery and the Ranch A Beulah Fish Genetics Lab property.
Today our mission is to preserve and protect fishery records and artifacts for educational, research, and historic purposes, and provide interpretative and educational service to the American public.