Montana Historian Issue 8 2017 by Rey Advertising

Issue 8 . 2017

IN THIS ISSUE c.m. russell john bozeman the bozeman trail Philipsburg 150th anniversary

FEATURING

Photographs courtesy of Donnie Sexton and the Yellowstone Historic Center Museum

To Advertise â&#x20AC;¢ Mike Rey 406.539.1010

2017

features 10

Yellowstone Historic Center

John Bozeman

Creating Ambiance

The Life & Death of the City's Founder with Centre Sky

Photo Albums

Preserving Your History

Crail Ranch North

Conservators Connect

C.M. Russell

The Art & Soul of the American West

Walking Through History

Bannack & The Bozeman Trail

Modern Revival

Garnet

Bozeman's Cannery District Gold, Grief & Ghosts

Return to Tradition

Reviving Stamp Mills in Philipsburg

Prohibition

Memories of a Young Boy

Past, Present & Future

Philipsburg Celebrates 150 Years

Mining the Past

Geology of Granite County

The Legend of Henry Plummer

Best of the Montana Historian 2009

The Historic Sacajawea Hotel

The Haunted Historian

History in the Making

Best of the Montana Historian 2010 Local Haunts & Ghost Towns

Montana Historian

Publisher Mike Rey

Online Director Chris Rey

Design Jared Byerly

Contributors

Skip Anderson Ellen Baumler Jenna Caplette Steven Feagler Will Genge Alison Grey Anne Marie Mistretta Dave Reuss Jessianne Wright Philipsburg Historical Society

Ad Sales Mike Rey

Published By Rey Advertising 3220 Hillcrest Drive Bozeman, MT 59715 406-539-1010 reyadvertising@q.com

On the Cover

Charles M. Russell (1864-1926), Cowboy on a Bay Horse, c. 1895, watercolor on paper, C.M. Russell Museum Collection, Museum Purchase with funds from anonymous donor

2017

Two Top Yellowstone Winter Tours

The Ride of a Lifetime

With bubbling geysers, active wildlife and unmatched scenery, Yellowstone Park is one of the most beautiful areas in the lower 48—and the best way to experience it all is riding on a snowmobile. That’s exactly what Two Top Yellowstone Winter Tours has been facilitating for nearly 50 years. Since 1966, they’ve been helping guests enjoy the wonder and beauty of America’s first national park in the most intimate way possible. Howard McCray established Two Top Snowmobile Rentals in 1969, when he decided to supplement the slow season at Richardson’s Motel – an establishment he owned and operated from 1962 until 1986 – by renting out a few sleds: three, to be exact. But his supplemental income proved anything but.“I lost my shirt,” remarked Howard in a 1986 interview with The West Yellowstone News,“but I had to take a chance because I was already losing my shirt in the dealership business.” One of the earliest dealers in West, Howard came to the unfortunate realization that those who came to test-drive most often merely borrowed and returned. “I started the rentals in self defense,” quipped Howard. The move proved advantageous and his fleet of three grew to 20 by the early 1970s. In 1979, the fleet had grown to 40 and Howard’s son David joined the business. “My father bought his first snowmobile in ‘64 and really got into the rental business by ‘69,” says David, who, along with his brother Randy, assumed ownership of Two Top from his father in 1986. “It was a real mom-and-pop operation. And by 1980, we’d become a full-fledged rental company. We’ve grown every single year since.” That continuous growth has positioned Two Top as the single largest snowmobile company in West.

Montana Historian

Through the years, the company rode the wave of changes enacted by the Park Service, including restrictions on guides, permits and allowable types of snowmobiles. Thankfully, by working to find compromises with the Park, things have turned out for the best: with the award of a ten-year contract this spring by the Park Service, Two Top will be able to take up to 100 snowmobiles into the Park on any given day by the 2015-16 season. “It’s a very exciting time to visit Yellowstone in the winter” David remarks. Whether an expert or a beginner, every guest can ride a clean-burning, Park-compliant four-stroke snowmobile over well-marked, groomed trails beginning right out the front door. With hundreds of miles of snowmobile trails in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, there’s almost no limit to what guests could experience.“We still rent snowmobiles for self-guided tours on the Gallatin and Targhee National Forests, but all Yellowstone National Park winter tours are guided, and our staff are all in West Yellowstone because they love it,” says David.“The knowledge they have is really amazing.” “We have clients that come out every season. They’ll bring their kids and, years later, their kids will come with families of their own,” says David with a smile.“It’s real fun to see the same familiar faces year after year.” A family business firmly and happily entrenched in family, David and the staff at Two Top pride themselves on customized care.“Clients aren’t just customers here,” David explains.“They’re guests in a unique corner of the world, at an incredible time of the year, invited to share in a very special, once-in-a-lifetime experience.” To schedule an unparalleled experience, check out twotopsnowmobile.com.

The Bozeman Clinic Serving Patients in the Gallatin Valley Since 1930

Some of the most important people in a town are its physicians, and doctors have been calling Montana home since its earliest days. From working at military outposts to running modern hospitals, medical professionals touch every part of the region’s history. One of the longest continually operated medical providers is the Bozeman Clinic, which has called Bozeman home since the beginning of the 1930s. Dr. Bernard Heetderks started the Heetderks Clinic in Bozeman in 1930 after taking over Dr. Clem Seerley’s local practice. Dr. Heetderks trained in medicine in Chicago before heading off to serve his country in France during World War I. Following the war, he worked for the Northern Pacific Railroad hospital, treating the workers laying the tracks to connect the country. In 1936, Dr. Roland G Scherer joined his brother-in-law at the Heetderks Clinic following his work for the Mayo Clinic. The doctors practiced together for two decades until Dr. Scherer departed in 1955. By then, Dr. Heetderks’ son, John, had finished medical school and was ready to join his father at the clinic. Dr. John had previously served in the Navy before studying at Montana State University and the University of Minnesota, where he earned his Doctor of Medicine degree in 1954. Following his education, Dr. John decided to join his father back in Bozeman. Though it remained a family business, they renamed the clinic The Bozeman Clinic, cementing its connection with the town. Soon thereafter in 1957, another son, Dr. Albert De Heetderks – known as Dr. De – united with his family at the clinic. Dr. De also studied at Montana State and the University of Minnesota. He went on to earn his Bachelor of Science and M.D. from Stanford University in 1954. The father and two sons continued to practice together, often dressing in a suit and tie to make house calls or deliver babies in the middle of the night. In fact, Dr. Heetderks mixed many of his own medicines for patients

Montana Historian

using meticulous notes he kept in a small notebook. Such was a doctor’s life on the frontier. The family continued to practice together until 1969, when the eldest Dr. Heetderks passed away at age 74. His sons continued to grow and modernize the practice through the years, offering a broad range of medical care and surgical procedures. Writing about the Clinic in the 1980s, the doctors noted that The Bozeman Clinic “offered quality diagnostic and treatment facilities including a clinical laboratory, with registered laboratory personnel; a radiology department with hospital grade diagnostic x-ray equipment including [an] image intensifier under the direction of registered x-ray technicians.” Dr. De retired in 1987 and left the clinic in the hands of his brother. Dr. John continued the practice until 1995, by which time the number of physicians had grown and they were ready to take the reins. Dr. Gabor Benda joined the clinic in 1989 and was joined by Drs. David McLaughlin, Larry Sonnenberg and Leonard Ramsey before Dr. John retired. Today, the clinic has expanded to seven physicians specializing in the full spectrum of medical care for the whole family. The clinic has added Drs. Heather Wheeler, Steven Roberts and Christine Mitchell to provide a unique breadth of individualized care under the banner of a single practice. The Bozeman Clinic offers everything from pregnancy care to minor surgical procedures, continuing the clinic’s long tradition of offering compassionate care to the Bozeman community.

The Yellowstone Historic Center images courtesy of the yellowstone historic center & museum Location has the capacity to shape many aspects of our lives and experiences; it’s difficult to become fluent in Spanish if you only study in a class of English speakers, New Orleans offers jazz which is superior to that of Topeka’s, and few verdicts are reached outside of a courtroom. Even when location offers so much to an experience, we must often settle under the constraints of geography, whether it’s the Indian food offered in Montana, or the football game viewed on your phone, unfit locations often lead to subpar experiences. If you truly want to learn, and immerse yourself in the human history of the Yellowstone region, and the transportation people have used to get there through the years, shouldn't it be done in a place which is itself studied as part of the history?

served as a dining hall; however, these were replaced by more permanent, stone buildings within a few years of the railroad’s completion. In 1920, almost 20,000 people visited Yellowstone leading to overcrowding in the dining hall and depot; after only eleven years, the Union Pacific company enlisted the help of Gilbert Stanley Underwood, an LA based architect known for his work on a variety of Union Pacific depots and national park lodges, to design a new depot which could accommodate the growing numbers of travelers. To renovate the depot, Underwood’s plans expanded the rest pavilion and added an additional area for the passengers’ baggage. In addition to the the depot’s renovations, Underwood designed a new dining lodge and dormitories.

In 1872 United States President Ulysses S. Grant signed the act which created Yellowstone as the world’s first national park. In the proceeding years, very few tourist made the trek west to see the park on account of the difficulty of reaching its remote location without an established rail route. This changed when the Northern Pacific Railroad established a route to Livingston, MT and then another which stretched fifty-five miles south to Gardiner, MT at the park’s northern border. In 1904, a total of 13,727 people had traveled across the country to view all that Yellowstone has to offer; the proceeding year, the president of the Union Pacific Railroad, E.H. Harriman, rode the rails to meet with railroad officials near the park and discuss the best actions to accommodate the growing numbers of tourists. Harriman and the others decided that the best way to do so was to build a new route starting at the Union Pacific Terminus in St. Anthony, ID and running to the park’s western border, before connecting to West Yellowstone. The completion of the route was marked by the arrival of the first passenger train to West Yellowstone in 1908 which brought tourist who would shortly thereafter board stagecoaches to see the geysers of Yellowstone.

In the following years, thousands of passengers enjoyed the plethora of amenities which the depot offered as they passed through the depot when they arrived and departed West Yellowstone; travelers enjoyed dressing rooms, a spacious waiting room, and the warmth of a steam-powered electric heater and two fireplaces. As the 1960s emerged, rail travel began its decline in the United States and the depot began to see less visitors; in 1972 many of its partitions were removed to transform the building’s interior into a museum. The most prominent changes to the depot started nearly thirty years later when the Yellowstone Historic Center began leasing the depot from the town of West Yellowstone. Understanding the immense impact which such a historic building has in connecting people to the area’s rich heritage, the Yellowstone Historic Center began a variety of restoration projects to the depot which would exhibit the building’s most significant features such as the ticket counter. In addition, the depot’s ceilings, roof, and electric components were repaired to ensure it remains protected from wear, and a visible display of Yellowstone’s rich transportation history for years to come. In addition to the historic experience visitors receive throughout the historic district, the Yellowstone Historic Center offers a variety of exhibits in the depot. Visitors to the center can learn more about the

The first passengers to arrive in West Yellowstone exited their trains into a primitive wooden train depot with an adjacent building which

Montana Historian

history of transportation to and throughout Yellowstone in the “Ho! For Yellowstone” exhibit. The Yellowstone Historic Center also offers exhibits on other facets of the region; the “History of Fly Shops and Fly Fishing in the West Yellowstone Area” exhibit, which is curated by Bob Jacklin, a fly fishing guide and outfitter who has worked in West Yellowstone for over thirty-six years allows visitors to learn about every aspect of West Yellowstone’s fly fishing history through a variety of photographs of notable people in the fly fishing industry, as well as early rods and reels

from the Charles Church collection. Visitors can even deepen their understanding of the interactions between humans and bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem in the newly expanded “Beary Famous” exhibit. A visit to the Yellowstone Historic Center Museum allows the curious to experience history in a way which can never be duplicated in a book; the depot and town which the center is located in allow for a full immersion into the experiences of Yellowstone’s early visitors, while discovering the past of the national park, and the ways people journeyed to it.

2017

The Life and Death of City Founder Led to

Bozeman’s Bloody Birth By Skip Anderson

John Bozeman, the namesake for Bozeman, MT, led an adventurous life that in many ways epitomizes American expansion westward. A year before the Confederates igniting the American Civil War by attacking Fort Sumter, Bozeman all but abandoned his wife and their three small children in his hometown in northern Georgia. Seduced by stories of rivers that carried gold throughout the mountains of Colorado, Bozeman, then 25, headed west, never to return to the South or see his family again. He would be dead five years later. But not before establishing a legacy that’s part hard fact, part romanticized fiction, and part pure speculation. The dashing Southerner did, in fact, forge a new pass through the Rocky Mountains in what would become southwest Montana and help establish a supply outpost that would eventually grow into what is today is Bozeman, MT, the eventual county seat of Gallatin County. It is also fact that he died by a gunshot wound along the banks of the Yellowstone River. Although historians agree that each of the theories regarding the identity — and motive — of his murderer are inconclusive. And his grave marker has led one Montana State University to ask an important question that history may never be able to explain fully. Indeed, why does William McKenzie’s name appear on John Bozeman’s grave marker? John Bozeman was born in the dead of winter in Pickens County, GA. His father left him and his four siblings and their mother when John was only 14. Beyond that, little is known about his life until he too left his family to answer the call of the gold rush that was the driving force of American’s expansion into the untamed west. But, according to John M. Bozeman: Montana Trailmaker by Merrill G. Burlingame (Montana State University, 1983), by the time he got there, there were more miners than fruitful spots to mine. So, he joined a small expedition heading northward. After unsuccessful stints in a few other mining camps, Bozeman apparently gave up on panning for gold. Those experiences, however, were not altogether unproductive in that Bozeman saw the need for a safer, shorter route than the Oregon Trail to travel between Virginia City and Fort Laramie, connecting small mining towns to centers to population along the way. With the help of John Jacobs, who had been guiding wagons through the region along the Oregon Trail, Bozeman’s shortcut would popularize an important mountain pass between two towns that would become Livingston and Bozeman.

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“In order to drum up business [for his guide services along the new trail],” according to a 2015 article by Kent Goodman that appeared in Bozeman Magazine, “the 6-foot-2 man would dress himself in buckskins and do the whole Wild West thing … although ordinarily he liked to cut a dandy figure, complete with striped pants and a cotton coat with an in-fashion slouch hat.” Prior to his departure to seek the trail, Bozeman understood the agriculture opportunities afforded by the Gallatin Valley in providing food for the growing American expansion. So, according to Burlingame, Bozeman had arranged with William J. Beall and Daniel E. Rouse, ranchers near Three Forks,“to lay out a townsite in the Upper Gallatin Valley near the passes that lead to the Yellowstone Valley,” Burlingame wrote. Bozeman would also start a business with Thomas Cover ferrying people across the Yellowstone River near what would become Livingston, MT. It seems the only aspect of John Bozeman’s death that historians can agree upon are that he was murdered by gunshot along the banks of the Yellowstone River. But the who and the why remain a mystery that may never be fully resolved. The initial report was that Native Americans killed Bozeman while he was traveling with his business partner Thomas Cover. The pair was en route to Fort Smith, MT, in the hopes of gaining contracts to supply the outpost with food and goods when they stopped along the Yellowstone east of Livingston to eat lunch. Cover told the cattleman and banker Nelson Story, whose ranch was nearby, that the pair encountered five Blackfeet Indians who opened fire, killing Bozeman and hitting Cover in the arm. “… as I called to [Bozeman] to shoot, the Indian fired, the ball taking effect to B.’s right breast, passing completely through him,” Cover wrote in a firsthand account published May 4, 1867, edition of The Montana Post.“B. charged on the Indian, but did not fire, when another shot taking effect in the left breast brought poor B. to the ground a dead man. At this instant, I received a bullet through the upper edge of my left shoulder.”

However, Story’s subsequent investigation into the killing showed little evidence of a riverside encounter with Native Americans. In fact, other than Bozeman’s body, there was no sign that a fight had taken place, and certainly not a shootout with multiple Native Americans. Cover’s story simply didn’t address possible motives for unprovoked murder. Where were the extra sets of footprints? Why didn’t the attackers take Bozeman’s prized rifle, or his watch? Why did they take time to scatter the horses, as Cover stated, rather than take them as their own when they left?

The Extreme History Project, a Livingston-based nonprofit organization, introduced the theory in 2014 in the play,“Who Killed John Bozeman?” The play was based upon an oral history passed down through several generations of Stan Stephans’ family and uncovered by the Extreme History Project. According to a 2014 article by Gail Schontzler in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, Stephans told EHP that Tom Kent, a cattle wrangler for Nelson Story, admitted to one of Stephans ancestors that he killed Bozeman on behalf of Story.

“The death is the part I’ve always been kind of skeptical about — and think a lot of other people, too — because the initial claim was that he was murdered by Indians,” says Robert Rydell, professor of history at Montana State University.“But the initial party that went out to retrieve the body and take a look at the site found really no evidence of that having happened.”

There’s another mystery pertaining to the life and death of John Bozeman, involving William McKenzie, who was regarded as Bozeman’s best friend. The pair bunked together from time to time, which was not uncommon in the days of the Wild West. But it’s less common for the two to be buried side-by-side and share a grave marker.

These lingering doubts, combined with a complete lack of evidence at the crime scene, and subsequent notable inconsistencies in Cover’s story upon retelling to others, have lent credence to the theory that Cover himself fired the fatal shot into Bozeman for reasons of jealousy. After all, at 6-foot-2, Bozeman was considerably taller than most of his contemporaries. And he was inarguably a roguishly handsome man who commanded considerable public attention by way of his efforts to forge a town. In his short time there, Bozeman had become a man of distinction in the Wild West. It is rumored he parlayed his charms into the hearts of many a woman — married or not, some say. But, like all theories pertaining to Bozeman’s death, there’s little hard evidence to support it.

“William McKenzie died around 1913 or 1914, and is basically memorialized on the same gravestone,” Rydell says.“There’s absolutely no evidence [to suggest romantic involvement between the two]. But I always ask my students,‘How many gravestones in small Western towns do you see that have the names of two men embedded in the same headstone. And the answer is,‘Not many.’

And recently a third theory emerged that lays blame squarely at the feet of the aforementioned Nelson Story — a cattleman and banker who at the time was the wealthiest person in Bozeman. Presumably, Story knew that Native Americans killing a high-profile person such as John Bozeman could very well prompt — and ultimately did prompt — the federal government to establish a military outpost to protect the emerging city. Thus, Fort Ellis came into being in the wake of John Bozeman’s murder. Naturally, this was an economic boon to Bozeman as a whole and to businessmen such as Story who would provide beef and other supplies to the military outpost.

“That begs the question,‘What’s going on here?’ Rydell continues.“And that’s where I just leave a question mark. People can run with that however they want. Bozeman is killed and the question is by whom and for what? And I suspect if I had to really delve into it, I could probably spin out a pretty good story about Bozeman having been killed in a lover’s tryst of some kind, but not one that’s normally associated with the Wild West.” Rydell says he raises the point to his students “not as a theory, but as a question,” to illustrate that “historians have to put all the possibilities on the table.” “I look for evidence, and what evidence we have is a grave marker with William McKenzie, who seems to be one of his friends from Georgia, who basically insists on being buried with him in 1913,” Rydell says.“I take that as unusual.”

2017

Adventure in the Backcountry Jerry Johnson knows West Yellowstone hospitality. A second generation Montanan, the former mayor and current city commissioner grew up working with his parents, who have owned and operated motels in West Yellowstone for the past 65 years. Now, through Backcountry Adventure, he shares the majestic beauty and vast grandeur that is West Yellowstone with locals and worldwide visitors alike. Alongside his wife, Jacquelyn, their two children, Keith and Kendra, and a staff with experience in the West Yellowstone area ranging from 31 to 62 years, Johnson provides custom snowcoach, snowmobile, snowshoe and cross country ski excursions, as well as Old Faithful tours and full clothing and accommodation packages. Featuring environmentally friendly snowmobile models from top manufacturers, Backcounty Adventure snowmobile rentals are completely customizable to include a guide, complete clothing package, accommodations packages, and even specific snowmobile models. And with a free tank of gas for each daily rental, the West Yellowstone world is your playground.

A great way to experience Yellowstone, snowmobile tours of the Park and surrounding area provide a unique view of the unparalleled landscape and abundant wildlife. Snowmobile tour stops in Yellowstone National Park can include Madison Junction, Fountain Paint Pot, Midway Geyser Basin and Biscuit Basin. In addition, Backcountry Adventure provides three interpretive snowmobile trips to Old Faithful – the world’s most concentrated area of geothermal features – and one trip to the Yellowstone Grand Canyon each day. Guided snowmobile trips in the Gallatin National Forest just outside of Yellowstone Park, an area offering over 200 miles of groomed trails with spectacular views and deep powder, are also regularly available throughout the season. Another great option for exploring the Park in absolute comfort and security is a snowcoach tour. Family- and group-friendly, Ford E350 conversion van snowcoach tours are highly affordable ad provide visitors with the freedom to stop whenever they want for photo opportunities. In addition to Old Faithful and Canyon Park tours, Backcountry Adventure also offers private snowcoach expeditions. Join the Johnson family and the highly experienced, personable and knowledgeable staff of Backcountry Adventure to create the adventure of a lifetime. Located at 224 N. Electric Street in West Yellowstone, Montana, Backcountry Adventure can be reached by calling 406.646.9317. For reservations, check out the convenient rental calculator and call 800.924.7669 or email reservations@backcountry-adventures. com. For more information, visit www.backcountryadventures.com or check them out on Facebook @ backcountryadventures.

Montana Historian

EST. 1992

2017

AMI

Promotes Lung Cancer and Breast Cancer Screenings

Cancer screenings are designed to catch cancer in its earliest stages, when it is most treatable. For example, mammograms look for breast cancer and lung screens look for the most common cancer killer in America: lung cancer. Advanced Medical Imaging (AMI) and Bozeman Health are proud to jointly offer Low Dose Chest CT (LDCT) scans for lung cancer, a disease that often has reached advanced stages by the time patients experience symptoms. And, AMI recently added a second MRI unit, basically doubling patient access for breast MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) and breast MRI biopsies. LDCT screenings were introduced at Bozeman Health and AMI in 2013, with 83 conducted to date. Using a lower radiation dose than a normal CT scan–about the same as in a mammogram–the test recently became more affordable for more patients.

The screenings now are covered by most commercial insurance carriers and by Medicare because LDCT screenings “can detect lung cancer at an earlier stage than lung cancer would be detected in an unscreened population” according to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. The fiveyear survival rate for lung cancer had been only 15% since the 1970s, because of late diagnosis.

“According to 2011 statistics from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), for every 320 individuals we screen for lung cancer using Low Dose Chest CT scans, we can prevent one death from lung cancer,” said AMI Director Courtney Funk. “I think it’s an amazing statistic.

Montana Historian

It’s part of the reason that Medicare adopted coverage so quickly.”

Since smoking is thought to cause up to 90% of lung cancers, candidates for this screening must be a current or former smoker, between 55-74 years old, with a smoking history of at least 30 packyears (one pack a day for 30 years, two packs a day for 15 years, etc.), and have no symptoms such as wheezing or coughing up blood. An order for the test is needed from their primary provider.

Funk would like to see more people take advantage of the lung cancer screenings, but is very pleased with the growth in breast cancer screenings at AMI. “In one year, our breast MRI volume has increased 66%, so we are now averaging more than one per day,” she said. Breast MRI is used most often in breast cancer diagnosis and staging, but NCCN recommends screening with mammography plus breast MRI for some women at higher risk of breast cancer. “The need for biopsy of suspicious lesions has quadrupled, which led us to install a second MRI unit capable of all imaging subspecialties, including dedicated breast MRI and breast MRI biopsy,” Funk added. “Access and convenience for patients will be greatly improved. We also have a dedicated Breast Specialist, Cindy Carter, PA-C, and team of professionals that assist patients with risk evaluation, screening guidelines, even insurance pre-authorization.” For more information on either type of screening, call AMI at 406-414-5200.

2017

TOP

REASONS

FREE PLAY ROCKS!

Today, more than ever, parents are raising families who are always on the go. Days are filled with music lessons, sporting events, and after school activities that take up much of a child’s time. It is easy to overlook the advantages of free, unstructured play for our kids and the proven benefits it has on performance in other areas so we recommend this list of the top 10 reasons free play ROCKS! In other words, set aside time throughout the week for kids to play outside, go to the park, or simply be left to their own imagination without toys and adult influence. This can have major benefits socially, emotionally, and physically. Sensory Enrichment: Free play enhances sensory experiences and helps build processing skills. Interaction without structure stimulates kid’s hearing, touch, vision, and the ability to “feel” all of these systems working together. This also helps children with self-control. As they test their different sensory experiences, they begin to find activities that work best to alert or calm their bodies. Risk Taking: Unstructured, free play, gives children the opportunity to take risks. This not only allows them to find their limits, but also encourages problem solving skills, and confidence. Motor Planning Skills: The ability to come up with, organize, and carry out steps to achieve a task on their own is an area of control that a child learns with more opportunities and varied environments. Figuring out how to climb a boulder, negotiating a new playground, or crossing a stream are all opportunities for a child to develop their motor planning skills.

Montana Historian

CARE WHERE YOU NEED IT

24/7 Emergency Care

Urgent Care

Bozeman Health Deaconess Hospital 915 Highland Boulevard | 406-414-1000

Bozeman 1006 West Main Street | 406-414-4800

Bozeman Health Big Sky Medical Center 334 Town Center Avenue | 406-995-6995

Belgrade Clinic 206 Alaska Frontage Road | 406-414-3334

bozemanhealth.org/emergency-care

School Performance: When children are able to burn energy outside the classroom, they are less likely to seek sensory experiences in the classroom, or are more certain of ways to control excitement levels while in school. Research has also shown that the more often children engage in free play, the higher their abilities to will be to plan, focus, remember and juggle multiple tasks. Physical Development: Free play allows for children to continually develop their coordination, balance, and flexibility. When on their own in open spaces, kids will take opportunities to run, jump, and climb, therefore building their muscles, hearts and lungs. They are also gaining core strength—back and tummy muscles—as they move around upright instead of sitting in front of a screen. Every chance that a child has to move rather than sit stationary in front of a screen is essential for healthy growth and development. Movement causes their bodies and minds to become fatigued, in a good way, which will encourage good sleeping habits—for them and you! Cognitive Development: The well-known games of Red Light—Green Light, Simon Says, and Follow the Leader, are all simple games with rules—the highest level of cognitive play. Taking turns in games is critical for success in all aspects of life. Leadership Skills: Free play enhances skills in decision-making, learning to work in groups, sharing, negotiating, and discovering what is personally enjoyable. Children learn to become more verbal and express themselves to others.

Healthy Habits: More time for free play means more time for children to remain active and less sedentary. Kids will learn how to stay physical even when not provided with constant structure of gym class or a specific sport. Staying active in childhood improves the likelihood that a child will develop a more active and healthy lifestyle into adulthood. Visual Perceptual Skills: Free play means less screen time and less time focusing on a narrow field of vision. When engaged in play, the visual field expands exponentially because peripheral vision is being used constantly, providing more opportunity for the vision cells to be developed. Kids Being Kids: Outdoor environments fulfill children’s basic needs for freedom, adventure, experimentation, risk-taking, and just being children. Think of your child discovering a cocoon—where can that take their imagination? The simple wonders of nature are amazing and ever-changing! Enjoy spending time outside year round, and share your photos with us on social media using the hashtag #outdoorhealthylife. Carly, Christa, and Kim are pediatric therapists at Bozeman Health Pediatric Therapies Clinic. Carly Valentine, MOT, OTR/L, Occupational Therapist Christa Drab, MS CCC-SLP, Speech Language Pathologist Kimberlee Raynovich, MSPT. PCS, Physical Therapist

EVERYTHING YOU WANT, MORE THAN YOU EXPECT

Independent Living | Assisted Living | Respite Care Call today to schedule your tour. 4 0 6 - 4 1 4 - 2 0 0 8 | hillcrestlivingbozeman.com

Montana Historian

Varicose Veins modern treatment for a common problem

Varicose veins are a common medical condition and are estimated to occur in up to 25 percent of women and 15 percent of men. They are associated with age and are present in approximately half of people over age 50. Most frequently seen in the legs and feet, they can appear at the skin surface as small networks of blue or red veins (often called spider veins) or larger veins that bulge under the skin. Inefficient blood flow is the underlying cause for varicose veins. Healthy veins have one-way valves that encourage good blood flow out of the leg by preventing blood from being pulled backward under the effect of gravity. If the valves don’t work well blood leaks backward, pressure increases in the veins, and veins can swell and become varicose. The process can be painless but frequently causes symptoms of discomfort such as throbbing, acing, itching, burning or leg swelling. Symptoms are usually worse at the end of the day. Anyone can get varicose veins but the strongest risk factor is genetics. If one or both parents have varicose veins it is probable their children will develop them, too. Pregnancy is another strong risk factor and lesser risk factors include advancing age, jobs or hobbies that require prolonged standing, and being overweight. Untreated varicose veins slowly get worse over time. The discomfort related to them will persist or worsen and can interfere with activities of daily living. They become larger, more numerous and increasingly uncomfortable. Some people develop more advanced problems such as superficial blood clots, skin changes or, in severe cases, skin ulcers.

Treatment of varicose veins is beneficial for a number of reasons but the most common reasons people seek treatment of their varicose veins is for relief of symptoms. Other common reasons are to improve leg appearance, and to keep their legs healthy in the future. Modern vein treatments utilize minimally invasive techniques to close or remove poorly functioning veins. These procedures are safely done in the office using local anesthesia and generally take less than 60 minutes. Discomfort afterwards is minimal and most people resume normal activities the day of treatment. Larger surgeries which were common years ago, such as vein stripping, have become obsolete with today’s modern vein treatments. Whether one decides to have a varicose vein evaluation or procedure there are ways to help maintain healthy legs. Regular use of compression stockings and exercise are the most important. Although varicose veins are not a condition that can be technically ‘cured’ those who can follow through with these measures and treatment, if needed, give themselves an advantage to avoid future varicose veins problems. Montana Vein Clinic was founded in 2007 and was the first clinic in the area dedicated to the treatment of varicose veins. Dr. Andrew Grace founded the clinic, continues to oversee its operations, and performs all the treatments. He is the only varicose vein expert in the area who is certified by the American Board of Surgery, a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, and a diplomat of the American Board of Venous and Lymphatic Medicine. He is a member of the American College of Phlebology, the American Medical Association recognized group of physician specialists who are focused on the treatment of varicose veins and venous insufficiency. Montana Vein Clinic is focused on serving the Gallatin Valley and surrounding counties but frequently welcomes patients from all over Montana. Learn more about varicose vein treatment at montanaveinclinic.com

Minimally Invasive | Outpatient | Fast Recovery

BOZEMAN’S EXPERT VARICOSE VEIN TREATMENT CENTER MOST INSURANCES ACCEPTED—INCLUDING MEDICARE

Vein problems can cause: Aching | Heaviness | Swelling | Throbbing | Itching

If this describes your legs, call us! Andrew W. Grace, MD, FACS

Diplomat of the American Board of Venous & Lymphatic Medicine Diplomat of the American Board of Surgery

(406) 414-5037 | MontanaVeinClinic.com The only vein clinic associated with Bozeman Health Deaconess Hospital, we’re conveniently located on the Bozeman Health medical campus.

2017

Montana Historian

2017

building in big sky country

Alpenglow Construction A residential and commercial construction company based in Bozeman,

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each project gets the uncompromised attention of Alpenglow’s talented, experienced team of professionals. Alpenglow is committed to expertly realizing each client’s vision and treating every project as a showcase for the exceptional.

Montana Historian

2016

Montana Historian

2014/2015

"Communication is essential to keep projects running smoothly, convey the design, and ensure our clients' expectations are realized throughout the project. Ambiance has allowed this communication and vision to meld seamlessly into each of our projects." ~ Jamie Daugaard, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP More and more homeowners are continuously seeking progressive and creative lighting technologies to bring their architectural visions into reality. Every home project is unique, presents its own individual challenges and readily shows its need for specific attention to detail. Now, thanks to modern advancements in fully integrated home automation systems, homeowners have more tools than ever to control artistic lighting scenes, robust sound and many other lifestyle enhancements with just the press of a button. For the past decade, home automation and artesian lighting design have taken center stage in the theater of upscale home development. These critical aspects of new home construction and renovation are examples of the exponential growth and evolution of technology that has recently occurred. Increasingly, homeowners are realizing the benefits of customized home automation and design. Today, these once overlooked benefits are now considered essential and welcomed elements of new building projects across the United States, as well as the world. Lighting the way for these fast evolving technologies is Montana’s own, Ambiance. Based in Bozeman, Ambiance specializes in providing complete lighting, power, and audio/ video planning to

its clientele in Big Sky, the greater Gallatin Valley, and across the United States and Canada. “We optimize both indoor and outdoor spaces, particularly focusing on the architecture of living spaces to harmonize the structural design and artistic elements while creating points of aesthetic interest,” says Toby Zangenberg, Founder and President of Ambiance. “Bringing life to the home through automation,” the Ambiance team works closely with each project’s architect to accentuate the uniqueness of every home. With 25 years of industry experience, Toby Zangenberg and the Ambiance team are veterans at designing innovative lighting and environmental automation schemes that accent the home as much as personality of the homeowner. Whether the client is at design conception, undertaking a new construction project, or updating an older home with conventional switching and outdated systems, Ambiance can successfully develop a solution to rise above any lighting or programming obstacle. At the heart of every new project is the client’s vision. The Ambiance team uses this vision as the guiding light throughout the evolution of the design and implementation process. “We derive our inspiration from our clientele,” says Zangenberg. “We view them as part of our own family. It is not without their passion that we are able to truly bring our sometimes wild ideas to life. We rely directly on their appetite for unique, state of the art systems to create homes that are ever timeless and distinctly their own. It is never a question of ‘if’, but ‘how?’.”

"Toby Zangenberg and his staff are talented, professional, and dedicated. The lighting and window shade design that they developed for our new home is stunning. They worked hard to keep the project on budget, and when a component price turned out to be over budget, Toby identified excellent alternatives. When field adjustments needed to be made, as they always do, Ambiance was cheerful and responsive." ~Jimmy Lewis. Home Owner

Moonlight Basin, Casey Bennet, Project Manager

It is through Ambiance’s commitment to excellence that these doors of possibility are unlocked. Toby and his staff understand that innovation breeds creation. “We continuously monitor the market for the latest advancements in lighting technologies and home automation so that we can deliver the best possible product to our clients,” says Mark Pospicil, lead Project Manager and Draftsman for Ambiance. Yet, home creation requires a team effort. Ambiance proudly works alongside some of the most premier architects, including Jamie Daugaard at Centre Sky Architecture, to develop exciting and natural environments and paint them with light. It is, thanks to the seamless communication between Ambiance and its partners, that so many well planned and executed homes are being constructed today. Since the opening of Ambiance in 2003 (then Ambiance Lighting), Zangenberg and his team have led the local industry in professional quality lighting design. “I love working in this field, with these clients and these amazing structures,” remarks Zangenberg. “Each house really has its own character, special features and unique spaces. I am so thankful for the privilege of being allowed to highlight those nuances, illuminate the shadows and bring the home to life for the owners and their families to enjoy.” To learn more about Ambiance, visit their website at www.ambiaince.life or contact 406.585.2276.

Photo Albums and Prints Essentials for preserving your photos By Jenna Caplette

Photographs bring alive threads of experience, illustrate what brings people joy, what made them sad, what circumstances and experiences helped to shape them. They reveal the fine tunings, the details and the stories. Viewing photos can be like having a conversation with the past, your heritage, your ancestors. It’s like time travel in your pocket, always accessible, especially if you’ve printed your images, and organized your prints so you can easily share and enjoy them. Prints are inexpensive, they are also the only method that has been around for 100 years and are not going to go out of date. Resist the urge to wait before printing images until that someday when you will have time to edit them, until they are “perfect.” Instead, pick the ones you know you want to keep and submit them to an experienced lab that does color correction, improving the look of most images without you needing to do anything other than to place your order. When printed, images can be viewed for decades to come without any concern over technology failing. Inevitably, technology does.

Montana Historian

In the days of film, getting images printed was what we did. With digital, it’s easy to forget the wonder and beauty, the ease of sharing printed photographs. Create a photo album and those prints become the fingerprints to your family’s history, the lives of parents and grandparents. They remind you of the growth of children and grandchildren. The act of putting an album together helps bring memories alive in and of itself. It’s like savoring a good meal or having a coffee date with a friend, surfacing emotions

essential to being human: Sadness, Anger, Fear, Love, Grief, and Happiness. These ABCs of photo organization offer a handy guide. A is for an Archival album and the images you want to include in it. B is for Box each image up or Back it up. C is for Can, toss in the garbage or delete from your hard drive. S is for Story, when an image is

part of a larger story, keep it, whether itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a visually stunning image or not. What makes â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sâ&#x20AC;? so important? Family story leads to you, Western story leads to understanding this place where we live. Five questions help develop story: who, what, when, where and how. For these basic five, labeling can be done physically on the back of the photo with an archival pen. Your handwriting will have resonance to someone down the line and possibly even yourself as you age. Photo editing programs allow you to add information to your digital prints as well.

2017

story and see if anyone else does. Take the most intriguing photos even if you think you do know the story and see if anyone can add to it. You never know what images you have that may become part of a larger historical archive. So much in our lives can seem unimportant at the time, or we take for granted. Those are the moments that can become historically important.

If working with print photos already, have a full service photo lab scan and digitize the keepers. Then for all your digital images, keep one set on your computer hard drive where you can access and use them, one on archival media stored in a dark, dry place and a third stored far enough away from your home so that in the event of a natural disaster, your images are still safe.

When confronted with a chaos of images, boxes and albums, or years of unorganized digital files, what’s the best way to pick and choose what to keep and what to let go of? View your photographs through the lens of themes. Here are some examples: your family vacations, visits with grandparents and parents, birthday celebrations, your heritage, scenery or hobbies. A retrospect of a particular thread in life, like the importance of horses in a ranch family’s web. Have an upcoming family gathering? Take along any images where you don’t know the full

Montana Historian

Keep in mind that Facebook is for sharing with friends and family, not for long term storage. Even the new "larger" size images are much smaller than what most cameras are capable of producing and will limit what you can do with those images in the future. The time to begin to savor your images is now. Right now. Your pictures are your story. Don’t lose your family history or leave it trapped in a device. Get them into your life where you can enjoy and share them.

Connect. Share. Remember.

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A Century of Outdoor Pursuits in Big Sky, Montana originally published in the aug. 5, 2016, issue of explore big sky newspaper by Anne Marie Mistretta

Ultimately, it was the railroad that changed the face of the Gallatin Canyon forever, as Northern Pacific’s hunger for railroad tie timber spawned a widened path along the Gallatin River.

Whether fishing the pristine Gallatin River or hiking and riding in the remote forests, tourists could return to their families and colleagues with stories about their vacation in Montana.

Once the railroad rumbled through Bozeman, its thirst for passengers launched a campaign to transport visitors to the newly established Yellowstone National Park. The upgraded river road served to move logs north and tourists south. As early as 1906, ranchers along the Gallatin supplemented their finances by enticing Yellowstone visitors to extend their vacation at a “dude ranch.” Tom Michener, who ranched near the current Conoco gas station, and Sam Wilson, owner of the Buffalo Horn Ranch (now the 320 Guest Ranch), collaborated to regulate rates. For $12 a week—plus $6 a week for a horse—vacationers could escape urban stress by renting a cabin and perhaps donning chaps and tackling ranch chores.

Trick riding was popular in the early 1900s, introduced by Russian Cossack immigrants. Here several friends show off their balance outside the gates of the B Bar K, which is now called Lone Mountain Ranch.

Many of the area’s current resorts opened their doors to tourists in the early 1900s. The Dew Drop Inn became the Half Way Inn in 1919 and is now Rainbow Ranch. Lone Mountain Ranch, previously known as the B Bar K, started as a retreat in 1926. The area’s natural resources and unique geological features lured residents and visitors alike into streams and onto trails, and they still do. The overnight pack trip into the wilderness, often the highlight of a “dude’s” vacation, remains popular today.

Montana Historian

Lilian Crail (center) and friends from Chicago prepare to tour Yellowstone National Park in a vintage Ford camper, outfitted with roll-up canvas sides. By 1916, more than 35,000 visitors entered the park annually, compared to 4 million-plus in 2016. For the first 40 years after Yellowstone was designated the nation’s first national park, most visitors arrived via train and then stagecoach. In 1916, more than 1,000 automobiles traveled into the park, which lacked paved roads.

A friend of Lilian Crail visiting from Chicago casts a line into the Gallatin River below Jack Smith Bridge. Named for a homesteader who ranched along the Gallatin, this area of the stream approximately 1 mile north of Big Sky remains a popular fishing hole today.

Eugene Crail and his wife Alice pose perilously close to a smoldering geyser in Yellowstone National Park.The park has since constructed more than 35 miles of boardwalks to preserve thermal features and protect tourists.

Celebrate our ranching heritage VISIT

ORIGINAL SETTLERSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; HOMESTEAD & MUSEUM Open for free tours, Saturdays & Sundays during July & August. Plus special events throughout the year. Big Sky Meadow Village 2110 Spotted Elk Road Across from the Community Park HISTORY ANNEX with year â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;round exhibits at the corner of Lone Mountain Trail & US 191

crailranch.org A project of the Big Sky Community Corporation, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit entity created in 1998 to promote, acquire, preserve and maintain land, parks, trails and easements.

2017

Charles Marion Russell (1864-1926)

The Art and Soul of the American West Left: Charles M. Russell at easel painting, n.d., C.M. Russell Museum Collection Below: Charles M. Russell (1864-1926) Crossing the Northern Plains, 1902, Watercolor, C.M. Russell Museum Collection

Montana Historian

Charles Marion Russell (1864–1926) was many things: consummate Westerner, historian, advocate of the Northern Plains Indians, cowboy, writer, outdoorsman, philosopher, environmentalist, conservationist, and not least, artist. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Russell dreamed of becoming a cowboy and living the exciting life of men on the range. In 1880, Russell came to the Judith Basin of central Montana a few days after his 16th birthday to try his hand as a cowpuncher. After a brief, and very unsuccessful stint on a sheep ranch, Jake Hoover, a hunter and trader,

took Russell under his wing and taught him the ways of the wilderness. Russell spent two years as Hoover’s apprentice, working with and living in Hoover’s cabin on the South Fork of the Judith River. In 1882, Russell finally secured a job as a night herder with several cattle outfits operating in the Judith Basin. This was the perfect job for the young artist because it gave him the opportunity during the day to observe, sketch, and document the activities and excitement of the cow camps. One of Russell’s most iconic images came out of his early cowboy-ing days. Waiting for a Chinook is Russell’s haunting depiction of the dire 1886-87 blizzard that swept throughout the region resulting in the deaths of thousands of cattle, approximately 20-30% of all herds in Montana Territory. The small watercolor was sent to Lewis Kaufman, owner of the Stadler & Kaufman cattle company, rather than a standard telegram because it was believed to be more powerful and effective than any words could convey. This work alone was enough to secure Russell’s reputation as the “Cow-boy Artist.” He continued working the open range as a wrangler for 7 more years before retiring in 1893 to become a full-time artist. Russell greatly admired the Northern Plains Indians, closely observing their ways during the summer of 1888, when he lived near the camps of the Blackfeet, Piegan, and Blood Indians in Alberta, Canada. This experience affected him for the rest of his life, and it is reflected in the many detailed works he created of Plains Indian life. In 1896, Russell married Nancy Cooper, and she quickly assumed the role of business manager and promoter of her husband’s career. In 1900, the couple built a modest frame house in Great Falls and, three years a later, a log studio that Russell filled with his collection of Indian clothing, utilitarian objects, weapons, cowboy gear,“horse jewelry,” and other Western props useful in depicting scenes of the Old West. Russell was a prolific artist and he produced some 4,000 pieces of art during his lifetime, the majority of which were completed in his Great Falls studio. One of the artist’s crowning achievements was the commission of a major 12 x 24-foot mural for the State of Montana that has hung in the legislative assembly hall in the state capitol in Helena since 1912. This monumental work depicts Lewis and Clark leading the U.S. Corps of Discovery on their westward journey and rendezvousing with a group of Oollashoot Indians in the Flathead Valley of Montana. In order to accommodate the size of the canvas in his studio, Russell had to raise the roof by four logs, an architectural change he later regretted.

2017

Russell was further honored by his adopted state by being selected to be one of Montana’s representatives in Statuary Hall in the U.S. Capitol. By the early 1900s, Charlie Russell had become an internationally known artist, yet he opted to spend his entire life after the age of 16 in Montana. His love of Montana and the life he observed and participated in within the state shaped his art and his personal philosophy for 46 years. Russell was an avid outdoorsman and escaped almost every summer beginning in 1906 to his cabin in the mountains of Glacier National Park, where he often hiked, sketched, and painted en plein air— studying the wealth of wildlife around him. To see Russell at his best is to see an artist who has mastered the effects of light, the brilliance of color, the minuteness of detail and the dynamic movement of figures across a canvas. His art is first and foremost that of a storyteller, and it was informed by his remarkable ability to capture in paint, bronze, ink, and wax the personalities and events of his time and place. He was the first “Western” artist to live the majority of his life in the West. For this reason, Charlie knew his subject matter intimately, setting the standard for many Western artists to follow.

the painting is now part of the C.M. Russell Museum’s collection in Great Falls, Montana. Along with Frederic Remington, Russell is considered one of the most important and well-known of the Western artists. Russell’s drawings, illustrations, paintings and bronze sculptures depict the rapidly changing American West in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Russell’s sentiments on the end of the open range, the destruction of the bison, and the influx of settlers to Montana and the American West are well documented in his artwork, his letters and in his stories. Russell lamented the dramatic changes undergoing the landscape, and especially the fencing-in and parceling of the land by homesteaders who invariably turned the sod “grass side down.” In 1913, he wrote to a friend,“the boosters say it’s a better country than it ever was but it looks like hell to me. I liked it better when it belonged to God.” This sense of nostalgia runs heavily throughout Russell’s body of work, and it is symptomatic of living a human life in an age of inhuman scale. In 1916, Charlie and Nancy adopted their son, Jack. Ten years later, on October 24, 1926, Charles M. Russell died of congestive heart failure in his Great Falls home. The entire city turned out for his funeral procession. In fact, he was so highly regarded as a resident of Great Falls that all school children in the city were allowed to be absent to watch the procession.

In 1908, Russell was made an honorary lifetime member of the Elks Lodge of Great Falls. Not long after, the Elks dedicated a new temple and asked Russell if he would contribute something for the building. The result was a painting of a majestic Elk and heard atop a mountain rise and titled The Exalted Ruler. It is considered to be one of Russell’s masterpieces. The painting is significant not only as one of Russell's finest wildlife compositions, but also for its importance to the people of Montana. When the Elks Lodge decided to sell the painting in 1994, a statewide fundraising campaign was mounted to raise the money needed for the purchase. The campaign, called "An Inch for the Ruler," enabled donors to contribute $250 per square inch of painting. Its success is a testament to the power of grass roots Western spirit and dedication, and

Montana Historian

Today, Russell’s art hangs in galleries, private collections and museums around the world. A significant portion of his work can be found in the permanent exhibitions at the C.M. Russell Museum Complex in Great Falls. The museum and grounds also feature Russell’s original log cabin studio and his Great Falls home, listed together as a National Historic Landmark (NHL). After Charlie died in 1926, Nancy Cooper Russell offered to donate Russell’s studio and partially completed gallery addition and the lot where the buildings stood to the city of Great Falls, if the city agreed to purchase the Russell house and three additional lots for $20,000. The city did agree, and the Great Falls Chamber of Commerce formed a Russell Memorial Committee, tasked with the responsibility of raising $25,000 to complete

the transaction and finish the gallery addition located in a newly formed Russell Memorial Park. Opened July 4, 1930, the Russell Memorial was the first museum in the United States dedicated to exhibiting Western art and sharing the stories of Western artists. Expansion of the memorial into a museum complex began in 1952, when the Trigg-C.M. Russell Foundation formed to create the C.M. Russell Gallery on a lot adjacent to Russell Memorial Park. The foundation’s goal was to create a concrete “fireproof” museum for an expanding art collection. In 1972, Great Falls turned over management of the NHL to the museum, although the city retained ownership of the Russell house and studio. About 1980, the C.M. Russell Gallery expanded to become the C.M. Russell Museum, situated in a larger city park close to the C.M. Russell Museum Complex, which included the Russell house and studio and the expanded museum facility. This agreement remained in effect until 1991, when Great Falls transferred ownership of the house and studio to the foundation. The C.M. Russell Museum annually hosts a world-class auction of Western art, which takes place each March, near Russell’s birthday. It has become one of the leading Western art auctions in the United States. The Russell event draws collectors and Western art enthusiasts from across the globe.

Within the art world, the name Charles Marion Russell, America’s Cowboy Artist, is synonymous with vibrant, distinct Western art, conservation of land and wildlife, and advocacy for American Indian cultures. His work continues to attract admirers and collectors alike, garnering the late artist well-deserved critical acclaim. Images, clockwise from the top: Charles M. Russell (1864-1926), Cowboys from the Circle Diamond, 1897, Watercolor and graphite on paper, Gift of Joe and Evelyn Miller. The Jerk Line, 1912, oil on canvas, C.M. Russell Museum Collection, Gift of Fred Birch. The Exalted Ruler, 1912, oil on canvas, C.M. Russell Museum Collection, Gift of Friends of the Exalted Ruler.

Some historians work in watercolors and oils. Charles Marion Russell

(1864-1926) is one of America’s greatest artists. He lived the life he captured on canvas, creating a breathtaking historical record of Western cultures, landscapes and wildlife. Come be inspired by his masterful works. And experience the West as it really was. Charles M. Russell (1864-1926) The Jerk Line, 1912, oil on canvas, C.M. Russell Museum Collection, Gift of Fred Birch

Great Falls, Montana | 406.727.8787 | www.cmrussell.org 2017

k k c c a a n n n n a a B and B l l i i a a r r T T n n a a m m e e z z o o B Thhee B T by Steven Feagler

Almost everybody who has been dissatisfied with their current career has pondered quitting their day job to pursue other interests. Whether seeking to start a business, pursue a passion, or travel, many have left the daily grind for other endeavors. Some have been successful, some have failed, and some have even founded a town in the process. Dr. Erasmus Darwin Leavitt did just that in 1862 when helping to found the town of Bannack. Like many Northeasters of the 1860s, Leavitt, who was a physician, left New Hampshire for Montana in search of wealth and adventure in the gold abundant West. Leavitt arrived in what would become Bannack in 1862, panning for gold and practicing medicine to fund his shortfalls as a prospector. As the population of Bannack grew with the influx of prospectors, many of whom were civil war deserters, Leavitt and others officially founded the town, naming it after the area’s Bannock tribe; possibly due to the handwriting which physicians are famous for, the “O” on the paperwork was mistaken for an “A” and the town was named Bannack. As the gold rush wore on and more people came up the Montana along the Oregon Trail in search of gold, the population of Bannack grew to ten-thousand and began to thrive with around twenty-one businesses. While the rise in population brought prosperity to the town’s economy, it also brought crime. Gangs of road agents would wait along roads for prospectors returning from their claims, and rob them of their finds. The lawlessness of Bannack was exacerbated by the fact that the little law enforcement which existed possibly did more to break the law than to enforce it. Perhaps the most notable facet of Bannack’s history is Henry

Montana Historian

Plumber, its sheriff from 1963 to 1964. In those two years, Henry Plumber is believed to have secretly led The Innocents, a group of road agents who intercepted prospectors and shipments near Bannack and Virginia City. As a response to the alleged violence of The Innocents, who some believed were responsible for over one hundred murders, citizens formed The Vigilance Committee of Alder Gulch, a vigilante group. The group supposedly gained confessions from two of Plumber’s men, and in January of 1864 Plumber along with his two deputies, who were also believed to be road agents, were hanged in Virginia City. To this day some question whether Plumber and The Innocents were guilty of the murders which they were charged. Some residents noted the lack of any connection between Plumber’s gang and the murders, and questioned if he was hanged because of his anti-slavery views on account of the vigilante group’s pro-slavery, Southern-Democrat composition. The suspicion surrounding Plumber was short-lived however, as the Vigilance Committee hanged those who questioned their actions. While the population of Bannack began to drop after the discovery of gold in Alder Gulch near Virginia City, it remained a mining town until the 1970s and influenced one of the most prominent aspects of Montana’s gold rush era, the Bozeman Trail. Like many of those who came to Bannack in 1863, John Bozeman rushed in to try his hand at pulling a fortune from the rivers and fields. Similar to Leavitt and a majority of prospectors who headed west during the gold rush, John Bozeman was unsuccessful as a prospector; unlike many however, he still saw opportunity in the region, deciding to stay and “mine the miners” instead of mining the gold. Bozeman figured that if he could find a route from the eastern states to Bannack and Virginia City which was shorter than the Oregon Trail, he could charge postulant prospectors for his services as a guide along the new trail. To do this, he partnered up with another unsuccessful Bannack prospector and friend, John Jacobs.

Bozeman and Jacobs settled on a route that saved distance by stretching diagonally, departing from the Oregon Trail near the present location of Glenrock, Wyoming. From that point, it extended north through the Powder River Basin, which is bordered by the Bighorn Mountains to the west and the Black Hills to the east. From there it headed west through Dayton, Wyoming to the Tongue River before progressing through the Yellowstone Valley and into southern Montana to reach Bannack and Virginia City. While Bozeman and Jacob’s route proved to be shortest by a significant margin, it also proved to be more dangerous than the Oregon Trail since it passed through land owned by the Lakota Sioux under the 1851 Treaty of Fort Laramie. These lands were prime bison habitat and defended not only by the Sioux, but also

the Arapaho and Northern Cheyenne. This danger proved to be problematic to the trail’s usefulness from its inception. In July of 1863, Bozeman and Jacobs were leading just over one-hundred people in a forty-six wagon train; when the group reached a point 150 miles outside of Deer Creek near present day Buffalo, Wyoming, warriors from the Northern Cheyanne and Sioux tribes warned them not go forward at risk of being killed. Despite the warning, Bozeman and nine other men decided to continue on after the rest of the wagon-train had turned back. After riding twenty-one nights to avoid detection, and sleeping during the day, the group made it through what is now the Bozeman Pass, and into the Gallatin Valley. In the year following the first ten men making it to the Montana boom towns along the Bozeman Trail, 1,500 more people traveled along the same route. While Bannack and the other boom towns of the mid to late-1800s are long gone, the influence of Bannack is still apparent today in the Bozeman Trail. Every year, thousands of people unknowingly travel along John Bozeman’s original route from The East to Bannack as they drive from Douglas to Sheridan, Wyoming along I-25 and from Sheridan to Three Forks, Montana along I-90.

plumber’s plunder According to some accounts, before Henry Plumber was hanged by the Vigilance Committee of Alder Gulch, he attempted to bargain for his life by saying “give me two hours and horse and I’ll bring back my weight in gold.” Today, some still believe that the gold which The Innocents allegedly robbed from unsuspecting miners is still buried near Bannack. If Plumber and The Innocents truly were behind the highway robberies, the possibility that their gold is still waiting to be found is strong since none was seized from Plumber or his men before their executions. While some people claimed to have found Plumber’s fortune over the years, its discovery has never been documented. Regardless, to this day some still make their way to the area around Bannack in hopes of finding his treasure, which could be worth millions. 2017

One Hundred Years A Monument

Bozeman’s Cannery District By Jessianne Wright

The emblematic steel water tower broadcasting the Cannery District today sits between the old Bozeman Canning Co. powerhouse and warehouse. Originally it was used as a water source for an early 1900s fire suppression system. Photo by Jessianne Wright

In 1917 several men shook hands on a prospect. Responding to what was becoming a thriving pea industry in Gallatin Valley, Thomas B. Story, Lester P. Work, and Larry L. Brotherton, as well as several other businessmen in the valley, determined to start the Bozeman Canning Company. Using sixty thousand dollars, they built the factory off of Rouse and Oak streets, and in 1918 the cannery packed a relatively small, but successful, 16,334 cases of peas, operating with only one conveyor belt line in its first season.

LUCK AND A FEW PEAS The formation of Gallatin Valley’s only pea cannery was a combination of entrepreneurship and luck, coming on the wind of a quickly growing industry. In 1911 the Jerome B. Rice Seed Company of Detroit, Michigan, sent William Davis as a representative in order to assess whether Montana fields could revive the seed pea industry, after fields in New York, Michigan, and Wisconsin were decimated by aphids and blight. Evidently, Davis liked what he saw, for in late February of the same year, he appeared before the Bozeman Chamber of Commerce, urging members to encourage local farmers to grow peas for seed to be shipped back east. A 1912 Chamber of Commerce report states,“This was a new departure in our valley, and it required hard work to secure acreage enough to make it an object.” Object it was. Seventy-five percent of the nation’s peas were grown in the valley in 1912 and seventeen thousand acres were planted with seed peas the following year, a relatively small amount compared with wheat production, but significant for the damaged pea crop in other parts of the country. Energized by overwhelming success, several more seed companies opened branches in Bozeman in the following years, finding Gallatin Valley well suited to grow a healthy pea crop.

Bottom right: Once ready for harvest, the pea plants were mowed and machinery known as a viner separated the peas from the vines. The peas were then hauled to the cannery while the farmer kept the vines, stacking them in large silage piles for livestock feed. Photo circa 1925. Donated by the Chamber of Commerce. Photo courtesy Merrill G. Burlingame Special Collections, Montana State University Libraries, Bozeman

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While many focused on the seed pea industry in Gallatin Valley — producing pea seed for home gardens or to be used to plant crops by canners and freezers — the founders of the Bozeman Canning Co. saw opportunity to produce processed peas. The cannery would contract with farmers, providing the growers with pea seed for planting in the spring and sending machinery and field hands for harvesting in late summer. It was common practice at the time to plant the peas in intervals so that harvest crews could keep up with the ripening of the peas. A June 1919 Great Falls Tribute reports the 1918 cannery season saw about four hundred acres planted and farmers were paid three cents a pound for the peas they produced. During the canning season between July and September, the cannery employed sixty individuals that first year.

ca 1925. odge Brand.” Photo cir cans are labeled with “D ese ies, Bozeman Th rar s. Lib pea ty ned rsi ive can ontana State Un g and boxing the M elin ns, lab s tio wa llec s Co ces al pro eci g cannin game Sp The final step of the pea rtesy Merrill G. Burlin of Commerce. Photo cou ber am Ch the by ted Dona

As a new startup, the Bozeman Canning Co. experienced a rough beginning, battling malfunctioning machinery and uncertain markets. However, in the wake of World War I, the demand for canned goods brought stability to the Gallatin Valley cannery. Only eight years after turning on the power, the cannery was producing 326,000 cases, amounting to eight million cans of “peas that please.” PUMPING OUT THE CASES The cannery is estimated to have produced about thirteen thousand cases of peas per day in the early years of operation and production peaked in 1944 with 350,000 cases shipped over the course of two months. After the peas were vined in the field, they were hauled in boxes by truck to a receiving shed located along the east side of the cannery building at Oak Street. Prior to cooking, the peas underwent a series of cleaning, grading by size, blanching, and visual inspection. According to the 1927 Sanborn fire insurance map, these phases occurred within the four stories of the main cannery building. Casing and processing occurred either in the main cannery building or in the adjoining warehouse, where the peas were mixed with brine and poured into cans that were then lidded, cooked, and cooled. The final step was to label each can before storage in the brick warehouse to the north of the main cannery building. Power to run the operations came from a small power house to the north, fueled by coal brought in on a railroad spur line. An additional spur line ran in front of the cannery.

While the exact construction date of the steel water tower standing on the property today is unknown, a detailed description of the steel tank appears on the 1927 Sanborn fire insurance map, indicating it was built sometime before 1927. This structure was used as a water source to supply the sprinkler system installed throughout the cannery as an innovative fire suppression scheme at a time when the majority of the structure was made of wood and many buildings were plagued by fire.

By the time World War II broke out, the cannery consistently employed a workforce of approximately five hundred during the two-month canning season, consisting largely of women and high school teens, and in later years, Mexican workers brought from the Billings sugar beet fields. Work schedules were entirely dependent on crop conditions, and during peak harvest, the cannery ran fifteen- to twenty-hour days. Over the years, the cannery also canned meat and other vegetables, but predominantly focused on peas. John H. Nelson [1926-1997], who was born in Bozeman and went on to have a career in the food industry, says he came of age working long days at the cannery. He started there in 1942 after his sixteenth birthday, feeding a filling machine with empty cans. “The hot steam from the blancher billowed upward, carrying the aroma of cooked peas everywhere,” Nelson wrote in a 1995 paper presented to the Gallatin County Historical Society.“My appetite for peas, a favorite vegetable, temporarily disappeared, to return about two months after the cannery closed for the season.”

2017

Processed and labeled cans were stored in the brick wa rehouse to the east of the ma Donated by the Chamber in cannery building to await of Commerce. Photo courtes railroad shipment across the y Merrill G. Burlingame Spe country. Photos circa 1925 cial Collections, Montana . State University Libraries, Bozeman

The 1940s saw changes in the business. The company was purchased by PictSweet Foods Inc., but by the end of the decade the PictSweet company decided to concentrate on frozen foods. In 1950 Winifred Story Lovelace, Jack C. Lovelace, Roy L. Spain, J. L. McLaughlin, and Rockwood Brown formed a new corporation and purchased the cannery, returning the name to Bozeman Canning Co.

“It was climbing up a rickety old ladder into a building that had been entombed for fifty years,” Dehlendorf said of the endeavor. Old ladders were the only access to the upper floors of the main cannery building, characterized by weak floors, boarded up windows, and pigeons, he said.

In addition to turmoil within the company, the 1940s and ‘50s brought a series of heavy blows in the form of bad weather and blight that seriously damaged pea crops and limited production. The growing frozen food industry also added pressure to the cannery, and in 1958, the Bozeman Canning Co. was forced to close.

“It’s really hard to find big, old industrial buildings that can be rehabilitated,” Brown said. The developers solicited the help of Bozeman’s Comma-Q Architecture and Minark Architecture of Portland, and renovated each building in a way that maximized historical integrity. Original beams and woodwork remain and there were minimal changes to the overall structure of the buildings.

ONE HUNDRED YEARS MORE Used for storage and leased to a few small businesses, the cannery buildings fell silent after the Bozeman Canning Co. ceased operations.

“I remember the first time I walked into this building,” Dehlendorf said.“I was wowed.”

“That’s when the place went dark,” said Barry Brown of Cannery District Partners LLC, who, with his partner, Scott Dehlendorf, agreed on the prospect of breathing new life into the run-down property in 2014 after working on a similar project on property nearby.

“You look at this valley, it was an agricultural valley,” Brown said. By forming the Cannery District Partners and taking on the Cannery District project, Brown said they are “maintaining that agrarian epicenter of Bozeman’s history.”

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In 2016, tenants began shuffling through the doors and this summer the cannery complex reached ninety-five percent occupancy. While no longer processing produce, the Cannery District buildings breathe and hum with new-found life, producing sushi, brews, retail, and professional service. One hundred years subsequent of the 1917 incorporation of the Bozeman Canning Co., the buildings of the Cannery District are alive and well, resting on the very beams and bones of an industry. Special thanks to Rachel Phillips of the Gallatin History Museum for providing assistance and expertise. Jessianne Wright is a freelance writer and editor based in her hometown of Bozeman, Montana. She studied the stories of the people and the lands of the West, graduating with a history degree from Montana State University. Her work has appeared in publications including Mountain Outlaw and Distinctly Montana.

Today approximately half a million acres are planted with dry peas each year in Montana. According to MSU professor Perry Miller, of the Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences, these peas are very similar to the fresh peas grown for the Bozeman Canning Co. almost a century ago. Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s green peas, however, grow shorter and develop tendrils that give the plants stability, making for an easier harvest. Photo by Jessianne Wright

2017

Bozeman Audi montana’s only premier luxury car dealership, parts, and service center Ever since the first modern Audi bore its iconic four rings on a track in 1932, the Audi brand has come to be known worldwide as a leader in the automotive industry, consistently pushing the boundaries of performance and technology. The capabilities of Audi vehicles were, and continue to be the result of a history of unity and the exchange of ideas which have accompanied it since that year when four of the top German automakers came together to form the Audi brand. In this respect to unity, the exchange of ideas, and the constant push for improvement, the history of Bozeman Audi mirrors that of the larger brand in many ways. Only twenty years ago, the needs of Bozeman auto enthusiasts looking for sales and service of powerful and efficient luxury vehicles were fulfilled for the first time with the opening of Montana’s first Audi dealership. Not long after its initial opening, Bozeman Audi became part of the Montana Import Group, operating as part of a dealership specializing in several additional brands. As more drivers of Audis and other high performance vehicles began to call the Big Sky State home, Bozeman Audi recognized the need for a dealership which specialized in their maintenance needs and sales. Fulfilling this need, the Volkswagen and Subaru components of the Montana Import Group were sold to Ressler Motors. Currently, as a standalone Audi dealership, Bozeman Audi is Montana’s only premier luxury car dealership, parts, and service center. Although Bozeman Audi is the only Audi dealership in a contiguous four state range, they not only carry a wide variety of new, and pre-owned vehicles, but have the capacity to service nearly any luxury brand. While living away from a larger city often poses a challenge to luxury vehicle enthusiast, Bozeman Audi works to mitigate any issues drivers face, with a team of five highly skilled service technicians. SERVICE Just as the Audi brand was built on the combined knowledge and expertise of some of Germany’s top automakers, the service department at Bozeman Audi combines the mastery of five highly trained service technicians who consistently provide personalized service to a wide range of luxury vehicles. While providing first-class service is often a challenge for small dealerships, Bozeman Audi is able to routinely provide service which reflects the quality of the brand by not only hiring local technicians, but also investing heavily in its service department. Cars which are driven in Montana face a variety of unique conditions; from daily below-zero starts, to the necessity for reliability over long distance drives. To ensure that the service department is able to cater to these specific conditions, they are committed to hiring local technicians; currently four of the five technicians are Montana natives who have experienced the unique issues facing Montana drivers over their entire lives. These service technicians are some of the most experienced in the industry; in fact, many of the technicians, such as Kyle McKinney and Mike Rooney, have been crafting their expertise in the automotive industry for over twenty years. Because Audi is consistently applying the newest technology to its vehicles, and pushing the limits of what is possible, Bozeman Audi invests heavily in continuing

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education for all of the technicians to ensure that they are able to provide the best service available as vehicles increase in complexity and performance. Those who take their vehicles to Bozeman Audi know this firsthand from the quality of service they receive; these drivers never worry about needing to make a second appointment as Bozeman Audi has the highest fixed right the first time rate in the United States. This means that nearly one-hundred percent of vehicles that come into the garage, leave with their problem diagnosed and fixed without any need for followup. In the meantime, while their vehicle is in the shop, these drivers have the option of using a loaner Audi at no extra charge. While it’s nearly unheard of for a small dealership to invest a half-million dollars every year in a loaner car program, it’s Bozeman Audi’s standard practice to ensure that every driver having their vehicle serviced has access to an Audi which is less than six-months old throughout the interim at no extra charge. PEOPLE The shared expertise at Bozeman Audi is not unique to its service department; nearly every staff member has spent years crafting their skills. The dealership’s general manager, Michael Sosinsky, was raised in the automotive industry and began learning how to run a dealership from his father who owned dealerships across California; he went on to gain over thirty years of first-hand experience, continuing to this day. Bozeman Audi’s service manager Christian Pederson has spent twenty years in the industry, having worked not only for Audi, but also Volkswagen and Nissan. The parts manager, Lewis Cardwell, has spent the last seven years working in parts, and is passionate about using his expertise to strengthen the work performed on every vehicle which enters the shop. Bozeman Audi prides itself in being people-centric first, and car-centric second. Knowing that fitting people to the right vehicle is just as important as producing quality vehicles, the dealership vaunts an experienced and knowledgeable sales team. The top salesman, Max Ricci, J.P. Darden, and Andreas "The Greek" Koronopoulos have spent years acquiring the knowledge to pair prospective buyers with the Audi they will find the most pleasure in throughout the car’s life. According to service manager Christian Pederson “A dealership is only as good as its support staff.” Under the financial guidance of chief financial officer Joanne Beringer, who is one of the best comptrollers in the industry, Bozeman Audi is not only able to provide customers with the best value in service and cars, but also to give back to the community. Bozeman Audi is not only a strong supporter of the arts in the Bozeman community, but also MSU Bobcat Athletics. Every year, the dealership helps to fiscally support endeavors such as the Intermountain Opera, Bozeman Symphony, and ballet while also donating vehicles to an assortment of athletic teams at MSU. In addition to giving back to the community, the dealership and service center work to mitigate any negative output which they could cause. Within the dealership, the utilization of disposable items such as plastic water bottles and paper napkins has been completely eliminated as a means of ensuring the smallest possible environmental footprint. Pairing this with investment in people, world-class service, and the highest quality vehicles, it’s easy to see how Bozeman Audi is truly Montana’s only premier luxury car dealership, parts, and service center.

gold, grief, and ghosts Throughout the mid to late 1800s, thousands of hopeful prospectors flocked to Montana with dreams of striking it rich in the rivers which were abundant with generous deposits of gold and other minerals. Whenever a flake of gold caught a prospector’s glimpse through the water, it was only a matter of months before word spread down to the gold fields of Colorado and California, attracting miners working on dwindling claims, and sprouting new boom towns across the state. The new towns were quick to energize with their growing populations, new businesses, and money brought in from days of work panning under the scorching sun. Just as briskly as the towns were to appear, when the minerals in the streams and creeks had become diminished, the population moved on, leaving behind their houses, saloons, and shops. Intuition has it that while these towns became weathered and their buildings deteriorated, not a soul would remain; however, some who have spent a night in Garnet may argue that a few of its past inhabitants never left. In the 1870s, as the creeks of Colorado and California began to run dry of gold, many miners traveled north toward Montana’s Garnet Mountains. They were quick to pan the most apparent gold flakes from the rivers and then leave the area since the technology of the time made smelting the gold present in veins of the area’s many rock formations unfeasible. However, a couple decades later many miners began to make their way back to further explore Garnet’s deposits in 1893 when smelting technology had improved and the repeal of the Sherman Silver Purchase Act, which required the federal government to purchase 4.5 million ounces of silver every month left many silver miners out of work. Two years later, a bountiful strike made in the Nancy Hanks Mine caused mining companies to come in and the town boomed overnight. In the following years, Garnet’s population reached 1,200 and had a school, butcher shop, doctor, two barber shops, four hotels, and thirteen saloons. Just as fast as Garnet had sprung

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up, the town collapsed as the streams and fields which were once teeming with unfound wealth began to diminish. By 1905, only 150 residents remained to pull the last meager bits of gold from the few unabandoned mines; seven years later, a fire consumed a majority of the town’s commercial buildings and not long after, the town was abandoned. Some returned to the town to prospect any remaining gold in 1934 when the price doubled, however they soon deserted, once again leaving the town to deteriorate under the wind and snow. It would appear that since the 1940s no one except for a few summer caretakers and a couple temporary residents had lived in Garnet; Despite this, some contend that a handful of the town’s earliest residents never actually left. One historian with the Montana Historical Society, Dr. Ellen Baumler, has documented some of the paranormal occurrences experienced by the town’s many visitors. In her book Montana Chillers, Baumler writes of the town’s winter surge in activity stating “Winter visitors tell of transparent figures, clad in old-fashioned clothing, wandering the streets and footprints in fresh snow leading into buildings but never coming out from them.” She has even documented that some visitors to Garnet have reported that “in the deep winter quiet, a piano tinkles in Kelley’s Saloon and the spirits dance to ghostly music.”“They cause no trouble and anyone who visits the deserted town in the dead of winter should be prepared to meet them,“They hide in the shadows, laugh in the wind, and come out when you least expect them Baumler warns. While it can be easy to discount the experiences of visitors as products of Garnet’s existing paranormal hype or a lack of familiarity with decaying structures, the accounts of those who are intimately familiar with the town tend to be much more chilling. Allan Mathews, an interpretive ranger who worked in Garnet for over four years before becoming a historian with the Bureau of Land Management has reportedly once witnessed a phantom woman gazing out of the upstairs window in one of the town’s hotels. While we will never know for certain whether Garnet’s past residents still walk through the town, they are inarguably kept alive through the towns remaining features which are maintained by the Garnet Preservation Association and the Bureau of Land Management. Those who wish to experience the town come to Garnet every year to explore the buildings and walk surrounding trails. Two of the town’s cabins can even be rented from the BLM during the winter for those who truly want to see just how many long-term residents Garnet still has.

Panning for gold, ca 1940s, photo by Frank Byerly

2017

Reviving Philipsburg’s Stamp Mill Tradition For the last several years, the Granite County Historical Society has been erecting a stamp mill on the east end of Broadway, at the old James Stuart or Hope mill site. The stamp mill, which was moved in pieces from the Royal Gold Mine near Princeton, is intended to be the centerpiece of a historical park with exhibits explaining Philipsburg’s mining heritage. A stamp mill is an ore processing plant that uses pistons (the stamps) lifted by a camshaft and then falling on the rock to break it up and liberate the valuable minerals, such as native gold or silver sulfide, from the worthless material, such as quartz. Various mechanical and chemical processes are then used to concentrate the valuable minerals into a saleable form. If this description seems obscure it would be best to see the stamps actually working in one of the demonstrations planned by GCHS… yes, unlike many other stamp mill exhibits, this one is operational! In the 19TH century there were at least 290 stamps pounding away day and night on the silver ores of the Philipsburg district. However, beginning about 100 years ago, miners replaced stamps with more efficient rotating grinders (like ball mills) and the old banks of stamps have become rare. When members of GCHS conceived the idea of a historical park, the Antonioli family stepped forward to provide a site, and Dave Harris and Paul Antonioli stepped forward to provide stamps and other equipment from their Royal Gold Mine east of Maxville. Many were involved in fetching the equipment, cleaning up the site, putting in foundations, erecting the battery, and making the whole thing functional, with Dave Harris guiding the process along with the steady assistance of Jim Waldbillig. Larry Hoffman spearheaded the transport of the equipment and the initial engineering of the foundation, while Phil Richardson and Bill Antonioli provided technical assistance in the tricky process of making the parts work together in the new installation. The site chosen to host the mill has a rich history directly involving the development of the Flint Creek Mining District. A century and a half ago, in the summer of 1867, the town of Philipsburg sprang up, practically overnight, as a construction boomtown – housing, feeding and

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entertaining a workforce of hundreds of men who were building the first silver mill in Montana, immediately east of our modern stamp mill exhibit. If we took a trip in a time machine to check this out, we would be impressed at how familiar Philipsburg looks, with businesses in restored buildings all along Broadway, and residential side streets named, as they are today, after the streets of San Francisco—the Superintendent’s home town. Following Camp Creek a little ways west, we come to the dairy farm and washeteria of Kate Perry, the town’s only woman resident, who is accumulating a small fortune washing miners’ shirts and selling them milk. Let’s let Kate speak for herself, from a letter she wrote years later, recounting her experiences as a pioneer. “Now mind there was not another woman in the camp or within twenty miles of me. When I relate this story here now they ask me,“Were you not afraid of the men?” No indeed, God Bless the miners, a better class of men never lived.” Near the east end of Broadway we meet one of the best regarded of these miners - Hector Horton, who staked the first claim in the district. The front door of Horton’s cabin faces up the gulch, straight toward a small prospect a few hundred feet away, the Cordova lode, that he discovered in the Summer of 1865. Looking east up Camp Creek, Horton points out the claim of his friend William Graham, atop the big spring that would eventually serve as the water supply for the town brewery. Smart guy! Now, our attention is drawn to the impressive stone structure under construction about half way between Horton’s cabin and Graham’s spring. This is the mill of the St. Louis and Montana Mining Company, designed and laid out (like the town itself, according to Kate Perry) by the famed German mining engineer Philipp Deidesheimer. The overall supervision is provided by a company director, James Stuart, a man of great energy and drive, and the man for whom the mill is named. Assisting Deidesheimer is a large crew of mining and construction professionals, laborers, loggers, carpenters, stone masons, machinists, and teamsters. For a description, we turn to the Report of mining engineer Rossiter Raymond to Congress for 1869.

The James Stuart mill at Phillipsburg, built in 1867 for silver ores, is a stone building; engine, 50 horsepower; boilers, 40-inch diameter and 20 feet long; runs ten stamps, 650 pounds each; six Wheeler pans, 4 feet in diameter, and three concentrators, 8 feet in diameter; stamps and pans are geared to make from 60 to 75 drops and revolutions per minute. Capacity from 12 to 15 tons per twenty-four hours, according to quality of ore. It has crushed about 1,000 tons of quartz in all, which yielded about $100,000. The rock worked was principally croppings and ore taken from near the surface. The mill is now idle, awaiting repairs of crank and cylinder. It cost, all told, about $75,000, currency, and is considered the best mill in the Territory. It is situated in Flint Creek district, which first became generally known in the winter of 1866. Many components of the mill, including 10 stamp heads, 2 battery boxes, flywheel, and a 12x24 steam engine, were shipped by boat from the Marshall foundry in St. Louis to Fort Benton in April of 1866. Pans and settlers were purchased from the Miner’s Foundry in San Francisco. The original plan was to set up a mill at the Argenta silver district near Dillon, but the equipment was diverted to Flint Creek early in 1867. A later description by W.H. Emmons for the US Geological Survey says that a Blake jaw crusher was installed ahead of the stamps, and that a “mixing floor”, where mercury, salt, and copper sulfate were mixed with the ore, was present between the settlers and the pans. Perhaps it was a good omen of things to come that when it came time to name their town along Camp Creek.“…The name of Phillipsburgh was unanimously adopted by the miners, Philip being the Christian name of Mr. Deidesheimer, principal Superintendent of the St. Louis

and Montana Mining Co., a gentleman whose urbanity of manners and scientific attainments have won the respect and good will of everybody. Phillipsburgh, Flint Creek District, June 22, 1867.” They had good reason to be proud of their work and their boss, as the mill they built together ran with only small modifications to Deidesheimer’s original design for the next 40 years, even during the silver crash of 1893, and was a mainstay of the local economy. Given its pioneering nature and the difficulty of getting equipment from San Francisco and St. Louis onto the site, it should not be surprising that there were cost overruns. Surviving correspondence relates complaints by James Stuart that Deidesheimer spent too freely and paid the crew building the mill far too much, and before 1867 ended, Deidesheimer had been forced out as Superintendent. Stuart’s subsequent mistakes in managing the mill led to financial disaster. The St. Louis and Montana Mining Company disappeared, the creditors took over, and a new company called the Hope Mining Company would carry on. The renamed “Hope mill” would provide returns totaling many times the

initial expense. But the greatest stroke of fortune for the Hope’s investors was when their mill Superintendent, Charles D. McLure, brought them in on the ground floor when he developed the great bonanzas of the Granite and Bimetallic mines. These mines paid off beyond their wildest dreams, and amply justified the new name–Hope –that they had chosen for their mill and their enterprise. Images, clockwise from top right: Restored battery stamp, Mill equipment drawing, James Stuart, Royal Mill stamp, Hope Mill, Mill stamp, Philipp Deidesheimer.

2017

Prohibition Memories of a Young Boy

When Montana repealed its state prohibition enforcement law in 1926, Philipsburg voted over two to one for repeal. This left enforcement of federal law completely to the federal agencies from Seattle. Local law officers were unconcerned to the point of occasionally having a drink with the residents. Although seven saloons had closed their doors by December 31, 1918, at least three moonshine joints and a number of freelance sales agents sprang up. Home brewing also had its followers. Bottle cap sales at just one of the local hardware stores were over 22,000 in 1928 with unknown amounts from other vendors and mail order. Home brew could be had over the counter at the Red Onion, formerly located on the corner next to the McClees Building, the Busy Bee (now the White Front Bar), or Big Pete’s (now the Town Hall). The tunnel under the alley into the basement of the Busy Bee is an overheard but unconfirmed story of local lore. Some of the more prosperous bootleggers and moonshiners, often upstanding businessmen of the town, were quite willing to regularly contribute to civic causes and maintain their generous reputations. Moonshining was an ongoing activity with some of the operators actually acquiring a good reputation for quality, but fines of $250 and thirty to sixty days in jail was the sentence for those convicted. In 1922 a single raid at a cabin near Tower, netted two 80 gallon stills and one 60 gallon running full blast. However, juries of peers and relatives often returned not guilty verdicts. One proprietor having his moonshine joint closed and padlocked of an evening had a new location open in the next block the following morning. Another managed to keep his joint open and operating while serving sixty days in the state penitentiary. According to a living Philipsburg resident who grew up during prohibition through his teen years, recycling is not new. The young boys in town, upper grade school age, would scavenge the local dump for pint and half

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pint flasks to sell to the proprietors with moonshine connections. The boys also collected fifths and coveted flasks with tapered necks and corks for closure, thin enough to fit unseen in an overcoat pocket. Picking up information “when their folks were talking,” the lads had to know which establishment to approach, because to be paid one dollar per flask in 1927 was quite worth the digging. Times were tough and the sales helped with the income at home. One secondhand merchant would stockpile the flasks in the back room until there were enough to refill. A couple of the brasher young boys would work their way to the back of the store and retrieve some of the flasks they had just sold, only to return a few days later and sell them to the merchant again. The repeal of prohibition gave the bars cause for celebrations and attracted big crowds for several months. The cases of hard liquor and barrels of beer began arriving by train. After-shifters were the standard–if you bought a beer, a shot was free. Hard working and drinking miners often worked their way down the street one beer and shot at a time. One family, who bought beer by the lard bucket to take home, greased the upper several inches of the inside of the bucket. Proprietors considered your pail full when the foam reached the top of the rim. The lard greasing kept the foam down giving the purchasers more beer to the bucket. The bars only allowed men and boys. An adjacent lounge served the ladies and wives. These lounges were usually quite well appointed and luxurious and were the standard in all the bars in Philipsburg. Gradually, the men began bringing their wives into the bars and the lounges became a thing of the past or became dining rooms. This background comes down to the present day with many P-burgers still enjoying the occasional stout drink. (See Historic Walking Tour #19 – Beley and Delery Saloon and #43 – Cartier Building)

2017

PRESERVING THE PAST ENJOYING THE PRESENT EMBRACING THE FUTURE As Philipsburg celebrates its 150TH year this summer, interest in its early origins and colorful history as one of the Rockies’ booming silver and sawmill towns prevails. However, for all the stories from the heyday of western mining, the tale of the last quarter century in Philipsburg is perhaps the most compelling.

above; Broadway Street 1957, below; Broadway Street 2010

Commodities like metals and lumber are always subject to the vagaries of economic times and government regulations. While silver drove the mining efforts in Granite County, its value fluctuated wildly during the town’s first century. Other minerals helped keep things humming. Manganese ore, newly vital to dry cell batteries and steel production, became a huge revenue source during World War I. The nearby Anaconda copper smelter produced well-paying jobs for local residents. Two sawmills operated at high volume, cutting upwards of 40 million board feet of lumber from the national forests. It would not last. By the time Philipsburg celebrated 120 years in 1987, the economy needed a boost…or two. The Opera House Theatre—oldest operating theatre in the state—opened showing movies. The box office receipts were so minimal in 1989, Hollywood sent an auditor to count attendees. The once proud, 3-story Courtney Hotel across the street, built in 1918 during the flush manganese days, stood empty, unheated, and a shadow of the former glamorous establishment. The Sayrs building hosted a thrift shop rent-free courtesy of the local bank. It was one of several bank-owned buildings from a decade of closed mines and shuttered sawmills. The economic downturn got an assist from the Montana winter weather in 1989. The huge, vacant, and unheated Mercantile Building could not withstand the extreme cold. The floors buckled into waves of twisted wood. Any unheated building experienced similar damage. Homes sold for what economy cars cost in other parts of the country. To take a chance on any of the empty downtown buildings meant high risk. Pburg—The Come-back Kid The town “founded on hope” found hope again. In 1991, the bank paid local painters to spend the summer bringing the iconic Sayrs building back from the brink. Blessed with a Mesker Brothers metal front, the weathered facade gave way to ornamental flourishes and colors from its heyday. Its good bones and corner location were perfect for the future microbrewery. Owners began fixing up their own pieces of history. Paint, determination, and lots of “elbow grease” went into sprucing up the historic downtown. In1992, new owners of the Mercantile Building restored heat to the lower level and welcomed the H&R Thrift Store. The Sapphire Gallery opened and public projects brought more progress to town. Donated by the local bank to a community group, the Courtney Hotel became a museum and meeting venue. Local voters, faced with a ballot to renovate the 1889 grade school or build new, opted for history. Today, the school is the oldest operating in the state. In 1998, citizens lobbied federal officials to keep the post office downtown and the USPS constructed a new facility. The brick exteriors of the post office and remodeled Granite Mountain Bank fit the town’s National Historic District aesthetic. The Opera House Theatre with its original seats and great acoustics brought back live theater and popular music events in 1999. The Sweet Palace opened in 1998 and Schnibbles in 2001. The renovation of The

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Broadway Hotel finished in 2003. The Rotary Club initiated a large project in 2004—Winninghoff Park. Local volunteers restored and expanded the ice rink to NHL-size, terraced a 3000-capacity seating area into the hill above the rink, and built a large warming house with rent-free skating equipment. The park hosts hockey tournaments, local events, and summer concerts. Best in the West The list goes on of projects, people, and businesses who saved the community’s most critical currency—hope. The promotional work of businesses brought more visitors pleasantly surprised by the continued polishing of this mountain gem. In 1998, Montana’s first award for Tourism Community of the Year went to Philipsburg and the following decade brought even more recognition and awards. Local and national magazines and news networks feature the town regularly. A recent award shows Pburg’s ability to punch above its weight—Sunset magazine’s 2015 Best Municipal Makeover Award. The criteria required finding the best municipal makeover in a community of “advanced excellence and innovation.” Of five finalists, three came from California (Alameda, Sacramento, and Ventura), one from Nevada (Reno), and the fifth finalist—Philipsburg, population 840. Among cities dwarfing Pburg by up to 600 times its size and using federal and state funds to overcome economic hardship, the story of Philipsburg’s reinvention was unique. There had been no government plan, no grant money, or tax revenue woven into the process. It was simply a story of one significant victory after another. Philipsburg took first place; capping a quarter century of hardship, care and hard work that led to a dynamic, historic downtown listed in the National Register of Historic Places and a well-earned reputation as a wonderful place to live or visit. Enjoy this story as you walk the sunny, flower-filled sidewalks. The recognition as the “Best in the West” by one of the West’s most respected publications just makes the stroll all the sweeter.

FLINT CREEK PASS

The stagecoach road south from Philipsburg to Georgetown Lake and on to Anaconda was a narrow dirt road that turned southeast at Porter’s Corner. It crossed the flat past the stone house and started winding up the hill by the Flint Creek Power Station. It had multiple, treacherous horseshoe curves and ended on the top of the hill that led to crossing Georgetown Lake at the “Red Bridge.” Surveying began on the four-mile-long Flint Creek Pass for highway construction in the early 1900s and took several years to complete. It followed the original roadbed in places and parts of the road were slightly above where the present road is now. An old watering trough is visible along the road. This trough was a necessary stopping place for man and beast climbing the hill, and later for the Model T and Model A horseless carriages that struggled up the grade. The survey and construction of the present road transpired under the provisions of one of President Franklin Roosevelt’s work programs in the early 1930s. The Bureau of Public Roads (now the Department of Highways) surveyed the project and Bernard and Curtis Company of Helena, Montana contracted the construction work. Twenty-five to thirty men began working in two five-hour shifts during the fall and winter of 1934. The following spring, the company employed more men to work four five-hour shifts. The contract was for six miles, starting at about the Skalkaho Highway turnoff. Local resident, Jess Evans, tells of starting out in the fall driving a Bulldog Mack, a huge truck. He hauled gravel and rock up the grade to build up the road and fill the sides of the canyon. Later during construction, one of the Bulldog Macks went over the side of the road and down into the narrow gorge. The driver, thrown from the truck and run over by it, survived the ordeal. The truck is still wedged against some trees, but due to growth of new trees, it is hard to spot without careful scrutiny. Work on the road was challenging and dangerous. The rock required blasting. The drilling crews went first and the men had to dig out crawl spaces large enough for a single man. They set a charge known as a “Coyote Hole” powder charge. Workers dug these holes straight ahead and then branched off to the left and right. Charges were set in all three tunnels and detonated. The hardest and most dangerous part of the construction was close to the top where the valley narrows. More than once the men had to crawl precariously along the side of the mountain with only small indentations for handholds. Several places along the road are retaining walls made entirely of rock with no cement or binding agents. Two Philipsburg men, Earnest Maehl and his son, Carl, did this demanding and delicate work. At the top of the road, the project required diverting the waters from Georgetown. To do this, local hard rock miners punched a tunnel through the mountain and water flowed through to form a waterfall down into the gorge and into the waters of Flint Creek. Many consider the success of the project one of the finest jobs of planning and engineering done by the Department of Roads. It was finished in the spring of 1936 and paved by 1940. The Montana Highway crews meticulously maintain it both summer and winter.

2017

Geology of Granite County The geological formations of Granite County are extremely complex. They contain a diversity of rocks and minerals that have been important in mineral wealth development and as an attraction for rock hounding. The rock hound is in for a gem of a time in the Flint Creek Valley and surrounding mountain ranges. Starting with the valleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s namesake, flint (chert) near Stone Station and minerals found nearly everywhere in the U.S., one can find specimens for any collection. Visitors and residents still find Montana sapphires and native precious metals (gold and silver) in some places. The oldest rock formations are more than 1.7 billion years old (Pre-Cambrian Period). The road cuts on Flint Creek Pass show spectacular exposure of this formation. The rocks are yellow and red mudstones displaying ripple marks, sun cracks, and other features formed a billion or more years ago. During the Paleozoic Era, 255 to 580 million years ago, sediments deposited on the sea floor hardened into massive limestone formations (Red Lion, Jefferson, and Madison). About 200 million years ago, the Phosphor Sea that produced the sedimentary Phosphoria formation rich in phosphates covered a portion of Granite County. Miners on Douglas Creek 18 miles north of Philipsburg mined these deposits. Later, 65 to 125 million years ago, (Mesozoic Era), sedimentary deposits of sandstone, shale, and limestone formed. About 70 million years ago, the Belt Sedimentary Rock of the PreCambrian Period moved east from the Sapphire Mountains into the Flint Creek Range (Lewis Thrust). Rocks were crumpled and broken into tight folds and faults. This folding was the formation of the Flint Creek Valley. Later large masses of magma spread from the Idaho batholith to invade the folds, making a very complex structure. Ore deposits developed around the margins (contacts) of some of the granite intrusion, accounting for the ore deposits in the Philipsburg and Granite Mining District.

Montana Historian

The Philipsburg District is one of the few in North America that contains manganese, both dioxide (pyrolusite) and carbonate (rhodochrosite). These minerals and others -- lead, zinc, and silver -- make the region east of Philipsburg an excellent area for specimen collection. Current mining of sapphires takes place on the West Fork of Rock Creek 16 miles southwest of Philipsburg. Glacial and lateral moraines, pot and kettle formations, and other glacial features are visible in Flint Creek Valley. A large mudflow containing thousands of rounded granite boulders is visible just north of Maxville (12 miles north of Philipsburg). Cirque basins, tarn lakes, and small glacial valleys are located in the Flint Creek Range. Just south of Drummond, one can see the easternmost evidence of Glacial Lake Missoula. In December 1864, prospector Hector Horton discovered silver ore in the southern Flint Creek Valley. Even though the ore assayed at only one or two ounces of silver to the ton, he filed claims at the county seat in Deer Lodge. Returning to the claim in the summer of 1865, he located a â&#x20AC;&#x153;strikeâ&#x20AC;?

which he named the “Cordova Lode.” Word spread rapidly of Horton’s strike. Many prospectors arrived in the area, discovering rich veins of ore and filing claims on what would become the Hope and Speckled Trout Mines. Thus was born the Philipsburg Mining District in Granite and Deer Lodge counties in Montana. Many town sites, most only names on maps today, grew and died in the years since 1864. Granite County had only two incorporated towns in the 1,727 square miles of county land. Today’s population of 3,068 is fewer than the population of the town of Granite in 1890. Since 1864, Granite County has survived the boom and bust cycle of mining, fought droughts and blight in logging and ranching, and survives today dependent upon abundant natural resources and the strength and character of its residents. The Granite County area has become increasingly important because of its historic mining significance, geologic anomalies, and other tourist attractions. In 1887, Northern Pacific Railroad completed a new rail spur from Drummond to Philipsburg that allowed easy and inexpensive shipping of silver ore and concentrates to mills all over the United States. This assured the continued growth of the county and allowed the mines here, for a time, to become the richest silver producers in the world.

Prospectors, loggers, and ranchers discovered and populated Flint Creek Valley. Miners and mining tax dollars were the reasons Philipsburg, Drummond, and Granite City registered in a newly formed Granite County in April 1893. The county’s primary economy started with mining of precious metals, mostly silver, then replaced mining for a time with ranching in the 1870s, after which mining recovered until the early 1900s. With the fall of mining in 1904, ranching and logging became prominent. World War I brought a resurgence of mining for manganese, used to harden steel, and manganese dioxide for dry cell battery manufacturing. This boom continued through the 1920s. Loggers using horse-drawn log wagons cut and hauled over 1500 cords of wood per day to feed the fires of the mines and homes. The many written stories and tales about the glamour and glory of gold mining leave out the fact that resource extraction for wealth merely removes that resource. Use of renewable natural resources provides steady, long-term jobs and quality life-styles. Through the 1930s, the Philipsburg mines ran mining crews two weeks on, two weeks off just to keep jobs for as many men as possible during the depression. Critical to the survival of the county was the ranching and agricultural community. This group provided constant employment to the county population year in and year out, for those willing to work, without significant cutbacks. The population of the county has declined steadily since the boom years. Reliance on natural resources has led to a steady decline in jobs and income. Granite County’s third century is a promising picture. The ups and downs of the past have given strength to its people. They in turn work for the future and their treasured way of life.

2017

Bozemanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s finest bozemanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s finest bozemanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s finest

pet care facility with aa great great and andcaring caringstaff staff with

with a great and caring staff

Gallatin Veterinary Hospital (GVH) provides cutting dentistry, diagnostic imaging, emergency and Gallatin Hospital provides cutting diagnostic imaging, emergency and Services edge technology andVeterinary professional service(GVH) given with critical care,dentistry, examination facilities, housekeeping Computer Services Tomography (CT) edge technology and professional service given with critical care, examination facilities, housekeeping Computer Tomography compassion, courtesy and respect. Pets are members and maintenance, human resources, laboratory, We are excited to bring the newest (CT) and best compassion, courtesy and respect. Pets are members and maintenance, human resources, laboratory, We are excited3D to bring theto newest of your family; we treat them like members of ours. leadership, medical records, pain management, technology in advanced imaging GVH.and Webest are of your family; we treat them like members of ours. leadership, medical records, pain management, technology in advanced 3D imaging to GVH. We are patient care, pharmacy, referral standards, safety the first veterinary hospital in the state of Montana patient care, pharmacy, referral standards, safety theNewTom first veterinary in theCT. state of Montana Accredited by the American Animal Hospital and surgery to ensure the best care for your pet. A 5G Vethospital Cone Beam by the American Animal Hospital significant continuing and surgerycommitment to ensure thein best care for your pet.toAinstall the to install NewTomthat 5G many Vet Cone Beam CT. Association Accredited (AAHA) since 2009, GVH was the first providing The technology is sothe advanced, of these Association (AAHA) since 2009, GVH was the first significant continuing commitment in providing The technology is so advanced, that many of these hospital in Bozeman to earn this distinction, which the best possible care for you and your four-legged machines are placed in universities, such as The hospital in Bozeman to earn this distinction, which the best possible care for you and your four-legged machines are placed in universities, such as The is awarded to only 12% of the veterinary hospitals family members, AAHA accreditation is a huge of California at Davis, or in larger cities. is awarded to only 12% of the veterinary hospitals family members, AAHA accreditation is a hugeUniversityUniversity of California at Davis, or in larger cities. in the United States and Canada. AAHA evaluates undertaking, but at GVH we believe it makes in the United States and Canada. AAHA evaluates undertaking, but at GVH we believe it makes over 900 of the highest quality standards available us stronger. Why is this important? Cone beam technology over 900 of the highest quality standards available us stronger. Why is this important? Cone beam technology in veterinary medicine, including: anesthesia, client allows equal and, in some cases, better image quality in veterinary medicine, including: anesthesia, client allows equal and, in some cases, better image quality service, contagious disease, continuing education, when compared to traditional CT scans. It exposes service, contagious disease, continuing education, when compared to traditional CT scans. It exposes

4660 36 Gallatin Valley GALLATIN VALLEYLife LIFE 2017 Life Montana Historian 46 Gallatin Valley

“Pets are members of your family and we “Pets are members of your family and we

treat them like they are members of ours.” treat them like they are members of ours.”

our patients to less radiation and is completed • Advanced anesthesia – Our care is based on special pricing from Antech for outside services in a fraction the time, which meansand less istime from, and consultation a on allows for advanced testing great ourof patients to less radiation completed recommendations • Advanced anesthesia – Our care with, is based special pricing fromwith Antech forpricing. outside services under anesthesia. All of scans which can bemeans read byless a time board certified Veterinary Anesthesiologist. Every with, pet a in a fraction of our the time, recommendations from, and consultation allows for advanced testing with great pricing. radiologist that specializes tomography anesthesia has a dedicated anesthetistEveryWe under anesthesia. in Allcomputer of our scans can be read by that a undergoes board certified Veterinary Anesthesiologist. pet Care GVH not onlyCare cares for our clients and patients, but and results are usually available within 24 hours. tomography whose sole is to make sure anesthesia runs We radiologist that specializes in computer thatjob undergoes anesthesia has a dedicated anesthetist community, and In theand lastpatients, year, but More information, scansavailable and lesswithin anesthesia and your not onlystate cares forworld. our clients and resultsquicker are usually 24 hours. smoothlywhose sole pet job is is safe. to make sure anesthesia runs also the GVH we havealso teamed up with K-9state Caresand Montana to the helplast year, is a win for ourinformation, patients. the community, world. In More quicker scans and less anesthesia smoothly and your pet is safe. • Recovery facilities – Uniquely designed anesthesia a wounded warrior, pledging lifelong wellness care to help we have teamed up with K-9 Cares Montana is a win for our patients. recovery•area and warming that designed help provide Recovery facilitieskennels – Uniquely anesthesia for this incredible Wepledging are also happy be the care Montana Veterinary Surgical Service (MVSS) a woundedteam. warrior, lifelongtowellness a smoother, gentler recovery after anesthesia. recovery area and warming kennels that help provide top pawfor sponsor of the 2015 K9-9K, an also eventhappy where MVSS is Montana’s most skilled and experienced this incredible team. We are to be the Montana Veterinary Surgical Service (MVSS) a smoother, gentler recovery after anesthesia. the proceeds go to such worthy causes as thean National small animal surgery referralmost service. Dr. and Markexperienced • Oncology top paw sponsor of the 2015 K9-9K, event where MVSS is Montana’s skilled – Experienced oncology (cancer care) for Canine Cancer Foundation, which is working onthe National Albrecht is the only small animal residency trained the proceeds go to such worthy causes as small animal surgery referral service. Dr. Mark pets, from surgery to–chemotherapy. • Oncology Experienced oncology (cancer care) for ending cancer our four-legged friends; Care on surgeon in Montana. Heonly is one of the first 50 CanineinCancer Foundation, whichK-9 is working Albrecht is the small animal residency trained pets, from surgery to chemotherapy. Montana, whichcancer provides service dogs tofriends; wounded surgeons surgeon in the world to be trained • Dental care – From prophylactic cleanings to ending in our four-legged K-9 Care in Montana. He is by oneDr. of Slocum the firstto 50 and thosewhich with special needs; anddogs RuntoDog do Tibial surgeons Plateau Leveling Osteotomies (TPLO) andSlocumadvanced GVH is providedcleanings by provides service wounded in the world to be trained by Dr. to • care, Dental caredental – Fromcare prophylactic to veteransMontana, organization advocating for additional the first person in Montana to offer Osteotomies TPLO surgeries. highly trained doctors technicians. and those with special needs; and Run Dog do Tibial Plateau Leveling (TPLO) and advanced care,and GVH dental careDoctors is provided by Run, anveterans recreation facilities for Bozemanfor additional In addition, was a beta test site to foroffer the Canine Kari Swenson, Hann andand Madelynn Fell Doctors off-leashRun, an organization advocating theGVH first person in Montana TPLO surgeries. highlySarah trained doctors technicians. owners. recreation facilities for Bozeman Unicompartmental a the Canine have completed trainingSarah in advanced extractions In addition,Elbow GVHProcedure was a beta(CUE) test site–for Kari Swenson, Hann and Madelynn Fell area dogoff-leash revolutionary treatment for elbow and our training dental technicians have area dog owners. Unicompartmental Elbowdysplasia. ProcedureThe (CUE) – a and restoratives have completed in advanced extractions results of revolutionary that testing aretreatment in publication anddysplasia. show this The been through special dental to ensure that have Dr. Albrecht is an adjunct faculty member of the for elbow and restoratives andtraining our dental technicians State University Veterinary procedureresults to significantly helpare patients with elbow has the best comprehensive dental care Dr. Albrecht is an adjunct facultyTeaching member of the of that testing in publication and showyour this pet been through special dental training to ensure thatWashington and GallatinState Veterinary Hospital is oneTeaching of arthritis. In fact, Dr.to Albrecht has now possible.your Board Dentist Dr. Tonycare HospitalWashington University Veterinary procedure significantly helppreformed patients with elbow petcertified has the Veterinary best comprehensive dental Gallatin Veterinary arthritis. In fact, Dr.own Albrecht has now possible. Board certified Veterinary Dentist the onlyHospital facilitiesand in Montana approved toHospital directlyis one of this procedure on two of his Labradors. Dr.preformedWoodward, of Montana Pet Dental, sees clients at Dr. Tony only facilities in approved to directly this procedure of his own Labradors. Dr. GVH as Woodward, of Montana Pet Dental, sees clients at train thethe next generation of Montana veterinarians. We also Albrecht is a member of on thetwo Veterinary Arthroscopy well. train veterinarians the next generation of veterinarians. We also Albrecht is a member of the Veterinary Arthroscopy GVH as well. host student and veterinary technician Arthrology Advancement society, or VA3, making student Arthrology Advancement society, or VA3, making• Rehabilitation services –Jen Hill, CCRP, provides studentshost from acrossveterinarians the country. and veterinary technician him a recognized world leader in veterinary • Rehabilitation services –Jen Hill, CCRP, provides rehabilitation services, including laser therapy, students from across the country. him a recognized world leader in veterinary arthroscopy. rehabilitation including laser therapy, In addition, GVH donates more than $20,000 therapeutic ultrasound,services, e-stim and customized arthroscopy. ultrasound,the e-stim customized at-home therapeutic exercises. Sometimes, best and course of donates than $20,000 annuallyIntoaddition, help petsGVH that can’t helpmore themselves. On a Hospital exercises. the best course action is at-home not surgery. GVH Sometimes, staff, in conjunction with of global scale, annually to help petsbuild that can’t help Hospital we are helping schools forthemselves. children On a GHV provides complete general and advanced pet action is not surgery. GVH staff, in conjunction with Jen Hill, can work up an individualized plan that global scale, wehave are helping build services schools for GHV provides completeand general and advanced around the world. We also donated to children care, including during extended Saturday hours. pet Jen Hill, can work up an might include special hobbles andindividualized exercises. Oneplan sizethat the following around the world. We have also donated services to care, including during extended and Saturday hours. shelters: include special exercises. • Acupuncture – Dr. Sara Hann, DVM, CVA, is using doesn’t fitmight all when it comes tohobbles the yourand pet’s care. One size following shelters: • Heart the of the Valley (Bozeman), • Acupuncture – Dr. Sara Hann,care DVM, CVA, is using doesn’t fit all when it comes to the your pet’s care. acupuncture to provide complimentary to treat • Heart of the Valley (Bozeman), • Stafford Animal Shelter (Livingston), • Digital radiography (X-rays) and digital dental acupuncture to provide complimentary care to treat arthritis, lameness, postoperative pain, nerve injury, Animal Society Shelter (Livingston), • Lewis •&Stafford Clark Humane (Helena), • Digital radiography (X-rays) and digital dental radiography – This technology and our level of lameness, postoperative pain, nerve injury, back and arthritis, muscle pain, GI problems, lick granulomas, • Lewis Clark Humane Society (Helena), • Chelsea Bailey&Butte, radiography – This technology and our level of expertise allow us to better diagnose and treat your backgeneral and muscle pain, GI problems, lick granulomas, allergies and wellness. • Chelsea Bailey Butte, • Silverbow Animal Shelter (Butte), expertise us facilitate to better diagnose treat your loved ones. Digitalallow images fast, easy and consults allergies and general wellness. • Silverbow Animal Shelter (Butte), • Albert’s Angel Fund (Butte), ones. Digital images facilitate fast, easy consults • Laparoscopic surgery – Dr. Madelynn Fell is our goby boardloved certified specialists. • Albert’s Angel Fund(Hamilton), (Butte), • Bitterroot Humane Society and • Laparoscopic surgery – Dr. Madelynn Fell is our goby board certified specialists. to veterinarian for minimally invasive laparoscopic • Rescue Bitterroot Humane Society (Hamilton), and • Bassett of Montana (Missoula). to veterinarian for minimally invasive laparoscopic procedures, including spays. Many clients have heard • Bassett Rescue of Montana (Missoula). procedures, procedures, including spays. Manyrealize clients have heard of these laparoscopic but don’t ultrasound –Dr. Brit Culver, one of only For more information about GVH services or our laparoscopic procedures, butValley don’t realize• Diagnostic that GVHofisthese the only hospital in the Gallatin • Diagnostic ultrasound –Dr. Brit Culver, one of only two board certified Small Animal Internists practicing For more information or our humanitarian projects, please about give usGVH a callservices at thatservice. GVH isWith the only hospital in the Gallatin Valley to offer this laparoscopic procedures, two visits boardmonthly certifiedto Small Internists practicing in Montana, offerAnimal this service. humanitarian projects, please Rd. giveE. usor a call at 406.587.4458, visit us at 1635 Reeves to offer this service. With laparoscopic procedures, the incisions are smaller and less painful for your pet. in Montana, visits monthly to offer this service. visit us at 1635 Reeves Rd. E. or check us406.587.4458, out online at gallatinvethospital.com. the additionally incisions are performs smaller and lessadvanced painful for your•pet. Dr. Albrecht more On-site laboratory services – On-site service check us out online at gallatinvethospital.com. Dr. Albrecht additionally performs more advanced • On-site laboratory services On-site and service laparoscopic procedures, such as gastropexies. provide for fast results for critical care–patients laparoscopic procedures, such as gastropexies. provide for fast results for critical care patients and Your pets are important members of your family & we’ll care for them like they are members of ours.

Combining advanced medicine with old fashioned value & service Dental care • Lifestages Health Maintenance • Lab Tests Anesthesia • Diagnotic & Internal Medicine • Humane Euthanasia General Surgery • Radiology & Ultrasound • Oncology 1635 Reeves Rd. E. • Bozeman, MT • 406.587.4458 gallatinvethospital.com • info@gallatinvethospital.com GALLATIN VALLEY 2015/2016 LIFE2017 2017 37 61 47 2015/2016

The Legend of

HenryPlummer

Outlaw Sheriff of Bannack, MT. By Will Genge

As the sun was setting over the mountains on the cold Sunday evening of January 10, 1864, Sheriff Henry Plummer’s body was raised off the ground by a noose secured around his neck. Plummer was lifted and slowly suffocated by the weight of his body hanging from the gallows he ordered built as sheriff of Bannack, Montana. In a final plea, he said to his executioners,“Give me two hours and a horse and I’ll bring back my weight in gold.” He was not granted that chance. The story of Plummer’s life and his quick, brutal death epitomize life in the old west, and the town of Bannack is just one of many in which an instant rise to prominence was coupled with violence, betrayal, and an underhandedness which poisoned many of the souls involved. Like many western frontier towns, Bannack can trace its beginnings to plain luck. In July of 1862, a group of men from Colorado including John White stumbled upon a creek that had been named Willard’s Creek by the Lewis and Clark expedition. While resting their horses, the men inadvertently discovered gold. In order to protect their discovery, White filed a mining claim, one of the first in the region that would eventually become Montana. Ignorant of the creek’s original name, the men renamed it Grasshopper Creek due to an abundance of grasshoppers. Though they hoped to keep their find quiet, news of the gold spread like wildfire and by the winter, the place became a shantytown home to over 400 men. By spring that number exploded to more than 3,000 and the seeds of a town were planted. 62

Montana Historian

Upper Left: Henry Plummer. Above: present day Bannack. By the next winter the mining town had established a post office and was becoming official. The intended name was Bannock, after the Bannock Indians that inhabited the area; however, a mistake in Washington D.C. changed the “O” to an “A” and the name stuck. The Assay Office was quickly built to assess and analyze

the minerals miners brought into town. Typical gold is between 80% and 95% pure; Bannack gold, however, often came into the shop at over 99% pure, making it truly valuable and unique. With a post office and an Assay Office to complement the saloons that came to life, Bannack was beginning to become a town of its own.

To call Bannack a “boomtown” in the 1860s would be a bit misleading. Its proximity to nowhere, its harsh winters, and its hustler/miner/outlaw/transient population all contributed to hastily-built structures, tent-living, and a general vagabondism and lawlessness that would last through the town’s early years. Many people also attribute this atmosphere to the 2017

overwhelming presence of the Civil War, though it was fought, technically, hundreds of miles away. Many of the early settlers to Bannack were war deserters, and the early encampments at Bannack were partially divided between Union and Confederate supporters. A group of settlers from Minnesota established “Yankee Flats” in the winter of 1862, a clear reference to their

However, Edgerton never reported to the capital of Lewiston (in present day Idaho) and instead settled in Bannack. His reasons for this decision are unknown; however, what is known is that he was never sworn into his office and never officially undertook the legal duties of that office, which put the Idaho Territory into a judicial quandary.

Many of the surrounding structures could still be used today. allegiances. Though there was no actual battle fought over party lines, the general hostility of the era seems to have swept its way into this rabidly growing mining camp. Additionally, the Idaho Territory in which Bannack sat was not formally organized until March 4, 1863. Before this, Bannack’s location was right on the edge of the enormous Dakota Territory, whose capital was Yankton, located in what is now eastern South Dakota and the Washington Territory, whose capital was Olympia. The formulation of the Idaho territory was supposed to provide for a better judicial system by establishing a smaller, more manageable area. Sidney Edgerton was appointed by President Lincoln to be the Chief Justice of the Territory. He was assigned to the 3rd Judicial District, which has since become the state of Montana.

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Whether this dereliction of his duty actually mattered is unclear. First, had he gone to Lewiston, his office likely would have had no real effect in a remote and lawless town such as Bannack. Also, the newly redrawn Idaho Territory lasted only until May 28, 1864 when the Montana Territory was established. Perhaps because he stayed in Montana, Edgerton became the first governor of this territory. His governorship also was short-lived, and in 1865 he and his family headed home to Ohio.

Bannack’s most famous lawman was born the youngest of seven children to a prosperous, seafaring family from Maine. William Henry Plummer was originally expected to go to work on the sea as well; however, he was stricken with tuberculosis from a young age and instead received a solid education.

When he learned of the California Gold Rush, he decided to depart Maine and join in on the ruckus. He left from New York in 1852 and arrived in California less than a month later, having sailed south to Panama, crossed to the Pacific, and joined up with another ship heading north. He arrived in California and quickly got to work trying to make his fortune. While the first year of his life in California is debated by historians and those furthering his legend, it is clear that just a year after he arrived, Henry Plummer (his name since expanded by an additional “m”) owned a mine and ranch in Nevada County, California. After three years in California, the young businessman had earned the respect of his counterparts and was convinced to run for Sheriff of Nevada City. At the time, Nevada City was one of the largest towns in California. He won the election by a narrow margin, and, astutely, immediately began courting the townsfolk. By the time of the next election, his reputation as both a lawman and a gentleman had grown with haste. The well-kempt sheriff had made a name for himself in Nevada City and with that name won reelection handily. It seems that his newfound glory in the eyes of the townsfolk got the better of Henry Plummer, and during his second term as sheriff, he became embroiled in a domestic dispute between John and Lucy Vedder. Upon learning from townsfolk that John abused his wife, Plummer arranged an armed guard for the lady. Was this a gentlemanly gesture or one designed to diffuse a marriage? While Plummer’s motivation is unknown, the ramifications of the decision were severe. Upon learning his wife intended to leave he and Nevada City behind, John Vedder canvassed the town like a madman searching for a gun. Citizens notified Plummer who approached and temporarily calmed the disgruntled husband. On the night of her expected departure, Plummer maintained guard over Lucy as she packed. The enraged husband returned, however, for one last shot at the sheriff. He missed, but

Plummer did not, mortally wounding the heartbroken husband. This was probably Plummer’s first brush with the wrong side of the law. The case went twice to the California Supreme Court, and by the end of the ordeal, Plummer was sentenced to 10 years in prison for second-degree murder. (The jury concluded that Plummer must have been trying to break-up the marriage by arranging the divorce attorney for Lucy.) Even at a newly built prison like San Quentin, such a term was a sure-fire death sentence for the consumptive lawman. Fortunately for Plummer, a murder conviction shrouded by adultery did not deter many of his friends, and they managed to petition the governor of California to release Plummer, claiming he acted in self-defense. He was freed after serving only six months of his ten year sentence. He moved back to Nevada City where trouble found him once again.

Here, stories of Plummer’s exploits differ. Some believe he returned to Nevada City trying to restore his image and get on with his life. Others say he sough out trouble and became the sort of highwayman he had earlier sworn to protect against. While his true motives are unknowable, he was soon entangled in more killing and was forced to escape from prison. 2017

He was imprisoned in his own jail for the murder of fugitive “Buckskin Bill” Riley, whom Plummer had shot after receiving a deep gash to his forehead from Bill’s knife. Accounts differ as to whether he bribed the jailer or simply was released because the jailer felt he had acted in self-defense, but regardless of how he managed it, Henry Plummer walked out of the Nevada City jail never to return. From here Plummer’s trail heads north and west through rough mining towns and into the Rocky Mountains. Some believe that through his travels he maintained respectability, looking out for law and order. In one instance that took place in Lewiston, Idaho, it was reported that Plummer talked down a lynching mob by giving an impassioned speech about the merits of the judicial system. Perhaps he truly believed that a fair trail was a necessary right afforded men. However, his checked past, his ongoing associations with criminals, and his own jail-break all call into question his true motivations. Perhaps, instead, he was trying to earn favor on both sides. On one side, his passionate defense of the law might appeal to townspeople, who, though furious, were trying to uphold the law as they saw fit. On the other hand, saving the criminals from an angry lynching would certainly help his position with the outlaws. Plummer was soon forced to flee Lewiston after he killed the owner of a saloon Present day Bannack. that had chased him out one night. The story maintains that saloon keeper Patrick Ford opened fire on the retreating patron outside of the saloon, and Plummer returned fire in self-defense. Plummer managed to escape an angry mob that had formed and headed further east. Whatever his true soul might have revealed, Henry Plummer had found himself straddling the law consistently throughout the years since he moved west. Three times Plummer had killed in “self-defense,” though circumstances were question66

Montana Historian

able in each instance. It is clear, however, that the incidents were at least hazy enough to lead to a conviction and two narrow escapes before a potential trial. Before his arrival in Bannack, Plummer fell in love with Electa Bryan while on a ranch on the Sun River. Also on the ranch, and also in love with Electa, was a former acquaintance of Plummer’s, Jack Cleveland. It’s likely that each was awaiting the spring thaws to make his way into a new line of work. Plummer became engaged to Electa, much to the chagrin of Cleveland. Their rivalry came to a head in January 1863 when they decided to head to Bannack, Montana, site of a new gold rush, with Plummer promising to return to wed Electa. Cleveland had been plotting to kill Plummer over the competition for Electa. On the night of January 14, shortly after they arrived in Bannack, Cleveland challenged Plummer in the bar of Bannack’s Goodrich Hotel. Plummer apparently was uninterested in the fight and merely fired a warning shot into the ceiling hoping to put an end to the fuss. Unconvinced, Cleveland went for his revolver, and before he could get a shot in, Plummer landed his own. Still fighting, Cleveland again reached for his gun and Plummer again beat him to it. Mortally wounded, Cleveland died soon after the shootout. Plummer’s self-defense argument had come up again soon after he moved to Bannack. The young mining town, without any real semblance of law at this point, followed the mining justice code which held that the man who drew first would be the guilty party. Because witnesses had seen the taunts and eventual draw by Cleveland, Plummer was acquitted, and he quickly became a man of the town. By May 1863 he was elected sheriff of Bannack and all the surrounding mines. This is the point at which Plummer

either rose to the call of duty in his town or assembled the perfect front for his true job as leader of a ruthless gang of highwaymen.

Two different stories are told of Henry Plummerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time in Bannack. The most well-known and the original is that he used the shield of his job to hide his true work of leading a well-organized and well-supported group of some of the most notorious and ruthless road agents in the history of the west. As the story goes, Plummer arrived in Bannack in the company of thieves and thugs from his days in Idaho, and they immediately began robbing coaches and murdering all witnesses. They operated with spies and remarkable organization. In order to hide the evidence, the gang typically dismembered the bodies of the victims and hid them throughout the hills. Killing more than 100 people and robbing countless coaches, this was perhaps the most brutal gang in the history of the old west. During the summer of 1863, the gold fever spread to Adler Gulch, and the population surged. With all the newcomers and traffic, accurate counts of people were impossible, adding to the possibility that such a gang could have existed. With the legal authority resting almost solely in his hands, Plummer had the perfect job to maintain his reputation, and he and his bandits worked with impunity.

Montana Historian

Throughout the summer violence continued. Honest townspeople became more worried about the escalation. The murder of Nicholas Thiebalt, whose body was brought to town by a local rancher claiming he had discovered it, finally brought about the tipping point. Men from surrounding towns met secretly and formed the Vigilantes. Their purpose, as reported by the posse, was to rid the area of violent men, even if it required violence on their part. Swiftly, and without any true legal authority, they began rounding up suspects and hanging them without trial. Often, they raised their suspects in the noose, bringing them near strangulation in order to elicit confessions and the names of their co-conspirators. In all, over twenty men were hanged by the Vigilantes throughout the area. None received a true trail, and their confessions were likely dubious due to the torturous circumstances surrounding them. Finally, before his hanging at the hands of the Vigilantes, Erastus â&#x20AC;&#x153;Redâ&#x20AC;? Yeager dropped the name of Henry

Plummer and other supposed leaders of the gang. Incensed, the Vigilantes went to Plummer’s home and took him to the gallows he had ordered built. Before his hanging, the Vigilantes reported that he asked them, “Give me two hours and a horse. I’ll bring back my weight in gold.” Whether he actually said this or not, the Vigilantes used these words to prove his guilt. The implication was that, as leader of the gang, he had stashed much of his plunder in the mountains nearby; he was trying to buy his freedom. Rather than let him try, possibly because they feared risking another escape, Henry Plummer was hanged in Bannack on January 10, 1864. The other story of his time in Bannack inverts Plummer’s position and that of the Vigilantes. It was Plummer who was the upstanding lawman in the face of the violence, and the Vigilantes were the organized criminals who perpetuated hostility under the ruse of being concerned citizens trying to take back their towns. This story asserts that the road agent gang pursued by the Vigilantes did not exist. Rather than over one hundred murders, there were only the few that were well-publicized such as that of Nicholas Thiebalt. And these were likely the result of just a few attacks made by the typical unprofessional thieves and ruffians that populated mining towns. Instead of an incredibly well-run and secretive gang led by the sheriff, these booming towns were simply fraught with the classic violence associated with the times. In fact, Plummer was portrayed by nearly every newspaper, journal, and account as a well-dressed, outgoing, friendly officer of the peace. Additionally, following his election as sheriff, he was constantly under the public’s eye and scrutiny. It would have been impossible for him to manage such a ferocious group of mercenaries. The Vigilantes were simply a group rounding up suspects they fingered and following the leads provided by others before they were hanged. While certainly a brand of frontier justice, the Vigilantes were neither elected nor officially empowered. They amounted, at best, to an organized lynch-mob, and, at worst, to the group of criminals they claimed be to eradicating. What truly occurred during Bannack’s first years is, and will likely remain, a mystery. An attempt to uncover the inno-

cence or guilt of Plummer took place in Virginia City in 1993. It was a (very) posthumous trial presided over by Judge Barbara Brook. Weighing the evidence, the jury ended split 6-6 and the judge declared a mistrial. By today’s standards, Plummer would have been freed and not tried again. That the jury ended 6-6 is instructive because it shows just how little evidence there is for either side and how confounding the case of Henry Plummer and the Vigilantes proves to be. The story of Bannack goes far beyond the early years and violence and mayhem. With Plummer executed and the fear struck by the Vigilantes, Bannack and surrounding areas continued to grow, though the gold became harder to find. As gold became scarce, the populations of towns such as Bannack and Virginia City began to diminish. New innovations in mining would bring people back for a time before World War II, but the war effort prohibited non-essential mining, so Bannack was once again sparsely populated. The Post Office closed in 1938 and the school shut down in the early 1950s, leaving Bannack essentially a ghost town. The site has been preserved by various groups since the 1940s, and on January 23, 1954, the Beaverhead County Museum Associated donated the property to the state of Montana. Today the town site is a Montana State Park. Current archeological digs are ongoing, and The Bannack Association works to preserve and protect many of the town’s buildings. To prevent the destruction of historically significant buildings such as the ones in Bannack, companies like Ghostwood of Missoula, MT offer eco-conscious alternative materials treated to resemble reclaimed wood. Once the Territorial Capital of Montana, Bannack has gone from a hotbed of mining to a ghost town. To learn more about the park or plan a trip back in time, visit www.bannack.org. References Bannack Visitor’s Guide. Bannack, MT. “Henry Plummer.” In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 15 May, 2009. en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Henry_Plummer&oldid=274538395) Mather, R.E. and R.E. Boswell. “Henry Plummer.” Wild West , August 1993. Retrieved 15 May, 2009. www.historynet.com/henry-plummer.htm) Paul, Lee. “Henry Plummer: Man of Mystery.” In Old West Legends. Retrieved 15 May, 2009. www.theoutlaws.com/lawman1.htm

2017

The historic

sacajawea hotel

a testament to our western heritage

hree Forks is a small town entrenched in history, set amongst picturesque rolling hills, open spaces dotted by farmland, cut by winding rivers and within eyeshot of the snowcapped Bridger Range jutting up in the distance. Located just six miles from the Headwaters of the Missouri, the confluence of the Madison, Jefferson and Gallatin Rivers, the town is situated about 30 miles from Bozeman. The area is famous as a stopping point for the Corps of Discovery where the Lewis and Clark Expedition camped in 1805. The headwaters was coined the Pioneer Gateway as being a strategic point for the exploration and development of the western frontier. In its heyday, Three Forks was a bustling railroad town that, like many western towns before and after it, came in with a boom. The building of a new railroad gave birth to this town, and along with it, hopes of longevity and growth. Like most economic

Montana Historian

by alison grey

booms, this promise of lasting prosperity proved fleeting and similar to many of the railroad and mining towns of the West, Three Forks weathered the storms of many highs and lows. Today, Three Forks is a friendly and unassuming town. This is the kind of place where the community, like many rural towns in Montana, gathers on Friday nights to root on the townâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s high school basketball team. Nestled between the paved roadways, gas stations and modest homes are markers of its past, reminders of a strong and vibrant history. The most prominent and visible evidence of this is the Sacajawea Hotel, an elegant white building standing prominently on Main Street, as old as the town itself. The hotel was an integral part of Three Forks, serving as an early-day social center and stood as a symbol of economic prosperity. Added to the registry of National Historic Places in 1980, the hotel remains, in large part, true to its original architecture and style.

Throughout the years, this building has been a pivotal gathering point for the Three Forks community, and most folks who grew up here have vivid memories at the Sac, from weddings, to parties and other celebrations large and small. The Sacajawea Hotel is, in many ways, symbolic of the town in which it resides: rich in history and surviving through times of boom and bust and highs and lows. The Sac’s history is one of changing ownership, restoration efforts and, at times, controversial intents for use, including one failed attempt to convert it into an assisted living community. It remains a stark reminder of times long gone, memories formed and lives influenced forever. To understand this beautiful old hotel, one must look back to the time and people who created it. It was built in 1910 by John Quincy Adams (no relation to the president of the same name) in conjunction with the development of Three Forks. The new town was booming and the community realized a hotel was necessary to accommodate the influx of people. Named after Sacagawea (also Sakakawea or Sacajawea), the Shoshone guide woman who accompanied Lewis and Clark on their exploration of the area, the hotel is a tribute to her strength and grace. As a girl, Sacagawea was kidnapped by the Hidatsa tribe. She was later married to Toussaint Charbonneau, an explorer and trapper, who, it has been said, won her in a bet. While traveling on the expedition she gave birth to a son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, also called Pompey. Sacagawea proved to be an invaluable resource to the expedition, acting as a guide to both the land and the native peoples that were so foreign to the crew. While the Sacajawea Hotel resides within Three Forks today, the majority of the building was not built there. The front section was built on the present site; however, the rear section (known as the Madison House) was moved one mile from the site where Three Forks was originally located, now called Old Town. According to a history compiled by Three Forks’ Headwaters Heritage Museum, the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad Company decided to expand its track to the west coast in 1905. A monumental undertaking, the project was split into three sections, one of which spanned from Montana’s eastern border to Butte. In 1908, the railroad reached Three Forks, and it

was here that the company sought a division point, a stopping place where locomotives could be serviced, train crews could come on and off duty and where passengers or freight could board or exit the train. Old Town was not deemed a suitable division point. Mr. J. Q. Adams, in charge of the Milwaukee Land Company, decided to move the original town site one mile away. He reasoned that this was the ideal division point for the railroad as it provided level ground to both build and expand. According to Growing Pains by Francis Denning, the move brought the town “not only to a new location but a new century. Three Forks began to experience the pains that frequently accompany growth.” A pamphlet published by the Adam’s Investment Company described the new town site: “The location of Three Forks is peculiarly favored by nature. All the wagon roads from the three

"Everywhere one looks are signs of industrial activity and before winter sets in, Three Forks will present visible evidence of vigorous and rapid and permanent maturity...”

2017

valleys, the Jefferson, the Madison and the Gallatin, lead downhill to the city; and the best land to the north of the city is on the bench to the west of the Missouri and is a downhill haul into Three Forks from 20 miles out.” The new railroad town was burgeoning, coming in with a bang. According to an article in the Valley Market Place,“a giant lot sale was held on Sept. 17, 1908 when a total of 72 lots were sold by the Milwaukee Land Company agents.” One week later, the Three Forks Herald, owned and operated by P.S. Dorsey and W. Bowman, described the rapid development of the town. Like many other business, they were operating out of a tent at the time: “Last Thursday evening, one week ago, no house or business building marked the site of the new town, excepting the offices of the two lumber yards, which the town site company had wisely allowed to be built in anticipation of demands of purchasers of lots who might wish to erect buildings at once.” The article also noted that a hardware store, a barber shop, a general store and a printing office were being housed in tents or frame buildings with tent coverings.“Everywhere one looks,” the article noted,“are signs of industrial activity and before winter sets in, Three Forks will present visible evidence of vigorous and rapid and permanent maturity.” After a couple of years, Three Forks went from tent city to a full-fledged town, with a population nearing 3,000 people. It boasted four hotels, several lumber yards, three grocery stores, a couple of drug stores and, in classic western style, 14 saloons. In 1909, city commissioners officially incorporated the town of Three Forks. During the move, a number of buildings were physically moved to the new town site, including the Madison House, owned by Adams and his brother Charles. In 1910, the building was cut in half and hauled to the new town site by a team of horses. The journey was no small feat and involved a few roadblocks along the way. As recorded in Growing Pains, the story goes that arrangements were made with a local teamster to jack the building up on wagons and move it with teams to the new location. As the crew moved the building, the weather was not cooperative, raining 74

Montana Historian

continuously for about a week that September. The mud-trenched dirt roads proved impassable and the wagons, building in tow, got bogged down on Main Street. The teamster decided to wait out the rain and pass the time at one of the local gambling spots, where his luck turned sour. Hoping to recoup his loses, he put his horses and wagon up, but ended up losing them. The wagon’s new owner was not interested in moving the buildings. Instead, he took his wagons and left, leaving the building sitting on blocks in the middle of Main Street. Eventually the Madison House was moved to its present location and became incorporated as part of the Sacajawea Hotel. It offered luxurious accommodations at the time, including a dining room, bar, lounge, barber shop and shoe shine stand. The hotel, the architectural centerpiece of the town, was a testament to the old style elegance of English architecture at the time. The plan included a large, columned veranda wrapping around the front and side of the building, a grandiose porch and formal entrance. The building’s architect, Fred Wilson of Bozeman, intended for it to have a prominent formal exterior and a cozy, yet elegant interior. The new hotel quickly became the center of social activity in Three Forks, the location for special banquets, meetings and even living quarters. Offering the closest accommodations to Yellowstone National Park, the hotel was the last stopping point for tourists visiting the park. While the community enjoyed the town’s prosperity and growth, like most booms, the bust was just around the corner. In 1915, the railroad electrified its tracks, removing most of its facilities in Three Forks. In another blow, the railroad extended its tracks to Gallatin Gateway in 1927. Visitors began passing by the Sacajawea Hotel in favor of the Gallatin Gateway Inn, the final whistle stop for tourists visiting the park and significantly closer than Three Forks. The hotel lost much of its business and its subsequent years were marked by a multitude of changes in ownership. The history of ownership as confirmed by the Headwaters Heritage Museum (in order of its original owners to most recent) is as follows: Mr. and Mrs. John Kleber; C. A. Burroughs, Mrs. Josephine Scott and Mrs. Etta Brewer; Max and Pauline Makoff and Pauline’s brother Bill Actor; Mr. and Mrs. Richard Brooks;

Roger Jenkins; Jean Wittmaekers; Jane and Smith Roedel; Paul Tripp; Four Mountains, LLC; and Dean and Hope Folkvord. Today, operating under new ownership and management, the Sacajawea Hotel has reopened its doors after extensive restoration efforts, now offering luxurious lodging, fine and casual dining, live music and more. Purchased in 2009 by Dean and Hope Photo courtesy of The Pioneer Museum Folkvord, the hotel is now open for business with Sacajawea Inn, Three Forks, 1909, rear view, building center right moved from Old Town. newly renovated rooms, dining at Pompey’s Grill and the Sacajawea Bar. Folkvord, founder and president of noting that everything here is handmade, from the gravy, to the Wheat Montana, purchased the hotel with hopes of restoring it to French fries and the house-cut kettle chips and more. Pompey’s its original glory as well as maintaining it as a gathering place for Grill steak house, which seats 60 people and has a private dining the community. area for 20, is open Wednesday through Sunday from 5 p.m. to 9 “It’s a cornerstone of the community and it needs to stay p.m. and reservations are recommended. The Sacajawea Bar, which in the community,” said General Manager Doug Fisher, who has led can also be reserved for private gatherings, is open seven days a week the restoration efforts and worked closely with general contractor from 4 p.m. to close and serves a bar menu until 9 p.m. Jim Syth of Bridger Builders. The Sacajawea Hotel is also an ideal spot for special Thanks to careful restoration efforts, the hotel looks much occasions, including weddings, business meetings and retreats and like it did in 1910, plus all of the modern day comforts. dinner and room packages. “We had to be very careful to preserve the integrity of the "Every event held at the Sacajawea Hotel can be custombuilding’s historic character,” said Fisher.“We didn’t want it to lose ized to each group or individual’s needs,” said Events Coordinator its charm.” Dorothy Meyer.“We want to make every gathering as intimate or as Fisher and the staff stress that everyone should feel grand as possible. With the new renovations, the hotel can become comfortable coming here. Whether you are just getting off the river a true Montana destination place that welcomes both travelers and from a float trip or dressing up for a formal dinner, the old west locals alike." charm and personality of the place are ideal for both casual and Throughout its history, the Sacajawea Hotel has been formal gatherings. The affordably priced rooms, 29 in total, have marked by many highs and lows but has always been a pivotal cenbeen renovated with new bathrooms, fixtures, carpet, beds, flat terpiece for the Three Forks community. It is a reminder that while screen televisions and armoires. Visitors can also enjoy a brew at the wealth and prosperity can be fleeting, fond memories and a strong Sacajawea Bar, with live music every weekend. sense of community can live on forever. Staying true to its original Hungry? The menu at Pompey’s Grill (named after glory, this grand old hotel remains a living example of Montana’s Sacajawea’s son) offers everything from burgers to steak and diners western heritage and history. can enjoy the cozy indoor dining area or the new outdoor patio Visit the Historic Sacajawea Hotel at 5 North Main seating. in Three Forks. For more information, go to www.sacajaweahotel. Executive Chef Matt Israel, who has been cooking for 15 com, call 406-285-6515 or e-mail info@sacajaweahotel.com. of his 30 years, has created an extensive menu featuring creative, Note: made-from-scratch American food with a western theme. Israel Research for this article has been collected through various historical documents, books and newspaper articles. While some facts are concrete, much of history and the recording of it, are based serves up certified hand-cut Angus steaks, prime ribs, bison sirloin, upon the ever evolving and changing memories and viewpoints of the people who experienced it, influenced by both time and memory. Based upon the available recorded information, this is the best overall story of this vast and complex building. Most certainly, there exist unrecorded stories fresh halibut, smoked trout, fresh salads and more. and memories not accounted for here. A special thanks goes to the Headwaters Heritage Museum in Three Forks and the Gallatin Historical Society in Bozeman for their assistance with this article. “We have traditional dishes with a creative touch,” he said, 2017

THE HAUNTED HISTORIAN LOCAL HAUNTS Montana State University

Ellen Theatre

Strand Union Building and Theater • Bozeman Montana State University boasts the paranormal presence of two apparitions. In the early 1970s, the theater director sustained a head injury after falling down a backstage staircase and is said to have suffered severe mood swings thereafter, which eventuated in his suicide via a prop pistol loaded with real bullets. Reported experiences of his presence range from uneasy feelings in his office to black phantom sightings throughout the theater. The popular Strand Union building is also said to house a ghostly presence in the form of a woman who reportedly hanged herself in the ballroom in the 1930s. She has been seen in the theater as well.

17 West Main Street • Bozeman Built by the Story family and named after its matriarch, the Ellen Theatre first opened in 1919. The apparition of a past patron has purportedly been seen throughout this locally favored theatre.

Montana Ale Works

Livingston Depot

611 East Main Street • Bozeman In addition to being the popular home to fantastic food, spirits and billiards, the former industrial warehouse Montana Ale Works also allegedly houses a railroad employee who was killed in a machinery accident therein. Staff and diner sightings of a floating male apparition in a checked shirt in the bar area, jazz music and the sounds of people talking after closing hours have all been reported since his death.

John Bozeman's Bistro 125 West Main Street • Bozeman The building that houses this notable bistro was constructed in around 1905, and staff working here admit that the building is haunted by an unseen entity. The presence has been known to turn lights on and off, walk across freshly mopped floors and move objects such as cutlery around the restaurant.

Gallatin Gateway Inn (below) 74605 Gallatin Road • Gallatin Gateway Like the Sacajawea Hotel, the Spanish stucco-style Gallatin Gateway Inn was initially built as a railroad hotel. Opened on June 18, 1927, the inn was constructed and operated by The Milwaukee Road and connected to the railroad company’s main line at Three Forks, MT. The Inn has played host to range of businesses, visitors and events over the last century, not the least of which being the three reported apparitions wandering its grounds, each with its own distinct presence: a murdered female housekeeper has been seen standing behind guests; a male presence has been known to turn lights on and off, move objects and play the piano; and an unseen icy presence has apparently physically pushed staff and guests around. Image courtesy of the Gallatin History Museum

Bear Canyon Campground 4000 Bozeman Trail Rd • Bozeman Reports from this popular local campground claim the presence of a white-clad little girl who is said to try to convince female visitors to follow her. 200 West Park Street • Livingston In addition to seeing various ghostly “regulars” within and without this railway stop, Depot staff have reported hearing a train pulling into the station and seeing ghostly figures running towards the platform before abruptly vanishing.

Sacajawea Hotel 5 North Main Street • Three Forks For over a century, the historic Sacajawea Hotel has been entertaining guests and providing welcome respite to travelers, ranging from the railroad passengers and crews of over a century ago to current world travelers who are drawn to its elegantly appointed historic charm to those visitors seeking a more ethereal experience. Purportedly haunted by two apparitions, the hotel is a well-known local hotspot for spectral activity. Milwaukee Railroad purchasing agent John Q. Adams, who built the Sacajawea Hotel in 1910 as a rest stop for the railroad that then ran from Wisconsin to the Pacific, allegedly makes appearances in the hallways and guest rooms while a maid has been said to appear from a wall on the third floor. In fact, the Three Forks police department has actually been called to the hotel on occasion to investigate disturbances that have eventually been accounted for by the paranormal pranksters.

Headwaters Heritage Museum 202 Main Street • Three Forks Visitors to this former bank have reported being pushed by a distinctly sinister presence, feeling cold spots and hearing footsteps.

Little Bighorn Battlefield 756 Battlefield Tour Road • Crow Agency This monument to Custer’s infamous Last Stand is home to spirits of both soldiers and Native Americans. Witnesses have allegedly seen ghostly forms, felt taps on the shoulder, and heard moans, screams and war cries.

Montana Historian

Ghost Towns Garnet Originally named after Dr. Armistead Mitchell, who built a stamp mill to crush local ore around which the town grew, Mitchel was renamed Garnet in 1897 after the ruby red stones were found there. Soon after Mitchell erected his mill, Sam Ritchey hit a rich vein of ore in his Nancy Hanks mine just west of the town, which is said to have produced approximately $10 million in gold and produced the boom that drew residents to the prosperous area. One of the most intact ghost towns in Montana, Garnet is also known for being the most actively haunted in the state. The abandoned 1860s mining town 40 miles from Missoula is said to be the home of many spirits, including miners and a woman allegedly executed for murder here. Interestingly, traditional photos (film) taken in the area reveal mists – unseen by the naked eye – with distinct facial features. Bannack With outlaw gang leader Henry Plummer as its sheriff, Bannack was bound for infamy. Responsible for holdups, robberies and violence that made for treacherous travel throughout the area, Plummer perpetrated over 100 murders before his identity as the outlaws’ leader was discovered. Once exposed, he paid his due at the gallows. Bannack is said to be haunted by several resident entities, including an old woman and young female drowning victim that frequent the Meade Hotel. Most disturbing of all, however, are the haunting cries of babes heard in the Amede Bessette house, where 14 infants died during a smallpox epidemic in the late 1800s. Virginia City Once declared the capital of the Territory of Montana, Virginia City was home to approximately 10,000 people at the height of the gold rush. Apparently, some of those souls chose to stick around. Residents and visitors alike have reported frequent paranormal activity – spectral sightings; disembodied voices; cold spots; overwhelming feelings of dread and evil; and unexplained happenings – at the Bonanza and Fairweather Hotels, former Wells Fargo building and throughout the thriving ghost town.

Elkhorn On the heels of the 1880s silver boom that put it on the map, Elkhorn was hit by a diphtheria epidemic that killed many of its resident women and children. Soon thereafter, the repeal of the Silver Purchase Act in 1893 sealed the town’s eventual fate as a popular Montana ghost town. For a full listing of Montana ghost towns and related profiles, visit ghosttowns.com/states/mt. For more about haunted spots throughout Montana, visit hauntedplaces.org/state/Montana. Sources: ghosttowns.com/states/mt hauntedplaces.org/state/Montana hauntedmontana.com/ hauntedhovel.com/hauntedplacesinmontana

TIES TO THE PAST Living History Farm May 27 - September 10, 2017 | 10am to 5pm Free to All, All Summer Long!* Visit the circa 1890s Living History Farm at Museum of the Rockies, and you’ll be stepping back in time to a historically accurate, working Montana homestead. The skilled costumed interpreters will guide you through Tinsley House activities such as cooking, sewing, tending to Heirloom Gardens, and forging iron in the blacksmith’s shop. Supported by:

*Regular admission fees to the main Museum still apply. MuseumoftheRockies.org 406-994-2251 | 600 W. Kagy Blvd

2017

DISCOVERY Museum of the Rockies Experience our Changing Exhibits

Enjoy our Permanent Exhibits

CROCS: Ancient Predators in a Modern World

Siebel Dinosaur Complex

February 25 – September 10, 2017

Roots of Wisdom: Native Knowledge. Shared Wisdom

Martins Children’s Discovery Center Taylor Planetarium Shows

September 23 – January 12, 2018

Welcome to Yellowstone Country

Memory on Glass: D. F. Barry Photographs

Paugh Regional History Hall

September 23 – January 21, 2018

Plan your visit today! museumoftherockies.org 406-994-2251 | 600 W. Kagy Blvd., Bozeman, MT

Living History Farm (Seasonal)