Ellen Baumler's Blog, page 56
March 14, 2012
Edith Colby's Mistake
As Women's History Month continues, we remember some darker moments. If you're in Helena, bring your lunch and come to the Historical Society at noon. I'm giving a talk about Edith Colby and other "Women Who Went Astray" and served time in Deer Lodge. The $5 admission goes to a worthy cause, the Friends of the MHS.
Aspiring journalist Edith Colby came to Thompson Falls from Spokane in 1916 and took a job with the democratic Independent-Enterprise. Edith and others wrote some personal attacks o...
Aspiring journalist Edith Colby came to Thompson Falls from Spokane in 1916 and took a job with the democratic Independent-Enterprise. Edith and others wrote some personal attacks o...
March 12, 2012
Trail of Destruction
On this day in 1854, Irish nobleman Sir George Gore arrived in St. Louis to prepare for a hunting trip of astonishing destruction. An Oxford educated scholar and avid hunter, Sir George had thrilled to tales of the American west and organized a three-year hunting trip. His party soon set out from Westport, Missouri, under sanction of the American Fur Trading Company; famed mountain man Jim Bridger was guide. The caravan included 110 horses, 20 yoke of oxen, 50 hunting hounds, and 28 vehicles,...
March 9, 2012
Friday Photo
Happy Friday! I'm gearing up to give a talk about "Women Who Went Astray"—and who served time in Deer Lodge. Today's photo is a sneak peek. The talk will be Wednesday at 12:00 at the Historical Society. $5 admission. More details on the Society's event calendar here or call Katie at 444-9553.
From Montana The Magazine of Western History. Original from Powell County Museum & Arts FoundationMattie Lee was convicted of murder in 1904 in the death of a man she shot point-blank in a Philipsburg ...
From Montana The Magazine of Western History. Original from Powell County Museum & Arts FoundationMattie Lee was convicted of murder in 1904 in the death of a man she shot point-blank in a Philipsburg ...
March 8, 2012
Extra! Extra! Laugh Kills Lonesome
I just handed the manuscript of my next book to my editor. It's a collection of the radio scripts I've been writing for "History on the Go," some of which have appeared on this blog (like this post about the Placer Hotel). I figured that since the book won't be on shelves until August, you all deserve a sneak peek. Here's the first entry of More Montana Moments:
Artist C. M. Russell carefully chose the subjects of his art based on personal experience. He, more than any other western artist, pa...
Artist C. M. Russell carefully chose the subjects of his art based on personal experience. He, more than any other western artist, pa...
March 7, 2012
The Ghost Horse Named Paint
Once there was a bay pinto, born on the prairie to an old mare who had given many foals to her Crow owner. The horse's name was Paint. In the five years he lived with the Crow, he learned the feel of a man on his back and the ways of the buffalo hunt. One night as they camped along Painted Robe Creek in today's Golden Valley County, Blackfeet crept into the sleeping camp to steal the horses. Paint felt a man on his back and he began to run. Gunfire shattered the night. Paint felt the man go s...
March 5, 2012
Medicine Tree
The Medicine Tree south of Darby on U.S. Highway 93 once towered over the landscape. The four-hundred-year-old Ponderosa pine was a timeworn icon, a site sacred to the Salish-Kootenai tribes. According to a legend handed down by local tribes, a monstrous bighorn sheep terrorized the southern Bitterroot valley. Coyote used his guile to trick the ram into charging a small tree to prove his strength. The ram's large curled horns sank deeply into the trunk and trapped him there. Coyote cut off hi...
March 2, 2012
Friday Photo
Happy Friday! March is Women's History Month, so today seems like the perfect day to share this wonderful photo.
From Montana Views. Original in Montana Historical Society Photograph Archives, PAc 76-26.Two unidentified women in bathing suits clown on the shore, probably near Forsyth, circa 1900. The photographer was Walter Dean, Jr. I would just love to know more about these women, wouldn't you?
From Montana Views. Original in Montana Historical Society Photograph Archives, PAc 76-26.Two unidentified women in bathing suits clown on the shore, probably near Forsyth, circa 1900. The photographer was Walter Dean, Jr. I would just love to know more about these women, wouldn't you?
February 29, 2012
Horace W. Bivins
I've enjoyed celebrating
Horace W. Bivins was born in Virginia of free ancestry and was college educated. He enlisted in the Tenth Cavalry, the famous Buffalo Soldiers, in 1887 as a noncommissioned officer. Bivins served in Arizona in campaigns against Geronimo. The Tenth Cavalry was reassigned to Fort Custer in Montana. There Bivins became famous as ...
Horace W. Bivins was born in Virginia of free ancestry and was college educated. He enlisted in the Tenth Cavalry, the famous Buffalo Soldiers, in 1887 as a noncommissioned officer. Bivins served in Arizona in campaigns against Geronimo. The Tenth Cavalry was reassigned to Fort Custer in Montana. There Bivins became famous as ...
February 27, 2012
John W. White
Today's Montana moment celebrates
Kalispell's historic Central School today is home to the Northwest Montana Historical Society and serves as a community center and museum. But from 1894 to 1991, Central served students. Back in 1932 during the Great Depression, students of social science and history were studying the Civil War. The school's longtime janitor, John W. White, knew a thing or two firsthand about one o...
Kalispell's historic Central School today is home to the Northwest Montana Historical Society and serves as a community center and museum. But from 1894 to 1991, Central served students. Back in 1932 during the Great Depression, students of social science and history were studying the Civil War. The school's longtime janitor, John W. White, knew a thing or two firsthand about one o...
February 24, 2012
Friday Photo
Our last Friday photo celebrating
Photo courtesy Montana Historical Society photograph archives, H-4873. Photo by Elliott W. Hunter. Used by permission.It's technically a Wyoming moment, but I'm posting it anyway because it's a glimpse of the African American experience in the West. Also, it's a great photo. Speaking of great photos, if you have a picture (or story) of a Montana moment that you'd l...
Photo courtesy Montana Historical Society photograph archives, H-4873. Photo by Elliott W. Hunter. Used by permission.It's technically a Wyoming moment, but I'm posting it anyway because it's a glimpse of the African American experience in the West. Also, it's a great photo. Speaking of great photos, if you have a picture (or story) of a Montana moment that you'd l...
