March 2023
Crystal Alegria
Bozeman’s north side has historically been the working-class side of town where the laborers and service workers lived, while the south side of Bozeman housed the capitalists, bankers, and business owners. The houses built on the north side…
March 2023
Marion Jackman
In downtown Bozeman, next to the courthouse stands the Gallatin History Museum, a lovely brick building that preserves the area’s past. In honor of Women’s History Month, I interviewed the amazing women who work there, and asked each of…
March 2023
Steve McGann
Look at a map of the western United States. Almost all of the borders are straight lines. Some of the states are nearly square; Wyoming and Colorado definitely, North and South Dakota nearly, New Mexico and Utah, close. Rivers form some boundaries:…
February 2023
And that's the way we went to the movies
Rachel Phillips
Who doesn’t love the classic date night of dinner and a movie? For over a century, people of all ages have flocked to movie theaters for an entertaining evening out. In honor of the generations of Bozemanites who frequented our community movie…
February 2023
Crystal Alegria
An early Bozeman resident who should have a place in our local historical narrative but does not is Lizzie Williams, a Black woman who lived in Bozeman from 1869 to 1875. Though tragic, her story tragic is at times heart-warming, and always…
January 2023
Leather Straps and Loose Runners
Rachel Phillips
Long before downhill meccas like Bridger Bowl and Big Sky broke onto the scene, local families flocked to popular skating rinks and sledding hills for easy, convenient outdoor winter recreation. Neighborhood parks and inexpensive or homemade…
December 2022
photographer, author by Seth Ward
The Montana Constitution mandates that the number of children in each school district be considered as a factor “in making adjustments to the funding formula” for public education. Going back 130 years, a census of all children living in…
December 2022
You Are Cordially Invited to the Opening of Bozeman's New City Hotel
Crystal Alegria
If you walked down Bozeman’s Main Street on Christmas Day in 1866, you would witness the opening celebration of the City Hotel. The first formal hotel in Bozeman, it was owned and operated by George and Elmyra Frazier along with their business…
December 2022
Reprinted from the Montana Daily Record, Saturday, December 19, 1903 With additions by Rachel Phillips
Rachel Phillips
That Christmas of 1874, when the bachelors on Bozeman Creek were given the time of their lives, occupies a unique place among the annals of the Gallatin Valley. To begin with, it was the first Christmas celebration that part of the valley [south of…
November 2022
Crystal Alegria
Whenever the Thanksgiving holiday comes around, Julia Martin and her famous Thanksgiving dinners are brought to mind. One of Bozeman’s early matriarchs and community caretakers, Julia Martin holds an honored place in our historical memory as…
