Bozeman Magazine

Rag Dolls & Air Rifles A Century of Cherished Gifts

Rachel Phillips

On December 6, 1956, the Gallatin County Tribune and Belgrade Journal announced the official beginning of the Christmas season. “Coincident with the drop in temperatures there was an appreciable rise in that intangible thing called Christmas…

Connecting Community

Angie Ripple

I recently came across a quote that really hit home with me: “Be strong enough to stand alone, smart enough to know when you need help, and brave enough to ask for it.” As I reflect on my journey as the founder of this local publication…

For the Benefit of the Country

Memories of Early Montana Politics

Rachel Phillips

This Election Day, voters may appreciate a brief respite from current campaigns to hear about local politics in the early twentieth century. Roy Keister, a Democrat, and George Sinton, a Republican, were both interviewed by Lee Cooper in 1975 as part…

La Roche Jaune: A Priceless Montana Watersource

Ken Walcheck

On a sandstone bluff just west of the town of Miles City, a gnarled Mountain Rocky Juniper patriarch stands firmly entrenched in the rocky soil. The juniper has been standing for more than three centuries. To the unperceptive eye, the juniper equates…

Fright Night Inside Deer Lodge Prison

Sydney Jones

On a cold fall night in Deer Lodge, Montana, the Old Montana Prison glows softly from the inside out. You can’t help but notice the enormous brick structure, sitting directly on Main Street in a small town of only 3,000. A chill greets your…

The Hole in the Wall

Attempting to Solve a Historical Mystery

Rachel Phillips

The old 1911 Gallatin County Jail on Main Street is full of secrets. During its seventy-year use, the castle-like structure housed thousands of unwilling occupants during some of the grimmest times of their lives. When prisoners were relocated to a…

Montana’s Most Haunted Hikes

Jessica Cairoli, photos by Lindsey Hove

Everyone knows it’s impossible not to fall in love with Montana; whether you’re just passing through or have called the beautiful state home for years, its stunning mountains, expansive skies, and friendly inhabitants are guaranteed to…

A Comparison Of Two Historical Timeframes: The Silent and Alpha Generations

Ken Walcheck

I’m a member of the Silent Generation, (1927-1945), a slice of history sandwiched between the Great Generation (1901-1926), and the Baby Boomers, (1946-1964).A 1951 essay in Time magazine coined people in the 1927-1945 age group as the Silent…

The History of Hawthorne

East Side School to Art Deco Hub

Hawthorne School is a familiar sight to both locals and visitors alike. It sits at the prominent corner of Rouse and Mendenhall streets, visible to anyone heading into downtown from the north side or heading towards the Bridger mountains from Main…

Honk For Service: Bozeman’s Full-Service Gas Stations

Rachel Phillips

As automobiles became popular and affordable for Bozeman’s middle class in the first half of the twentieth century, a new type of business emerged that changed the local cityscape. Automobile service stations sprouted up around Bozeman –…

Yellowstone Park Boundaries

Steve McGann

Yellowstone Park forms a rectangle of land in northwest Wyoming. Mostly. The Congressional Act that set aside Yellowstone as a National park listed the boundaries in miles from certain landmarks, then stipulated the meridians thus encountered. The…

Touring Yellowstone National Park in a Tin Lizzie

Ken Walcheck

Touring Yellowstone National Park in the 1920’s by automobile was a spirited adventure in itself, especially if your touring vehicle was a 1920’s Model T Ford. The Model T was colloquially known by many during this era as a “Tin…

Bavaria to Montana: Clara Lang’s Way to the West

Rachel Phillips

One day in August of 2023, a man wandered into the Gallatin History Museum research center and introduced himself as Raphael Lang. He was trying to find information on his great-great-grandmother and asked if we could help him. He explained that he…

Coffey to Martini Robin to Bison A Story of Change

Change is constantly with us. Even during the 1950s and 1960s, Bozeman grew by fifty percent, from a population of 12,000 to 18,000. Then, the northern limit of the city was Oak Street, two dirt ruts that ran along a deep irrigation ditch at the edge…

Sweeten to Taste: Ice Cream in Bozeman History

Rachel Phillips

As a kid, one of my favorite summertime activities was helping my parents make homemade ice cream on the Fourth of July. We had a bright blue slatted wooden bucket with a hand crank and interior metal canister with wooden paddles. After filling the…

A Montana Homestead Hunter’s Toolbox

From Bozeman to Baker and What I Learned Along the Way

What comes to mind with when we hear “homestead”? You probably have a general idea of what they are and when they existed. Covered-wagon times. Settlers and Pioneers. Free land. You might even be thinking of Steinbeck’s The Grapes…

Bozeman’s First Shopping Center 1003 W. College St.

The end of World War II presented strong economic growth, increased population, growing numbers of home ownership, new enrollment in higher education, and increased personal use of the automobile throughout the United States. Although a few shopping…

My Trip to Montana: A Journal by Allan Charles Thurman

Rachel Phillips

In June 1927, 13-year-old Allan Charles Thurman traveled to the Gallatin Valley by train to spend the summer with relatives. Allan was from North Carolina and had never visited Montana before. He stayed with extended family in Belgrade and enjoyed…

Fiddler Music and Ardent “Spirits” on the Lewis and Clark Trail

Ken Walcheck

In its scope and achievement, the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804-1806 stands as a giant among other major expeditions of the North American continent. The expedition carried a destiny as well as the flag of a young and vibrant nation. Travelling…

What’s in a Name? Examining MSU Building Namesakes

Rachel Phillips

When traversing the MSU campus today, one passes by dozens of unique buildings from various eras. The names emblazoned on signs outside of most of these structures honor people who contributed in a variety of ways to the creation or growth of the…

Gallatin Licks Polio Danger: The Local Crusade to Eradicate Polio

Rachel Phillips

Ernest Monforton, Mary Kay Lindvig, Harold Lindvig, and Joe Garry (left to right) stand with a Hereford heifer in the sale ring at the Montana Winter Fair. Monforton donated the heifer to a polio campaign, and the animal brought over $700. April…

Old Growth Forests A Montana Heritage

Author Joan Maloof is fighting to save some of our last, best places — America’s old-growth forests. She will give a free talk in Bozeman Thursday, April 11, at the Museum of the Rockies on ‘Old-growth Forests in Montana –…

Disgraceful Shacks and Fire Traps: Carnegie Library

Most of Bozeman’s citizens can identify the Carnegie Library that still stands proudly on the corner of N. Bozeman Avenue and E. Mendenhall Street. Not many could tell you that it is located at the terminus of the city’s historic…

The Huffman Women: Their Lives in Pictures

Rachel Phillips

Huffman family, circa 1910s. Clockwise from left: Hugh, George R., Anna and Susan A small collection of photograph postcards in the Gallatin History Museum archives paints a charming picture of the lives of several local women. In many ways, the…

Chet Huntley: Anchoring Big Sky Part 2

Steve McGann

Read Chet Huntley: Anchoring Big Sky Part 1 here In the summer of 1970, a recently retired national news broadcaster, instantly recognizable anywhere in the country, moved to Bozeman. A native Montanan, he and his wife rented a house, and he began a…

What's Your Beef? Is This How We Honor Our Historic Districts?

Alison Sweeney

Directly across the street from a new luxury development is a quaint home of red brick, first constructed in 1890 by a member of Bozeman’s historic African American community. Architect and stonemason George Harrison was born in New York State…

Samuel Lewis: Showman, Musician, Businessman, Barber

Crystal Alegria

Samuel Lewis came to Bozeman, Montana Territory in 1868 or 1869 and set up a barber’s chair in the Northern Pacific Hotel, where he waited on tables to pay his board, and worked behind his barber’s chair between meals. He eventually…

Moonshine Tales: Art Lenehan, Jake Mast, Seth Bohart

Rachel Phillips

In December 1918, Prohibition went into effect in Montana. Interestingly, anti-liquor laws were introduced and ultimately revoked earlier in the Big Sky State than in the nation as a whole. In Montana, Prohibition lasted from the end of 1918 until…

Chet Huntley: Anchoring Big Sky Part 1

Steve McGann

Bozeman and the Gallatin Valley are beautiful landscapes. Yet, every exit from the Valley contains its own scenic delights. East over Bozeman Pass to Paradise Valley and the Absarokas, west over the Tobacco Root foothills to Homestake and Butte. But…

Zoned For Tear-Down

Alison Sweeney

A recent real estate listing was brought to my attention; the description was interesting in how the property was presented, and raises questions about potential impacts on the character of our neighborhoods. It focused on the lot size and location…

Heart & Soul: The People of the Gallatin Historical Society

Rachel Phillips

Forty-six years ago, the Gallatin County Historical Society was founded to preserve and share the history of our corner of Montana. Known as the Gallatin History Museum today, and located in the former county jail building on Main Street, the…

Through the Lens | The Bozeman Camera Club and Gallatin County History

Rachel Phillips

The holiday season is the perfect time to capture festive photographs—family and friends, colored outdoor lights reflecting through snow and ice, and, of course, downtown Bozeman’s famous Christmas decorations. In the last one hundred and…

United States Thanksgiving Bird Almost Became Our National Emblem

Ken Walcheck

Despite the turkey’s lofty stature of approval with most Americans, especially on Thanksgiving day, many of us are not aware that Benjamin Franklin campaigned vigorously to make the wild turkey our national bird. He didn’t succeed, but he…

Binding Them in a United Organization | Strikes in Bozeman History

Rachel Phillips

Recent national labor and union strikes have stimulated some interest in what those actions mean for an industry or a community. Striking usually involves a group (often employees, but not always) halting normal operations in an attempt to gain a…

Where To Go This Fall For Bone Chilling Paranormal Activity

Liz Bischoff

The stories of our community’s past have a way of walking alongside us. We see these stories in the shadows when they are twisted and turned, like strangling vines curling up an old oak; we see these stories in the mirror when we find we are…

Atrocity Most Foul: An 1889 Murder Mystery

Rachel Phillips

On Sunday, March 3, 1889, a report of a most disturbing nature reached Bozeman authorities: a deceased woman was found at a homestead southwest of Bozeman. The Bozeman Courier reported on March 7, “... startling news was brought to the city…

Six Historically Significant Montana Pets

Liz Bischoff

This short list of historically significant pets in Montana gives us a glimpse of Montanans’ relationships with their pets over the history of this amazing state. There is a common theme of love and companionship, which concludes that all dogs…

Bozeman’s Best Friend: History Tails of Local Hounds

Rachel Phillips

Bozeman is, and was, a dog-loving community. For centuries before the town even existed, dogs were essential helpmates and companions to Native people living, hunting, and passing through the Gallatin Valley. More recently, when farms and ranches…

An Ultimate Road Trip

Steve McGann

“... And then the lights of Bozeman – the broad main street ablaze with power of brightness and abundant light...” The above quote comes from an odd little book; almost without sentences, it’s just daubs of phrases strung…

Bozeman Libraries Through the Years

Steve McGann

A well-known criminal was once asked why he robbed banks. He replied, “That’s where they keep the money.” My answer to why I spend so much time in libraries is similar; they are full of books. One of my best childhood memories is…

“I never intended to be a teacher.” Bessie Gee’s Story

Rachel Phillips

Occasionally, people embark on a rewarding, life-long career that was never part of their original plan. Educators like Margaret “Bessie” Gee fall into this category. Bessie was born in 1900 to Maude Morgan and Hugo John Gee on the family…

The Missouri River Breaks A Land of Visionary Enchantment

Ken Walcheck

To Meriwether Lewis, Esquire…. “The object of your mission is to explore the Missouri river, and such principle streams of it, as, by its course and communication with the waters of the Pacific ocean, whether the Columbia, Oregan (sic)…

In Search of Popcorn Johnnie

Rachel Phillips

The Gallatin History Museum research library contains thousands of family history files, photographs, records, newspapers, and books that pertain to the history of Gallatin County and southwest Montana. One of these books, Gallatin Century of…

MSU Bozeman Challenging Times

Lesley Gilmore

Our May 2023 article introduced the origins of Bozeman’s university now known as Montana State University (MSU), which will be referenced as such throughout this edition, which continues the story as MSU entered a period of immense growth after…

The Ground Squirrel Bounty Hunt of 1887

Rachel Phillips

“The following pages contain a list of all parties bringing squirrels to this office with the date, total number of squirrels and names of witnesses.” ~ Charles A. Carson, Probate Judge Among dozens of nineteenth and early twentieth…