The History Museum Newsletter, Spring 2022
Executive Director’s Message
Cascade County Historical Society/The History Museum has weathered the storms that come with the changing of times, and then some. With the unusual challenges we have faced since the pandemic, we have tested a few new approaches. Some have been very successful like our well received “Spray of the Cascades,” blog featuring on-line stories from our collections, while others not so much (we will return to reserved seating and a meal included in 2022’s Jazz Night’s ticket price.) Saturday, April 9, 2022 we venture to try something new with our Legacy Awards and Annual Membership Meeting by offering the event free of charge during our Second Saturday Programming from 1-3pm.
We will honor Legacy awardees with an exciting and informative program, feature eclectic silent auction items and a wall sale of donated art works to benefit the museum and archives, offer light brunch fare gratis for the public and a no-host mimosa and bloody mary bar (catered by Enbär,) and conduct our brief annual meeting where we elect new board members and appoint officers. After missing our event in 2021, this is a great year to try something new thanks to the support of generous sponsors. We hope that you will join us for this new format of Legacy Awards and Brunch in 2022 that is sure to be a lot of fun.
The New Year brought a new and important collection to the archives: the Great Falls Tribune reporter research files. When the sale of the Tribune building was solidified at the end of 2021, a generous donor stepped up to help us accommodate the move of nearly 40 heavy file cabinets and boxes full of decades worth of information. The files that might have otherwise gone into private collector’s hands or been discarded, are now housed in our overflow on the 3rd floor and wait to be catalogued for the public’s use. I have been busy writing grants and forming a proposal to accommodate those records and the ongoing growing need to preserve records. In early February we were notified of two successful grant applications with the Montana History Foundation, (which will allow us to conduct and transcribe 10 oral histories under Megan Sanford’s facilitation,) and the Montana Memory Project, (which will fund an intern to help with digitizing of the Great Falls Fire Department collections with the help of Ashleigh McCann.)
It is an honor to steward the shared cultural resources of Great Falls and Cascade County that are cradled at The History Museum. Please join us as we plan creative ways to honor and celebrate our shared heritage at The History Museum.
-Kristi Scott, Executive Director
Second Saturdays: Next Season’s Preview
May 14
Historic Lower Northside Residential Walking Tour with Carol Bradley 2pm
Tour Great Falls’ early expansion that gave way to the beautiful homes that made the Lower North Side the city’s premier neighborhood. We will meet at Vinegar Jones Cabin in Gibson Park at 2pm for an afternoon walking tour.
June 11
50 Years of Country Gold: Celebrating Dave Wilson 1pm
Dave Wilson’s life and career are celebrated in this pop up exhibition at The History Museum. A veteran Montana radio broadcaster for over half a century, Wilson created the radio program “Grass Roots Gold,” which is still in syndication today.
July 9
Special Tour at Historic Fort at Fort Shaw 2pm
Fort Shaw began as a military fort to protect the Mullan Road and is deeply rooted in Cascade County history. Join us in Fort Shaw at 2pm as we explore the restored military fort, monument to the world famous Fort Shaw Indian Girls’ Basketball Team, and the nearby cemetery, or catch one of the “Open House Tours” offered by the Sun River Valley Historical Society every Thursday this summer from 1:00-6:00 P.M. July 7 through August 18.
August 13
“Parks and Trees in Great Falls, Montana’s Early Development” with historian Troy Hallsell 1pm
Founded by Paris Gibson in 1883 at the confluence of the Sun and Missouri River, Gibson believed trees were important to Great Falls’ growth as a city. Learn more about our city’s trees at this presentation by Troy Hallsell, (MAFB Historian & PhD,) who has researched this topic extensively, based in part from research in The History Museum archives. Hallsell recently published an article in the Montana Magazine of Western History.
Thank you to our supporters whose generous
donations keep our history, culture, and heritage alive.
Legacy Awards
On Saturday, April 9 at 1pm, The History Museum will hold its annual Legacy Awards event to honor businesses, organizations and individuals that have helped shape, promote and preserve the rich history of Cascade County and North Central Montana. This year Legacy will be an afternoon event with a light brunch, a no-host mimosa and bloody mary bar by Enbär, and a unique silent auction & art sale. The Annual Membership Meeting will also be held during the free event.
Calumet Montana Refinery LLC is located in the heart of our city on the banks of the Missouri River. The Refinery employs close to 600 people and has called Great Falls home since 1922. Though they have operated for a century now as part of the petroleum and coal products industry, they continue to grow and engage in new technology. In 2021 Calumet launched their Montana Renewables project that seeks to create renewable fuel for Montana and continues to invest millions of dollars into our local economy. With its Centennial Anniversary coming up in November, the Refinery was chosen to receive our 100 Years in Business Award.
Showdown Montana has been serving the Great Falls community since 1937 and is among the oldest ski areas in Montana. George Willet and the late Ted Cogswell purchased the hill in the 1970s. Originally named Kings Hill Ski Area, offering a tow rope to the top of Porphyry Peak for $1, George and Margie Willett have since brought this local gem into the modern age without sacrificing character. Last year it was announced that operations of the ski hill were being passed on to daughter Katie Boedecker, who continues the legacy. Showdown is this year’s Commercial/Local Business Award.
The Monarch-Neihart Historical Group (MNHG) is this year’s Non-Profit Legacy Award winner. The historic train depot built in 1902 had fallen into disrepair and was slated for demolition by the MDOT. It was saved by a group of dedicated volunteers who formed a non-profit organization in 2012 and continues under the leadership of Monarch residents Hugh and Janet Enloe. Today, the Depot is the only remaining railroad structure of the Great Northern Railroad that once extended from Great Falls to Monarch, Barker, and Neihart, Montana. The work done through this non-profit strengthens small communities by offering a communal space where history is preserved and a yearly festival: Montana Rocks.
Our 2022 Person of the Year award is going to Mary Sheehy Moe, educator, and active community member. Moe retired from a career in education in 2010. She began her career as a high school English teacher, continued as an English teacher at a two-year college in Montana, and concluded as Deputy Commissioner of Higher Education in Montana. Since retirement she has been a school board chair, a state senator, and a city commissioner representing the citizens of Great Falls, MT.
Internship Opportunity: Digitizing Collections
The History Museum is partnering with the Montana Memory Project (MMP) to sponsor a 2022 internship. Interns will work closely with History Museum staff and MMP coordinator to digitize our Great Falls Fire Department material collections, scan associated photos and documents, and create matching metadata for upload to Montana Memory Project’s online database. This internship provides an opportunity for beginning professionals to gain an insightful glance into the digitization process, public access, and museum work.
This paid internship has a flexible start date (beginning as soon as May 30, 2022,) and will be completed no later than October 30, 2022. A complimentary schedule will be negotiated with Curator of Collections/Supervisor and be conducted during public hours this approximate 6-12 week internship. Intern will be paid between $1,500 - $4,000 by MMP at the completion of the project, (depending on the amount of digitization that can be achieved.) Training for use of PastPerfect 5 and ContentDM programs will be provided, and all work will be done on site at The History Museum.
Please send any questions, Cover Letter and Resume to Collections Manager Ashleigh McCann at collections@greatfallshistorymuseum.org by May 1, 2022.
SC 554: Gruenhagen Collection
Separate Collection 554 is a recent acquisition to The History Museum Archives. The collection contains personal and business papers pertaining to Colonel Rober W. Gruenhagen’s tenure in the Montana Air National Guard, beginning in 1947. Within the collection is a diary which covers the 186th Fighter Squadron’s service during the Korean War.
Colonel Gruenhager, a native of Great Falls MT, joined the Montana Air Nation Guard in December 1947 and was called to active duty with the 186th Fighter Squadron in March of 1951. He was assigned as the Deputy Commander of Maintenance in July 1983, an assignment which he continued until his retirement in 1987.