another successful 1896 school inside this issue: …...here it was, my very first day in a new...

T H E N O R T H W E S T M O N T A N A H I S T O R I C A L S O C I E T Y

Summer 2017

Volume 21, Issue 2

Director’s Desk: The Climb

P. 2

Ladies Luncheon FVCC Exhibit Opening

3

History Corner: Andrew Swaney on early Valley schools (cont.) Flathead Gives

4

Goodbye Gil Jordan Spring Cleaning

5

Members & Donations 6

Volunteers & Board of Directors

7

Book Club Film Club

8

Inside this issue:

What’s Happening

at Your Museum

• Taste of Kalispell, Thursday, June 22, 5:30pm

• FVCC exhibit open through September

• History Book Club Thursday, Septem-ber 14, 6:30pm (P.8)

• Historic Film Club 7pm, last Monday of the Month, June –August, last Tue-day in September (P. 8)

Another Successful 1896 School Experience in the books!

Twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring, Flathead third graders descend on Your Museum in droves for our 1895/1896 Class-room Experience. From May 1st this year through May 12th, the Swanberg Classroom lived up to its name, as 250 students from 12 different classes were able to experience what school was like back in the early days of this building’s history.

If you are unfa-miliar with the program, as I was, it is really something to behold.

The students begin the day by separating before they even enter the building, with the boys entering through the north door and the girls through the south; that’s the way it was done in 1895, because that was the location of the show-ers in the building, a rari-ty in Northwest Montana at the time.

The students are then put through their paces, with a reading les-son from old-fashioned, turn-of-the-century “readers”, much like the well-know McGuffey. Also on the schedule is a

math lesson, (or, as it was once known, arith-metic), taking full ad-vantage of the writing slates in each student’s desk. After a tour of the Flathead History exhibit and some recess with old-timey games, the whole program is concluded with a boys-vs-girls spelling bee, such as in the photo below.

We want to thank Carolyn Wondrow for once again heading up this program, and we are very much looking for-ward to when class is back in session in the fall!

The Museum at Central School Bringing Life to History & History to Our Lives

Director’s Desk: New Challenges Lead to New Experiences

I was probably on the job a whole hour before I got the bad news: the furnace was broken, and after a quick inspection, it was clear to me that I had no idea what was wrong. Here it was, my very first day in a new po-sition (and a bitter cold April 3rd it was), and already I was faced with a minor crisis. This was a new one for me: although I come from a position where I was the de-facto caretaker of three historic properties, it is certain-ly not a stretch to say that heating and air-conditioning issues in a four-story, 123-year old building are not within my area of expertise.

But thankfully I was not alone in this crisis. My predecessor, Gil Jordan, had been through this many times before, and knew exactly who to call to resolve the problem. It was a stark reminder that in many ways, I will be facing a pretty steep learning curve.

None of us like it when things are outside of our control. But to continue the metaphor, steep curves aren’t all bad. As we are in western Montana, just outside of Glacier, consider a hike. The more I think about the comparison, the more it seems to fit. There will be times, the straightaways, where you are quite comforta-ble. For me, the parts of the job where I feel most comfortable are the parts that I have already mastered in pre-vious positions: design work, exhibit installation, and collections management. But the uphills are a different story. Sometimes you come up against a slope that requires you to dig a little deeper, to do something you are not comfortable with. While Gil came into this position with years of management experience, I did not. That has been something I have had to learn on the fly. In all honesty, I am learning it still, every day. In addition, things like network technology, irrigation systems, and, yes, heating/AC are outside of my comfort zone.

But on a hike, as in life, when we come up against these slopes, we do not turn back, defeated. Instead we plow resiliently ahead, perhaps even surprising ourselves in the process. And at the top, though we may be sore, we will have gotten stronger for having accomplished something new. For example, next time the net-work crashes, or the heat refuses to come on, I will have a better idea of what to do, a better route to take, all because I pushed myself and challenged my own expectations. I know these steep parts in the journey will never go away, but the more I learn about this place (like a long-distance thru-hiker, the more I walk on this path) the easier they will become.

I’m looking forward to learning this place, little by little, for many years to come.

Have you ever wondered if there is more to Northwest Montana history than the written record? If so, you should almost certainly attend Kalispell’s second ever PechaKucha event, Wednesday, July 19th, at 6:30 pm at the Kalispell Brewing Company.

The Flathead Valley is rich in the history of the West, including the often untold stories and legends that make Montana a special place. At this event, titled Magic, Mystery and Lore, you will hear from a variety of folks (including Jacob Thomas, director of the Northwest Montana Historical Society) who know about the special people, places, and events that have shaped the history of this region.

Unfamiliar with PechaKucha? In a nutshell, it is an informal, fast-paced presentation format, where the presenter has only 20 slides and can spend only 20 seconds on each. Through this unique arrangement, almost anybody can share their interests and hobbies in a fun, relaxed way, without getting bogged down in the de-tails.

Admission is free, so why not come grab a brewski or root beer and hear about some of the more su-pernatural and hidden aspects of Montana history?

Museum Director to Participate in Kalispell PechaKucha, July 19th


7th annual Ladies Luncheon is Most Successful Yet

Over the past several years, one of the annual highlights of Your Museum’s program slate has been our Ladies Luncheon, and 2017’s event was no exception. This year’s Luncheon took place on April 22nd, where the sold-out crowd enjoyed the “High Tea and Hats” that constituted the program. Hats were featured from our own collection, as well as hats from Lois Himsl and Barbara Gould, a one-time Miss Montana. Several histori-ans and hat enthusiasts were on hand to provide interesting commentary, while a parade of models, recruited from local high schools and the Kalispell community, exhibited the hats thematically and by decade. All in all, the Ladies Luncheon had many wishing afterwards for a return to the wistful days of the neighborhood haber-dashery.

Thanks to a very strong variety of donations to our silent auction and raffle (all generously donated by members and volunteers), this year’s Ladies Luncheon raised nearly $3000 to support Your Museum. Thanks to everybody who attended, as well as our models. We are already looking forward to next year’s Luncheon!

A very special thanks to the Ladies Luncheon committee, who organized the whole event, working tirelessly and generously donating all of the food and raffle prizes: Cindy Dixon, Elaine Gra-ber, Sally Hash-Savage, Betty Jo Malone, Kimberly Pinter, Linda Robbin, Sandy Smith, and Gerri Savory. Thank you ladies!

FVCC 50th Anniversary Exhibit Open at the Museum

The opening reception for the Flathead Valley Community College exhibit was held on May 11th and was a smashing success. Over 60 people attended to see the new exhibit, including FVCC president Jane Karas and several other employees, both current and past. Thanks to FVCC for providing the refreshments.

Haven’t seen it yet? There’s still time! The exhibit showcases historic items and photographs spanning FVCC’s five decades. Curated by the Museum’s Judy Elwood, on display is a re-creation of the very first staff meeting in April of 1967 around an old Formica table with folding chairs. Also displayed are some founding documents for the college, photos and text about the first campus (which was all over town), and coverage of FVCC sports activities through the years. The Central School building was part of the Community College from 1969 to 1989.

The display will be at the Museum through September.


“In the fall of 1885 the first school census was taken in the Flathead Valley. After every child enumerated west of the Flathead River, north of the Flathead Reservation, and south of the British boundary in the Terri-tory of Montana, it was found that there were 95 children. About half of them were of school age. Upon this enumeration there was apportioned $336, and this sum was divided equally between the Brocken and Ashley Districts. In 1886 a division of School District 19 was made, District 30 being formed of that portion lying south of Sections 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 and 30, Township 28 north of Range 20 west, and west of the Flathead River. A schoolhouse (the one now in use in Brocken) was built by the citizens of the locality in the fall of 1886.

Bob O’Neil, Northwest

Montana His-torical Society Past President

and Senior Advisory Di-

rector, shares another piece

of Montana history.

History Corner: The Conclusion of Andrew W. Swaney’s report of Flathead Valley

schools from 1884 to 1900.

“In 1887 Mr. J. E. Richardson was engaged to teach the Ashley School for the term of five months. This was the first long term of school the district had up to this time. To say the patrons of the school were highly pleased hardly expresses it. Children came a long way from out in the country and boarded with the settlers near by doing chores in the morning and evening for their board in order to go to school. No opportunity has been lost by the youth of this country to get to school if it was in their power to go, and we feel proud of their ambition. The boy or girl who foregoes pleasure and submits to such inconvenience in endeavoring to acquire an education must certainly come out victorious.

“Many incidents could be related concerning the management of the business affairs of District 19 which would be quite amusing but would hardly look well in print. However, suffice it to say, that the writer who has seen education in Flathead County advance from the log cabin, 12x14, with a dirt floor, to the hand-some structure in our city, is pleased that he lives in the state of Montana, the County of Flathead, and the City of Kalispell. Nowhere do the people take a deeper interest in educational affairs, and with the motto of the first board of trustees that ‘The Best is None too Good,’ School District No. 5 (which is the old District 19) has continued to be the banner district of the county.”

Once Again, Flathead Gives a Resounding Success

After two years, I think it’s safe to say that Flathead Gives is here to stay. Once again, the Mu-seum at Central School did very well, and we owe it all to our generous donors who participated in this annual drive. And although we lost the top spot to the ImageIfF Library, we were still able to raise $4,755 dollars in donations. All told, the Flat-head Gives drive brought in over $43,000 for Flat-head Valley non-profits, a staggering and amazing amount. A HUGE thank you to all of you who par-ticipated.

But that’s not all! The Museum at Central School was also the recipient of the “Princess Leia Power Hour” Award, which netted an additional $250, bringing the final total to over $5,000!

This award recognized that the Museum at Central School raised more money than any other group be-tween 3pm and 5pm on May 5th. Special Thanks to Gil Jordan for coordinating and entering these donations, winning us some additional funding!


Parting is such sweet sorrow, although I imagine it gets easier surrounded by 150 of you closest friends. That’s more or less the scene that met retiring Museum at Central School Di-rector Gil Jordan at his going-away party on April 28th. I doubt even Gil was expecting so many people, as Hollensteiner-Stahl Hall was standing-room-only for the event. It seemed as if half of Kalispell came out to say farewell to Gil and thank him for over a decade of a job well done.

After a veritable smorgasbord of food and beverages, the program commenced, with board members Elaine Graber, Laurie Happ, Sally Hash-Savage, and Jane Renfrow all reading prepared statements thanking Gil and Kim Pinter for their ser-vice, and longtime advisory board members Bob O’Neil and Betty Jo Malone also praising Gil for all the fine work that he accomplished over the years. There were parting gifts galore for both Gil and Kim, not only from board members but also from a number of friends in the community that have gotten to know Gil and Kim over their lengthy tenure at the Museum. Finally, Kim and Gil addressed their audience, and although both were comfortable with their decision to move on, it was clear that their passion for the Museum was still very strong. Gil even treated the audience to a film strip of a parade, featur-ing a younger Gil leading the “Pickle Patrol”.

All in all, it was a very fitting goodbye to two people who made Your Museum what it is today. We truly cannot thank Gil and Kim enough for all of their hard work, and there is no doubt that they leave the museum in a much better place than when they arrived. However, even this is not a permanent farewell: Gil and Kim will continue to stay involved with the Museum, with Gil leading the historic film club and Kim con-tinuing to look after our native plants garden. So if you missed the event, stop in during a film showing and say hello. Happy retirement Gil and Kim!

After 12 Years, Former Museum Director Gil Jordan Goes Out in Style

Just to brighten your day, here is photo of Gil dressed as a pickle.

Spring Cleaning Prepares the Museum Grounds for a Busy Summer Ahead

With grounds as extensive as ours, it truly takes a village to maintain them. Early June brought with it a big push to prepare the front lawn for Taste of Kalispell on June 22nd, and it was all hands on deck here at the Museum at Central School. Alex Berry generously donated a lawnmower, and Boyd Holt, Dick Siderius, Pete Skibsrud, and Jacob Thomas all took turns mowing the grass, keeping the rainy season at bay. Once again, Hooper’s Garden Center generously donated new flowers for the planter pots near the museum entrance, great-ly enhancing the beauty of our stately building.

We also owe a debt of gratitude to the Kalispell Parks Department, who dedicated numerous man-hours of work in helping us get our sprinkler system turned on and ready for the year. Finally, Glenda Brown and her Fresh Life home group worked into the night to beautify our native plants garden as part of their “Rock this City” initiative.

Thanks to everyone who helped out. The lawn and gardens are looking spectacular, and we are looking forward to another exciting summer of hosting programs, concerts, and special events.

Memorials

RENEWING CORPORATE MEMBERS Crowley, Fleck PLLP Signs Now Wheaton's DONATIONS Robert Hatfield William & Jeanne Hendrickson James & Wanda Hollensteiner Bill Martin Devonna Morgan IN-KIND DONATIONS Alex Berry Jerry & Judy Elwood Great Northern Heating and Air Boyd Holt Bob & Cherie Hooper JBUR Solutions Kim Pinter Signs Now Pete Skibsrud Jacob Thomas FLATHEAD GIVES DONATIONS Jim Atkinson Alexander & Margene Berry Carol Bibler Andy & Karen Bricker Art & Susie Burch Jerry & Judy Elwood Scott & Elaine Graber Laurie Happ Cambria Happ Patrick Jentz Gil Jordan Duane & Beverly Larson Margaret LeKander Kimberly More Ralph Peck Kimberly Pinter Dave & Jane Renfrow Rand & Linda Robbin Sarah Hash-Savage Richard Siderius Pete Skibsrud Jacob Thomas

Membership & Donations


NEW MEMBERS Angela Dose Marvin & Kathryn Hansen Carla Kelly Charlene Madieros Judie Overbeek Tom and Diane Wiggin

MEMBER RENEWALS Phyllis Anderson Mike Atteberry Alexander & Margene Berry Martha Bisharat Valerie & Pam Bradshaw Doyle & Donna Carr Tip & Diane Clark Bill & Sarah Dakin Marla Edmiston Virginia Draper Fleming Laurie Happ Patrick Jentz Robert & Cheryl Klein Ann Mateka Dorothea Meagher Helen Nelson Tom & Doreen Nerison Mikel & Gail Parrish Fran Patton Jim & Audrey Ponaski Karen Rosenberg Marcia Siblerud John & Sharon Slack Wanita Smith Elaine Snyder Mary Ann Sullivan Leslie Tinseth Carolyn Wondrow Jan Woods MULTI-YEAR RENEWALS Graeme Baker Camilla Bauska Linda Brandt Richard Burningham Phillip Cook Jim & Randy Mohn Gerri Savory Sandi Seiser Gordon and Judie Stewart Gary & Arlene Wilson

JACK BROWN Lloyd Barrie

Dr. William Boehme Stephen & Colleen Breeze

Cliff & Lynda Collins Robert Howard

Kent and Sabra Jones Kalispell Electric Dorothy McGlenn

Fran Patton William & Stacy Riggins

Bonnie Upton

JAMES G. EDMISTON Marla Edmiston

Rand & Linda Robbin Gerry Souhrada

BOB & BARBARA LESLIE

Jennifer Leslie Mark Leslie

Robert Leslie Scott Leslie

JAMES ROBBIN

Elaine Robbin

KAREN WEED TIPP Virginia Cahill

John & Karen Driessen First Security Bank of Missoula

Donald Hunt Penelope Hunt

William & Dolores Lynch Karen Marshall

Bernie & Linda Mengwasser Jeannette Pisk

Patricia Preheim Margaret Rininger

Rand & Linda Robbin Bobbie Truckner David Truckner

Jeff & Jessie Wade

GIFT SHOP Kathy Ament Renee Brewer

Sharon Bristow Doris Brubaker

Diane Etter Doris Guidi

Kathleen McClure Fran Meerkatz

Kathy O’Connor Khristin Osborn

Sandy Smith

BUILDING & MAINTENANCE

Glenda Brown Bruce Ruby

Pete Skibsrud Foster Swan Rod Wallette

COLLECTIONS Jim Atkinson Judy Elwood

Sally Hash-Savage Bobbie Kandarian

Bob O’Neil Jane Renfrow Bruce Ruby Foster Swan Rod Wallette

QUILT WORKSHOP

Betty Jo Malone

BOOK CLUB Diane Etter Ginny Swan Sandy Smith

Tammy Yonkers

PHOTOGRAPHY Bruce Ruby

BOARD OFFICERS

Laurie Happ President

Sally Hash-Savage Vice President

Margaret LeKander Treasurer

Jim Atkinson Secretary

Richard Siderius Past President

WELCOME DESK Larry Behnke Jerry Bristow

Doris Brubaker Gary Combe

Jean Craft Kirk Falcon

Doris & Terry Guidi Bob Hatfield Karen James Char Lawson Bill Leingang

Betty Jo Malone Fran Ruby

Richard Siderius Dennis Urban

Tammy Yonkers

CURATOR OF ROTATING EXHIBITS

Judy Elwood

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

VOLUNTEERS


STAFF

Jacob Thomas Executive Director

William Brooks

Photography Archiving

Laurie Happ Membership

Boyd Holt

Maintenance

Gerri Savory Room Rentals/Volunteers

Jan Woods Accounting

BOARD MEMBERS

Alex Berry Arne Boveng

Heidi Ostrom Duncan Elaine Graber Mark Hensley

Jim Hollensteiner Ron Hoye

Patrick Jentz Duane Larson Jane Renfrow Linda Robbin

SENIOR ADVISORY DIRECTORS

Cliff Collins Ed Gilliland

Betty Jo Malone Dorothy McGlenn

Bob O’Neil Rick Riley

MUSEUM AMBASSADORS

Bob Hatfield Jim Hollensteiner

Pete Skibsrud

DOCENTS Cindy Dixon Diane Etter Terry Guidi

Sally Hash-Savage Betty Jo Malone

Bob O’Neil Khristin Osborn Dennis Urban

FILM CLUB

Gil Jordan Bruce Ruby

Pete Skibsrud

SCRAPBOOK Marie Phillips

NEW VOLUNTEERS

Cody Martini Kathleen McClure

Hilary von Limbach

Ladies Luncheon In-Kind Donations

Flathead Electric Cooperative

Kalispell Grand Hotel Plant Land Rosauers Sassafras

Super One

Ladies Luncheon Volunteers

Judy Elwood

Gil Jordan Bruce Ruby

Pete Skibsrud

1896 Classroom Teachers

Carolyn Wondrow Karen Almdale Cindy Dixon

Sally Hash-Savage Karen Highbarger

Roxie Lehl Marne Molloy

Museum at Central School

124 Second Avenue East

Kalispell, Montana 59901

ON T HE WEB & FACEBOOK www.yourmuseum.org

E L EGANT R OOMS F OR R ENT C ALL F OR OUR L OW RAT ES

FILM CLUB Free admission, free popcorn!

Historic Film Club & History Book Club

Museum Phone: 406 756-8381

Email: [email protected]

Hours: 10 to 5 Monday-Friday

Closed Weekends & Holidays

School Bell Gift Shop A great downtown

location for Montana books & unique gifts

“Where History Happens — Every Day”

T H E N O R T H W E S T M O N T A N A H I S T O R I C A L S O C I E T Y

Non-Profit US Postage

PAID Permit 13

Kalispell, MT

Return Service Requested

BOOK CLUB NO MEETING IN JULY AND AUGUST

Thursday, September 14, 6:30 PM Healy’s West by Gordon E. Tol-ton. John J. Healy (1840-1908) was one of the most influential figures of the westward movement. From Irish famine to ar-my saddle, from taking on powerful monopolies to trading with the Black-foot, from political ma-neuvering to hunting down rustlers behind a sheriff s badge, Healy challenged life, nature, enemies, and govern-ments head on. An enter-taining and critical por-trayal of the West’s most charismatic figure, Hea-ly’s West is a must ready for anyone interested in Western U.S. History.

Snowbirds & Change of Address: Every returned newslet-ter costs us $1.05. Please update your address if you move, or give us both your summer & winter address by phone, e-mail or U.S. mail.

Help us save money and be certain you get your newsletter!

Robert De Niro and Dustin Hoffman in Wag the Dog Monday, July 31, 7PM - Wag the Dog (1997) Robert De Niro plays Conrad Brean, a DC spin-doctor so desperate to distract the public from a presidential scandal that he hires Hollywood producer Stanley Motss (Hoffman) to depict a fake war with Albania. What could go wrong?

Why does the dog wag its tail? Because a dog is smarter than its tail. If the tail were smarter, it would wag the dog.

Monday, August 28, 7PM - Dave (1993) If you had a job impersonating the presi-dent, what would you do? That’s the ques-tion facing Dave (Kevin Kline) when he is asked to secretly step in for the ailing Commander in Chief. And as he tries to make things better, he finds himself locked in a power struggle between his staff and VP. Complicating the matter fur-ther is his growing affection for the fist lady (Sigourney Weaver). This ensemble cast also stars Frank Langella, Ben Kings-ley, and Ving Rhames. Tuesday, September 26, 7PM –The Con-tender (2000) When the US President has to pick a new Vice President, he thinks outside the box and nominates Senator Laine Hanson of Ohio (Joan Allen). No one doubts her professional qualifications, but the focus quickly turns to her mysteri-ous and potentially sordid personal past, with the investigation spearheaded by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Sheldon Runyon (Gary Oldman).

another successful 1896 school inside this issue: …...here it was, my very first day in a new...

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