MARCH 2021 Ghost Towns and History of Montana Newsletter M o n t a n a ’ s H o t S p r i n g s Montana’s hot springs were (and still are!) a great way to relax and socialize. Some waters even claimed to cure such ills as bad kidneys, rheumatism and paralysis. Let’s look at a few early “hot spots”... The Dillon Examiner, April 13, 1927 www.montananewspapers.org Puller Hot Springs located 20 miles south of Alder and named for James Pulller, who developed the springs in 1872, was among the list of healers. A solfatara, it is reported has been discovered contiguous to ‘Belzebub’ at the Puller Hot Springs. We always have held to the opinion that they would discover something of that kind up here.” -The Madisonian Newspaper, May 11, 1876. But did these springs really possess the power to heal? According to the following accounts and numerous others, they surely did…In June of 1875, The Madisonian reported that Mrs. Burdess of Divide was in a crippled condition from rheumatism but just a couple weeks spent bathing in the Puller Springs had entirely restored her health. In June of 1876, Bob Peters reported that the healing waters cured his paralysis like “raising one from the dead”. The cures were still coming in January of 1895 when the same newspaper reported that Albert Walsh of Granite Gulch who had been suffering from rheumatism for six months had begun rapidly recovering by bathing at the famous health resort. The springs, furnished with a hotel, bathhouses, salon and dance hall, also made a great destination for weddings, Christmas parties, hen parties (something like today’s bachelorette parties), even a Thanksgiving Ball in 1877 (the ticket would only set you back $3.00 and they promised good music!). Puller Hot Springs in 1985 by Jeff Birkby
P a g e 2 G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y o f M o n t a n a N e w s l e t t e r Another popular spot, Pipestone Hot Springs located between Butte and Whitehall was discovered in the 1860s by John Paul who had homesteaded in the area. Pipestone supposedly got its name from the material found in the area that was used to make clay pipes. Legend tells us the area was once dotted with wickiups and served as a meeting spot for local tribes under truce. Ollie Barnes became the first postmistress of Pipestone in the 1880s and under her management of the springs, a hotel, barn and guest house were constructed. The post office closed but would open again in 1887 with John Paul once again serving as owner. The cost to enjoy the springs and all its amenities was $2 a day. Ollie and her husband, Charles Bucket, would take over yet again in the 1890s. John Paul passed away in 1913. Pipestone Springs became a station on the Northern Pacific’s main line. The property was acquired around 1918 by a consortium of Butte businessmen and with that, the hotel was joined by a bathhouse and 100 canvas-roofed cottages. The businessmen offered a sanitarium, an indoor swimming pool known as “the plunge” and for a time, a golf course. Croquet games in the afternoon and dances in the evenings followed by a good soak were enjoyed by many in the area. The resort closed in 1963. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz Warm Springs, Montana is named after the "mound" where scalding hot water surfaces. Because of thick grass and saline deposits surrounding the area, white-tailed deer were often found there. The Shoshone named the cone Soo'-Ke-En Car'-Ne (lodge of the white-tailed deer). When the warm springs were discovered in 1865 by Louis Belanger, he went on to purchase the land and help develop a community consisting of a hotel and bathhouses to serve the public. A privately owned mental hospital was established at the site in the 1870s and in 1912, the Warm Springs State Hospital became a state institution. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz
P a g e 3 G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y o f M o n t a n a N e w s l e t t e r Captain William Clark, Sacagawea and their party came across what they called a “boiling hot spring” on a late afternoon in the summer of 1806. Clark wrote in his journal entry: “…we arrived at a Boiling Spring situated about 100 paces from a large Easterly fork of the Small river which beads in the Snowey mountains to the S.E. and S.W. of the Springs. This Spring [15 yds. in circume, boils up all over the bottom which is Stoney] contains a very considerable quantity of water, and actually blubbers with heat for 20 paces below where it rises…I directt Sergt. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz Pryor and John Shields to put each a peice of meat in the water of different Sises. The one about the Size of my 3 fingers cooked dun in 25 minits the other much thicker was 32 minits before it became Sufficiently dun.” This spot where the party enjoyed their tasty dinner became the warm, bubbling waters of Jackson Hot Springs in the Big Hole Valley. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz The Wells Hotel in Garnet, Montana was host to what was known as the Calico Ball. Each lady who would like to attend (The Calico) would make a calico necktie that matched the dress she would be wearing to the ball that evening. The neckties were placed in sealed envelopes. When the gentlemen arrived, each would choose an envelope and put the tie on, then he would search for his sweetheart with the matching dress. They would dance the night away and enjoy a supper following the ball. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz Coolidge, Montana- In 1914, the town of Coolidge hummed with activity. Named for U.S. President Calvin Coolidge, a personal friend of founder, William R. Allen, life in the town moved to the rhythm of the mine. The streets were full of sound and movement, the clang of heavy machinery a constant in the background, as men came and went from the mine. The little town that once boasted a population of 350 was as modern as any of the time with both telephone service and electricity via lines that ran over the hill from Divide. But the town was short-lived. With the failure of the Elkhorn Mining Enterprise and the onset of The Great Depression, by 1932 Coolidge could no longer support its citizens. Today, Coolidge is a fading reminder of the fortunes made and lost of the mining camps that dotted Montana's mountains in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
P a g e 4 G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y o f M o n t a n a N e w s l e t t e r This is the way Granite, Montana looked at itself over 125 years ago, when it reported its “biography” for a souvenir edition of the Helena Journal: “The town of Granite is situated in the Rockies, 6,000 feet above sea level; has a population of 2,500 people, and for rugged, picturesque mountain scenery stands prominent in Montana history. It enjoys the distinguished honor of possessing the richest silver mine in the United States, the Granite mountain. Besides the Bi-Metallic, which is a dividend paying mine of no small magnitude, there are mines that skirt the town such as the Elizabeth, East Granite, Zeus, Fannie Parnell, Lord Nelson, Granite Belle, Gold Coin, Morning Star, Cleveland and Young America. Mining is the chief pursuit of the people. There is no other town in the state where people are mingled together in such harmony as in Granite. Of the various nationalities the Irish and the Cornish are in the ascendence. There are four organized bodies of religion: the Presbyterian, the Methodist Episcopal, Church of England, and Catholic. Attendance at these churches is progressively large. In the way of amusement, since the completion of the Miners' Union building (a $20,000 stone and brick structure) the hall has been constantly favored with social parties, dances, concerts and operas of the highest order. The Rod and Gun Club and Baseball Club are trimming their weapons for what they believe will terminate in a successful season. Through the untiring efforts of a favored few a fire system has been inaugurated for the protection of property, and the appliances for extinguishing a fire are justly ample. Tom Trevaille, postmaster is chief of the department. In the mayor’s absence, Deputy Sheriff D.A. McLeod disciplines the unruly, while P. Gallagher and Nixon give every one justice in the courts. Employees of the Granite Mountain, BiMetallic and Elizabeth mining companies find in the reading room a desirable place to spend leisure hours. The hospital, under the able direction of Doctors Sligh and Power, maintains a reputable name, and is a credit to the people. Hon. G.J. Reek, one of the framers of our state constitution, resides over the Fourth of July Parade in Granite, Circa 1900, Courtesy of The Montana Memory Project Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz public schools in a manner suited to the endorsement of all. The professor is ably assisted in this work by Miss May Kennedy and Miss Effie R. Buck. The attendance is about two hundred.”Accessed at www.montananewspapers.org.
P a g e 5 G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y o f M o n t a n a N e w s l e t t e r The Granite Mountain-Speculator fire of June 8, 1917 took the lives of 168 men working in Butte, Montana that day making it hard rock mining’s greatest disaster. The mayor at the time gave local miners some stern advice in that week’s newspaper… A flood of telegrams and letters from anxious mothers and sisters have been pouring into the office of Mayor W. H. Maloney since the disaster on the hill, and the mayor made the suggestion this morning that every miner in Butte, whose mother is in the east, write a letter tonight. “Mothers in the east are anxious about their sons here in Butte,” said the mayor today, showing a stock of letters. “Most of these don’t realize there are dozens of mines in Butte and there are 20,000 or more miners here. They are afraid for their sons and those who have neglected writing home should be ashamed of themselves.” “I suggest that every miner in Butte who has a mother or sister in the east sit down tonight and write a long letter home. Most of us are careless about our mothers- the best friends we have in the world. If we stopped to think about it, there isn’t one of us who wouldn’t do anything in the world to save those old gray heads from worry.” “One mother writes me that she hasn’t heard from her Tommie for six months. I have sent for Tommie and I believe he has a good lecture coming. She is afraid he is dead. I saw him the other night laughing and talking with a bunch of friends. At the same time his old mother back in Milwaukee was awake all night worrying about her boy.” “I suggest we all get together on this thing; that every one of us do something for our mothers this very day. Those who have mothers in the east ought to write and send a money order for a trip to the theater or something that will please the old folks.”- Accessed via: https:// chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ , Feb. 28, 2021 Ads from The Bear Paw Mountaineer, Dec. 14, 1911, Accessed via www.montananewspapers.org
P a g e 6 G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y o f M o n t a n a N e w s l e t t e r Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz Hassel, Montana got its start as a placer camp called St. Louis in the 1860s. It had emerged around Indian Creek (west of Townsend) and the gold it had produced. In 1875, The Helena Independent described the camp as “a live little place and a good winter camp for all who have employment…Some 35-40 men at work. Mr. John Murray is keeping a boarding house at Cheatem, two miles above town and feeding more than half the camp with the best the market affords.” Placer mining died out by the 1880s causing stamp mills, sluicing operations and later, dredging, to take over. A Post office was opened in 1895 which prompted the camp to change its name. As both Montana and Missouri were commonly abbreviated as MO, mail and freight were getting mixed up between St. Louis, Missouri and St. Louis, Montana. The town held a meeting, and the new name of Hassel was chosen after an early day miner. The new wave of mining revived the camp and was reported as such by a representative of the Helena Weekly Herald in 1896: “There is a vast change since my last visit…At that time…a few of the pioneer miners, Wm. Rick, Joe Hassel, Geo. Weston, Charlie Moffit and Frank Lewery were ‘sniping’ around the gulch making a good living and wondering if the palmy days of ’66 would ever return. After a twenty-seven-year sleep rich quartz mines are being discovered, hundreds of busy prospectors swarm through the hills and the old gulch has taken on life anew.” Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz The huge Diamond Hill Stamp Mill was operating at full capacity by 1898. The town once had 200 people, several businesses, a masonic lodge and many miners’ homes. $5 million in gold was reportedly taken from the mining district. By 1910, most mining in the town had ceased and folks had moved on. Great Falls Daily Tribune– March 17, 1920 https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz
P a g e 7 G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y o f M o n t a n a N e w s l e t t e r In celebration of Easter... Masons have been a dynamic force in Montana since early territorial days, playing key roles in events that shaped the state’s history. Helena Masons first came together in 1865 for the funeral of Dr. L. Rodney Pococke, for whom Rodney Street was named. The fraternal organization has since been closely intertwined with the Helena community. The Masons acquired the former Ming Opera House in 1912. Built by John Ming in 1880 and renowned throughout the Pacific Northwest, the theater followed a circular plan model after fashionable European opera houses. It featured thirty-two sets of elaborate scenery, seating for 900, gas lighting in the house, and state-of-the-art stage lighting which included twenty-six movable border lights. Rubber tubing delivered gas to the house and stage lights from a plant in the stone cellar. The Ming hosted such famous performers as Otis Skinner, Eddie Foy, Marie Dressler, and Katie Putnam. Patrons’ safety was not a consideration until 1887. John Ming renovated the opera house after 100 people literally roasted alive in an opera house fire in Exeter, England. Ming added ample exits and updated the gas lighting system. Ming Opera House, left, 1898. Montana Historical Society Photograph Archives, 953-833 Photo Courtesy of Montana Moments Blog In the early 1900s, the Ming hosted the first silent movies. In 1915, noted Helena architects George Carsley and C. S. Haire redesigned the building, transforming the theater into a more functional, modern auditorium. Under the Masons’ care, the original hand painted 1880s scenery remains in occasional use. For the past sixty-three years, the Scottish Rite of the Freemasons have performed an Easter Tableaux, reenacting scenes from the Last Supper to the Ascension. The free performance utilizes the historic 1880s scenery and is the only time the public can view these exquisite remnants of 1880s Helena. The landmark building at 15 North Jackson in Helena survives thanks to the Masons’ stewardship and continues to serve as a meeting place for members of all the Masonic orders. –Ellen Baumler Ellen Baumler is an award-winning author and Montana historian. A master at linking history with modern-day supernatural events, Ellen's true stories have delighted audiences across the state. She lives in Helena in a century-old house with her husband, Mark, and its resident spirits. To view and purchase Ellen’s books, visit: http://ellenbaumler.blogspot.com/p/my-books.html
P a g e 8 G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y o f M o n t a n a N e w s l e t t e r Wagner Cabin This old log cabin was the first home of Joseph Wagner and his wife Mary Elizabeth. It was built in the early 1870s and stood on the original Wagner homestead claim one mile north of Florence and just east of the old highway from Missoula. Joseph Wagner arrived from Germany in 1867 and was soon joined by his brothers Sebastian and Isadore. He came to Montana in 1869, settling first in Helena. All three brothers homesteaded in the Bitterroot Valley near Florence in the 1870s, and lived in the area on adjacent farms for many decades. This cabin is typical of log construction of the time and the area. Other homestead cabins still exist, finding new life as storage buildings and the like. The logs were originally sealed with local clay, which has now been replaced by a more stable mortar. The logs are undoubtedly hand hewn Ponderosa Pine, harvested in the valley. The Wagner property remained in the family until February, 1958, when Mr. and Mrs. Marion Davis purchased it. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz They eventually donated the cabin to the Stevensville Historical Society and it was moved to Fort Owen in 1973. When it arrived at the Fort, it was floorless and had a rough partition separating the areas right and left of the door. The roof was replaced with board and batten construction and the windows were reinstalled. The Wagner cabin is representative of a type of cabin that was found throughout the Bitterroot Valley in the late 19th and early 20th century. My/Donor Information: SUBSCRIBE TO THE GHOST TOWNS AND HISTORY OF MONTANA NEWSLETTER! Renewal? Y/N Send a Gift to: NAME____________________________________ NAME___________________________________ ADDRESS__________________________________ ADDRESS_________________________________ CITY______________________________________ CITY_____________________________________ STATE__________________ZIP________________STATE_________________ ZIP________________ Yearly subscriptions are $19.95 (published monthly). Please make checks payable to Ghost Towns & History of MT, LLC and send with this clipping to 715 Oak ST, Anaconda, MT 59711
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