1. Silver Bow County, Montana

It would be impossible to understand the history of Montana without studying Silver Bow County, and its seat, Butte. Named for a stream that flows through the county, and which forms the headwaters of the Clark Fork of the Columbia River, Silver Bow County is number 1 for many reasons. In 1911, one quarter of the population of Montana lived in Butte. In 1934, when the county number system was implemented, Butte was both the largest city in the state and the most powerful community politically speaking.

Silver Bow County Court House

Smallest in area of Montana's fifty-six counties, Silver Bow was largest in population for over fifty years. Men came from all over the world to work in Butte's mines. In 1976. the Butte Silver Bow Bi/Centennial Commission published Butte's Heritage Cookbook, a volume of almost 300 pages containing recipes from the various ethnic and national groups living in Butte. Twenty-one different nationalities are included. In her Foreword, Editor Jean McGrath writes:

In 1885, Butte was booming with a population of 22,000, largely foreign-born, the majority of whom were Cornish and Irish immigrants (miners) who had found their way into the camp. Around the turn of the century, when vast migrations of people from Europe seeking freedom and a better way of life arrived in this country, Butte received its share of newcomers. The population swelled to 47,635, with an estimated 50% listed as foreign-born. Also, by then a number of settlers had come west to rebuild their lives and fortunes after the Civil War. In 1918, when the town reached its peak in population, some authorities (unofficially) estimated the number of people in Butte and the surrounding area to be 100,000.

When I was in grad school, one of my fellow students was a woman named Dorothy Gallovich. Her parents grew up in Nebraska, but when they wanted to get married, their families sent them to Butte. It had the closest Serbian Orthodox Church. In the 1950s, when my family lived in Butte, there were seven Methodist churches in town--thanks mainly to the large Cornish and Welsh population of the city.

Butte's heyday is over. Copper mining is not as profitable as it once was, and the deep shaft mines were replaced in the 1950s by the Berkeley Pit, an open pit copper mine that today is one of the largest EPA Superfund cleanup sites in the nation. The Pit ate vast portions of the Butte community, including the towns of Meaderville, East Butte and McQueen. Today it is a tourist site (!) showcasing the devastation of open pit mining with a hole that stretches a mile in length, a half-mile in width, and 1,780 feet in depth. It is filled with a toxic water that contains everything from arsenic to zinc.

The Berkeley Pit

Butte's spirit, however, lives on. Every March 17th the city celebrates St. Patrick's day and corned beef and green beer are the staples of the day's diet. The annual St. Patrick's day parade brings entrants from across the Rocky Mountain West, both from the U.S. and from Canada. In 2008, Butte was the first city west of St. Louis to host the National Folk Festival--an annual event that began in 1934. A community hosts the Festival for three consecutive years. You can read about my experiences with the folk festival in last year's blogs, or read about the 2010 Festival on their official web site.

If you'd care to read more about Butte, John Steinbeck spoke of the city in Travels With Charlie. D.H. Lawrence wrote of the Cornishmen who had left home for Butte, America. And local author Myron Brinig wrote several novels set in Butte, or with a Butte connection, one of which, The Sisters, was made into a movie starring Bette Davis and Errol Flynn.

Sitting on the western slope of the Continental Divide, Silver Bow County rises from a low of 5,000 feet above sea level to a high of over 10,000 feet. Growing season is short to non-existent, and you can expect snow anytime of the year. The 2000 US Census counted 34,606 Silver Bow County residents, but by the 2008 estimate, this number had dropped 5.2% to 32,803. This would make Silver Bow County 8th in population among Montana's counties. The county covers 718 square miles and in 2000 had a population density of 48.2 people per square mile. In 1977, the city of Butte and Silver Bow county consolidated to form Butte-Silver Bow. It is one of two consolidated city/county governments in Montana.

Headframe and Butte Panorama

Photo Information:

Note: Double clicking on any image will open that image in its own window and in a larger format.

Silver Bow County Sign: Taken 3/24/2010. Nikon D80 DSLR, Nikkor 16-85 mm lens set at 45 mm. ISO 125, f /11.0, 1/250 second. Finished in Photoshop CS4.

Silver Bow County Courthouse: Taken 10/3/2009 in Butte, Montana. Nikon D80 DSLR, Nikkor 16-85 lens set at 16mm. ISO 125, f /16.0, 1/125 second. Finished in Photoshop CS4.

Headframe and Butte Panorama: Taken 10/15/2008 in Butte, Montana. Nikon D80 DSLR, Sigma 18-50 lens set at 25 mm. ISO 400, f /11.0, 1/180 second. Finished in Photoshop CS4.

Berkeley Pit: Taken 10/15/2008 in Butte, Montana. Nikon D80 DSLR, Sigma 18-50 lens set at 40 mm. ISO 400, f /8.0, 1/1000 second. Finished in Photoshop CS4.

Mountain View: Taken 10/15/2008 in Butte, Montana. Nikon D80 DSLR, Sigma 18-50 lens set at 42 mm. ISO 400, f /8.0, 1/750 second. Finished in Photoshop CS4.

Looking across the Berkeley Pit at the Rocky Mountains

Welcome to Montana

Montana, Montana,
Glory of the West.
Of all the states from coast to coast
You're easily the best.
Montana, Montana,
Where skies are always blue.
M-O-N-T-A-N-A
Montana, I love you!
--The Montana State Song

In 1946, my parents, who had never been west of Columbus Ohio moved to western Montana, a place they immediately decided was "home." Three years later, I was born, in Billings Deaconess Hospital. I've lived most of my life in the Treasure State, a place I dearly love. In the late 1980s, I was traveling through Judith Basin County, in the central part of the state, and saw the county court house in Stanford. I was impressed that such a sparsely populated place could afford to build such a fine structure, and I began noticing other court houses as I traveled. All the court houses I found were impressive in their own way, and I began thinking of creating a coffee-table book of the fifty-six county court houses in Montana. My dream was to have this finished in time for the statehood centennial in 1989, but I had neither the time nor the money to pursue that dream. Now, twenty-one years later, I have completed my photographic survey of the state's court houses, and it is my great pleasure to share them with you.

Montana's State Capitol, Helena

Recently I read that there are 12,000 miles of highway within Montana's borders. I can't say that I've covered all 12,000, but were I a betting man, I'd wager that I've now seen more of Montana than most people--more than even most Montanans. There are four highways and one Amtrak line that cross the state from east to west. * I've seen the state from all five, and there are very few miles on any of them that I haven't traversed. The same is true of the five federal highways that cross the state north to south, and beyond these are the numerous state highways and secondary roads, and more than a few dirt roads. I feel like the guy in the song who sings "I've been everywhere, man!"

Montana is a large state, 4th in area after Alaska, Texas, and California. It is as far from the Idaho state line on I-90 to the North Dakota state line (on I-94) as it is from Washington DC to Chicago (695 miles across Montana, as opposed to 700 miles DC to Chicago). In the western part of the state, cities are roughly 100 miles apart. In the eastern part of the state, towns can be that distant. You see a lot of country side when you drive across Montana.

Bitterroot (Lewisia Rediviva), Montana's State Flower

As I worked on the court house project, I began to question our civic involvement. It becomes obvious, as we look at most of these buildings, that the people responsible for building them believed in government. They were proud of their local government, and wanted to show their pride in what has been called an "edifice complex." I wonder where and when we lost that civic pride? These days it seems that we hear over and over that government is the problem. I don't believe that the people who built these magnificent buildings felt that way, and I fear we have lost something crucial in our national psyche.

The Big Sky, Rosebud County

Finally, I came to feel that I wanted to do more than just showcase the buildings. What follows will be a photo essay on Montana's fifty-six counties. There will be one blog post/chapter per county, and I have arranged them using the Montana county numbering system. In 1934, Montana developed the system it still uses for license plates. Each county has its own number, and while you will hear that these numbers are based on the 1930 census, I don't believe that's fully accurate. For example, Lincoln County, which holds number 56 out of 56, was not the most recently created county and was never the smallest county in population. Today, in fact, if the numbers were redistributed according to current population, Lincoln County would be in 10th place. What I consider a more likely explanation is that the county number reflects the political influence a county had in the 1934 legislature.

Saint Mary Lake, Glacier National Park

When I was growing up, Montana school children memorized the county numbers, usually learning both the county name and the name of its seat. Adults carried business cards that had the county numbers printed on the back. When you saw a car on the highway with a number 1 license, you knew that car came from Butte, or at least from Silver Bow County. If it had a 49, it was from Livingston, or Park County. As I noted above, Montana still uses the county number system, but with the increasing popularity of vanity or affinity plates, neither of which shows a county number, I wonder if children still memorize them.

If you'd care to come along, you're welcome. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the view out the window. If you feel yourself getting carsick, feel free to take a break or even get off the bus entirely. It's your choice.

Montana Factoids

Population (2008) - 967,440
Size - 145,556 sq mi.
Capital - Helena
Largest City - Billings
Highest Elevation - 12,850 ft
Lowest Elevation - 1,800 ft
Annual Rainfall - 14.89 in.
State Flower - Bitter Root
State Bird - Western Meadow Lark
State Song - "Montana"

Entered Union November 8, 1889, the 41st State

Montana's County Numbers with County Seat
and number if based on 2008 population estimates

1. Silver Bow County, Butte, 8
   
2. Cascade County, Great Falls, 5
   
3. Yellowstone County, Billings, 1
   
4. Missoula County, Missoula, 2
   
5. Lewis & Clark County, Helena, 6
   
6. Gallatin County, Bozeman, 3
   
7. Flathead County, Kalispell, 4
   
8. Fergus County, Lewistown, 16
   
9. Power River County, Broadus, 47
   
10. Carbon County, Red Lodge, 20
    
11. Phillips County, Malta, 37
    
12. Hill County, Havre, 11
    
13. Ravalli County, Hamilton, 7
    
14. Custer County, Miles City, 17
    
15. Lake County, Polson, 9
    
16. Dawson County, Glendive, 26
    
17. Roosevelt County, Wolf Point, 19
    
18. Beaverhead County, Dillon, 23
    
19. Chouteau County, Fort Benton, 33
    
20. Valley County, Glasgow, 29
    
21. Toole County, Shelby, 34
    
22. Big Horn County, Hardin, 14
    
23. Musselshell County, Roundup, 36
    
24. Blaine County, Chinook, 30
    
25. Madison County, Virginia City, 27
    
26. Pondera County, Conrad, 32
    
27. Richland County, Sidney, 21
    
28. Powell County, Deer Lodge, 28
    
29. Rosebud County, Forsyth, 22
    
30. Deer Lodge County, Anaconda, 24
    
31. Teton County, Choteau, 31
    
32. Stillwater County, Columbus, 25
    
33. Treasure County, Hysham, 55
    
34. Sheridan County, Plentywood, 40
    
35. Sanders County, Thompson Falls, 18
    
36. Judith Basin County, Stanford, 43
    
37. Daniels County, Scobey, 49
    
38. Glacier County, Cut Bank, 13
    
39. Fallon County, Baker, 42
    
40. Sweet Grass County, Big Timber, 39
    
41. McCone County, Circle, 48
    
42. Carter County, Ekalaka, 50
    
43. Broadwater County, Townsend, 35
    
44. Wheatland County, Harlowtown, 44
    
45. Prairie County, Terry, 53
    
46. Granite County, Philipsburg, 41
    
47. Meagher County, White Sulphur Springs, 45
    
48. Liberty County, Chester, 46
    
49. Park County, Livingston, 12
    
50. Garfield County, Jordan, 51
    
51. Jefferson County, Boulder, 15
    
52. Wibaux County, Wibaux, 54
    
53. Golden Valley County, Ryegate, 52
    
54. Mineral County, Superior, 38
    
55. Petroleum County, Winnett, 6
    
56. Lincoln County, Libby, 10
    

*The east/west highways that cross the state from the southern most to the northern line: US 10 (now replaced by Interstates 90 and 94); US 12; Montana State 200; US 2. Amtrak follows US 2 for most of the way across the state.

The north/south highways starting in the west: US 93, US 91 (now replaced by Interstate 15), US 89--the Montana Centennial Highway which connects Yellowstone National Park in the south and Glacier National Park in the north; US 87, Montana State 3, Montana State 59.

Photo Information

Welcome to Montana Sign: Taken 3/28/2010, Lolo Pass, Montana, Nikon D80 DSLR, Nikkor 16-85 mm wide angle/tele/zoom lens set at 35 mm. ISO 800, f /16.0, 1/180 second.

Montana Capitol Building: Taken 9/8/2007, Helena, Montana, Nikon D80 DSLR, Sigma 18-50 mm tele/zoom lens set at 33 mm. ISO 125, f /6.7, 1/250 second.

Bitterroot Photo: Taken 6/22/2007, Missoula, Montana, Nikon D80 DSLR, Sigma 18-50 mm tele/zoom lens set at 38mm, ISO 200, f /8.0, 1/400 second, 8:11 am

Prairie Photo: Taken 9/10/2007 in Rosebud County, Montana. Nikon D80 DSLR, Sigma 18-50 mm tele/zoom lens set at 50 mm. ISO 125, f /6.7, 1/500 second.

St. Mary Lake: Taken 8/30/2009 in Glacier National Park, Montana. Nikon D80 DSLR, Sigma 18-50 mm tele/zoom lens set at 18 mm. ISO 125, f/5.6. HDR Composite Image processed in Photoshop CS4.

We Wish You a Merry Christmas!

Rattlesnake Creek in January
Taken 1/3/09 in Missoula, Montana

Looking back at the year 2009, I can only say that it's been a strange and sometimes wild ride. I started my new job on December 1st, 2008, so there was no time for any holiday outings either last Christmas or New Years.

The beginning of January I was able to get Kevin out on cross-country skis. We headed up Spring Gulch at the trailhead to the Rattlesnake Wilderness Area, just a few miles from home. Kevin never quite got the technique required to manage skinny skis with no metal edges. He prefers downhill skiing. I did get a good shot of Rattlesnake Creek with its banks covered with snow. One of the few photos I'm proud of from 2009. I'm sorry to say that was the only ski trip I took all winter.

Mid January found me taking my first (and so far only) business trip out-of-state. My boss, a co-worker and I flew from Missoula to San José California, then rented a car to drive on to Monterey where we had meetings with the staff at the Defense Language Institute. That trip got off to a rocky start when our plane was unable to land in Seattle, but flew on to Portland instead, which really messed up our connections. Still, we made it to Monterey and had a good time there. I'd driven through Monterey before--years and years before--but had never spent a night there, so we were able to do a bit of sightseeing and wonderful eating while in the area. Our hotel was just at the end of Cannery Row, so I had to reread Steinbeck before the trip. It was worth it.

Toward the very end of January, Kevin stopped by my office with bad news. My former partner, Gary Pitts, had moved to Denver in May, 2008, looking for a more urban experience and higher pay. Apparently Denver was not the promised land, and in late January, Gary committed suicide. He had taken our twelve-year-old diabetic dog Rocky with him, and while there was nothing more I could do for Gary, I could do something for Rocky who was now in the hands of Denver Animal Control. Having secured their agreement to release the fellow to my care, Kevin and I headed out, driving to Denver and back in one long weekend. Along the way we stayed overnight with a good friend in Big Timber, Montana, and once in Denver we stayed with Gary's best friend from New Orleans days, Miss Lurline, AKA Terry Hurley and his partner Al. When we picked Rocky up, I wasn't sure he'd make the trip home alive. He was in pretty rough shape. Who knows how long he'd been alone in Gary's apartment before Animal Control rescued him, and while Rocky wears a tag noting that he is diabetic, Gary hadn't left any instructions as to how much insulin he needed. I'm happy to say that eleven months later, Rocky is doing fine, has a thick black shiny coat and a great disposition.

Spring came and went with no high spots, and thankfully no more low spots, and eventually Summer arrived. The one major change in our lives was the addition of yet another rescue. A friend had found a male MinPin running loose in an industrial area, tried unsuccessfully to find an owner, and asked if we would take care of him while she advertised a "found dog." We readily agreed, and Major, as we named him, became part of our family, albeit one we had to watch constantly as his preferred activity was to run away.

We made a few trips up to the cabin, but never spent the night there, and didn't take the camper out for any overnights either. In August we did have a visit from my old Berkeley friend Sandy Stedinger and her husband Jon. They had been camping in Glacier National Park, and Sandy was able to spend an additional week with Kevin and me while Jon flew home to San Diego. Sandy and I put the canoe in the Bitterroot and floated from Lolo to Maclay Flats one afternoon. That was the only time I had the canoe in the water all year.

Canoeing the Bitterroot River
August, 2009

In September, I got to drive a University van and took a delegation of five academics from VietNam to Glacier National Park. We had good weather for the whole day, a seventeen hour drive that took us to Holland Lake, Hungry Horse Reservoir, lunch at the Isaac Walton Inn in Essex, East Glacier, then up and over the Going-to-the-Sun highway across the center of Glacier Park. Four of the five VietNamese were from Can Tho University in the Mekong Delta. They were studying the effects of climate change--a field of study that is vital as the Mekong is disappearing as the waters rise.

Two Medicine Lake, Glacier National Park
Taken August 30, 2009

By early October, I was climbing the walls and Kevin insisted that I had to take some time off work for some R&R. With that encouragement, I agreed, and we put all four dogs in the truck and took off for Mount Rushmore. Kevin had never been to that presidential site, and I'm always up for a road trip, so why not. I've written up the first five days of that trip in my blog, and will eventually post the final day, but long story short, early October 2009 was the wrong time to take a vacation--at least in the frozen northland. I've taken to calling the trip "The 2000 Mile Sunday Drive," but a Sunday Drive should never include rain, snow, blizzards and wind, wind and more wind. Especially when you're driving a 3/4 ton, four-wheel drive pickup loaded with a 3,000 pound camper. We got about 7 miles to the gallon on the trip and saw more snow covered roads than I care to see in a one-week period. The storms covered Wyoming, and my first (and so far only) view of Devil's Tower was of a huge pillar reaching up into the low-hanging clouds. Fortunately, by the time we reached Rapid City, the snow had stopped falling and Mount Rushmore was glorious with bright blue sky and white ground.

Part of my rationale for the trip was that it would allow me to continue collecting photographs of the 56 county court houses in Montana, and I insisted that our route would have to include the few Montana counties I had never visited. By the time we got home, just in time for record cold temperatures (near zero in mid October), I could say that I have now been in all of Montana's counties, and I have photographs of the Court Houses from about 2/3s of them. Major got away from us three times during the trip--he almost got to find himself a new home in Cody, Wyoming--but all six of us returned safely to Missoula. (Thank you, Kevin, for all that driving.)

Black Roses on my Birthday Cake
Taken 10/17/09 in Missoula, Montana

Just after returning from the trip, I turned 60. Hard to believe I'm that old--but I'm not sure what 60 is supposed to feel like. I think I'm much younger than my father was at 60, but I never talked about age with him, so who knows. And speaking of birthdays, today, Christmas Eve, Kevin turns 55. Just a kid--a kid who got stuck with having a birthday the day before Christmas.

The Missoula Gay Men's Chorus presented our fifth annual Christmas Cabaret in early December, and I sang bass as usual. This year I did not sing any solo, but enjoyed the camaraderie of my fellow choristers and the response of the full house. This was our most traditional concert in ten years of singing together, and also, I feel, our best performance. I wish you all could have been there.

This Christmas finds us spending a quiet time at home, just the six of us. We wish you and yours a most joyful Christmas, fully keeping in mind the reason for the season. We ask you to join us in prayers for Peace on Earth, and for the safety of our soldiers and the people of Iraq and Afghanistan. Finally, may 2010 bring you happiness, health and a truly wonder-filled year.

Love, laughter, hugs and kisses.

From our home to yours
Rocky, Bryan, Gypsy, Minnie, Kevin, Major
Taken 12/24/09 in Missoula, Montana

Shameless Self Promotion

Umpqua River Light House
Taken from Pacific Coast Lighthouses Calendar

Hark the Herald Tribune sings
Advertising wondrous things!
God rest ye merry merchants
May you make the Yuletide pay!
Angels we have heard on high
Tell us to go out and buy!
--Tom Lehrer

To hear Tom Lehrer sing "A Christmas Carol," click here.

Note please that clicking on any image will open a full-screen view of that image in a new window, and clicking on any link will open a new window.

I warned those of my readers on my e-mail list that the next installment of this blog would be a piece of shameless self promotion. So you have no one to blame but yourself.

As many of you know, I am a member of the Red Bubble art group on-line. Red Bubble is a site where artists upload their work and make it available in various formats for sale. You can upload scanned drawings, paintings, photographs, digital art, writing, and can produce t-shirts and calendars for sale to the masses. I have been involved in the photo/digital art end for about six months now. There is a link on the right side of my blog that shows my most recent work from Red Bubble.

Coquille River Light House
Taken from the Coastal Views Calendar

While I have not produced any Christmas cards (but there are several of my pieces that would make lovely cards), I have put together five (at this point) calendars which could make wonderful Christmas gifts--see that's the shameless part. I have personally ordered three of these calendars and can attest to the professional quality of the finished product. I'm not talking about the imagery, I'm prejudiced there, but I have had calendars made up in the past and was not happy with the way my images were reproduced. That is not the case with Red Bubble. This is top-notch work that anyone would be proud to have hanging on their wall.

Rattlesnake Creek in January
Taken from the Heart of Montana Calendar

The five calendars are:

Heart of Montana--12 views from around the Treasure State

Coastal Views--12 images from the southern Oregon and northern California coast

Pacific Coast Lighthouses--most of the lighthouses on the Pacific Coast from Yaquina Head at Newport Oregon to Point Arena in Mendocino County, California.

Flowers, Wild and Tame--which should be self-explanatory

and Welcome to Port Orford--13 scenes taken in or near the town of Port Orford, Oregon

Boats docked at Port Orford, Oregon
Taken from the Welcome to Port Orford Calendar

You can check out any and all of these calendars at my Red Bubble site, www.redbubble.com/people/mtbearded1 and who knows, maybe you'll find a card or even a framed photograph that you just can't live without.

The work is produced when ordered, so there is a time lag--but Red Bubble assures us that anything ordered by December 13th will be delivered in time for Christmas.

There, that wasn't so bad, was it?

Hugs, and watch this site for my annual Christmas Letter--coming up next.

Appleblossom Time
From the Flowers, Wild and Tame Calendar

The Two Thousand Mile Sunday Drive--Day Five

The Scobey United Methodist Church
Scobey, Montana

Away out here they have a name for rain and wind and fire.
The rain is Tess, the fire's Joe and they call the wind Mariah.

Mariah blows the stars around and sets the clouds a-flyin'.
Mariah makes the mountains sound like folks was out there dyin'.

--Lyrics by Alan Jaye Lerner, Music by Frederick Loewe

To see and hear Harve Presnell sing They Call The Wind Mariah, click here.

This is the day I filled in my county map for Montana--that is, there are fifty-six counties in Montana, and by the time we parked the truck for the night, I could say that I've now visited all fifty-six. Admittedly, the last time I was in Prairie County I was seven or eight years old, but I've been in all the rest as an adult.

After a mediocre breakfast in the Beach North Dakota truck stop where we'd parked for the night, we headed west on I-94 into Montana and Wibaux County. For those of you who don't speak French, Wibaux is pronounced Wee-bow. When I was a child, and I don't remember the exact year but sometime between being six and ten, my father served as interim pastor of the Wibaux Methodist Church. I don't remember how many times we made the 500 mile round trip, but we'd leave Billings, drive 250 miles or so to Wibaux, dad would preach, then we'd drive back to Billings. And in those days, we didn't have I-94 connecting the two communities. It was US 10 back in those days, and you drove through every tiny town along the way. This trip, when we stopped in Wibaux for me to shoot the Court House, I had to find the church as well. Fortunately, it was just on the corner, less than a block away from the modern (1950s) building serving as the county's administrative center. The church is a much older building, and looks exactly like I'd expect a rural Methodist church to look. Wibaux County, by the way, is number 52 on Montana license plates.

Wibaux United Methodist Church
Taken 10/7/09 in Wibaux, Montana

Leaving Wibaux, we drove west on I-94 to Glendive, seat of Dawson County (number 16 on Montana license plates). Glendive is also the home of Dawson Community College, one of three non-tribal community colleges in the state. We quickly found the Court House, which I shot, then were back on the road. I tried to get Kevin to continue west to Terry, seat of Prairie County, then north to Circle (McCone County--numbers 45 and 41, respectively), but he insisted that would take us way too far out of the way to get anywhere closer to home by nightfall. Instead he headed the beast north on Montana Highway 16, parallelling the Yellowstone River, until we crossed into Richland County (number 27).

Kevin is a fourth generation Montanan, and while his mother's family is from the Bitterroot Valley south of Missoula, his father was born in Savage--a small town on the Yellowstone, near the North Dakota state line and the first town you come to in Richland County. I believe Kevin still has family in Savage, but we didn't stop to look for relatives. Instead, we continued north on 16 to Sidney, Richland's County Seat.

Looking East toward the Yellowstone River and North Dakota
Who says Eastern Montana is flat?
Taken from Montana Highway 16 in Richland County

Sidney is a prosperous looking town, quite in keeping with the county's name, and indeed the 80s and 90s were good to the area. Petroleum prospecting put a lot of money in the pockets of citizens and government alike, but when the prospecting ended, so did the money flow. We drove by a huge new construction site--the future home of the Richland County Judicial Center--read "county jail," but when we stopped for gas, the station owner told us that last year's gas prices pretty much put him out of business. The remote location and small business volume meant that regular was over $5.00 a gallon, which in turn meant that the good folk of Richland County parked their pickup trucks and stayed home. Gas had now come down in price, below $3.00, but still the highest we'd seen on the road, and since we were getting only seven miles per gallon, we were seeing a lot of gas pumps.

North of Sidney we crossed into Roosevelt County, a long, slim county on the north bank of the Missouri River and home of the Fort Peck Indian Reservation (home to various bands of the Assiniboine and Sioux nations). We were bound north, however, and soon crossed into Sheridan County (number 34), Montana's northeastern corner.

Passing the towns of Culbertson, Froid (both in Roosevelt County), Medicine Lake and Antelope, we arrived in Plentywood, the County Seat in time to get some good shots of the extremely official looking Sheridan County Court House, and then let the kids out for a walk and potty break. Plentywood was also a good spot to stop for lunch, and we ended up at a mom and pop burger place where our waitress was overjoyed to tell us all about her trip to hear some country singer. I know I should remember just which one gave the concert she loved, but frankly, they all look (and sound) alike to me. Maybe Kevin can tell you if you're interested.

The next county west of Sheridan is Daniels County, a place that has some personal importance to me. When my father was recruited to come west back in 1946, the first church he was offered was the Methodist Church in Scobey, Montana. My parents had never been west of Columbus, Ohio, and so they asked about Scobey. When told it was out on the northern plains, near both the Canadian and North Dakota borders, they asked if there was anywhere else available. As it turned out, Stevensville in the Bitterroot Valley was also open, and my parents jumped at Stevensville. I'll always wonder what my life would have been like had only Scobey been open.

Daniels County (number 37) seems much more rural and much poorer than its eastern neighbor--although neither county could be considered rich or urban. Scobey just presents an air of genteel poverty that we didn't see in Plentywood. The Court House is the kind of white-clapboard construction I would have expected to find almost everywhere in Montana, had I not started out on my 56 Court House project.

As the sign says, it's the "Daniels County Court House."
Taken in Scobey, Montana

OK, this really looks like the Old West to me. I was surprised not to see cowboys riding horses down Main Street. Oh and by the way, the Methodist Church is just around the corner. I love the Bitterroot Valley and my land west of Stevensville. It's always felt like my hometown. My parents were good at making most places they lived feel like home, but I just cannot imagine either of them happy in Scobey. But then, I spent at most an hour in the town--and I have to admit I was prejudiced against it from the start. It's the place I was not born, not conceived. The place my parents said "No" to back before I was born.

Leaving Scobey, we drove almost due south until we crossed into the Fort Peck Reservation then back into Roosevelt County (number 17). When we reached US Highway 2, we turned west and drove into Wolf Point, the Seat of Roosevelt County. I was beginning to catch on to Kevin's trick for finding court houses -- look for the radio antennae -- and we had no trouble finding this government building. I was shocked at the amount of fire damage we saw around town--and judging by the yellow tape we saw, I'd guess that we were looking at arson scenes. Then again, it could just be a symptom of poverty, alcohol abuse, and bad luck. Who's to say. The Court House was well-kept, however, and the grounds were green and well tended.

Roosevelt County Court House
Note the Antenna on the right side of the building
Taken in Wolf Point, Montana

Back on Highway 2, we continued west into Valley County (number 20) where I shot the Court House in the County Seat of Glasgow (Go Scotties!) then further west into Phillips County (number 11) where we parked the beast in an RV park in the County Seat of Malta. The park had wireless internet service, and I was able to get some work done there, but I was playing catch up and didn't succeed in getting everything done. That's why, two months later, you're just reading about our day fighting the wind in the northeastern corner of Montana.

On Day 6, we completed our circle and got home safely--just in time for record cold temperatures and snow. But I'll write about that some other time.

At the top of the page, for the record, is what the Scobey United Methodist Church looks like today. Back in 1946, it was a parish to itself. These days it's yoked to two other churches, the United Methodist Churches in Plentywood and Redstone--a small town halfway between Scobey and Plentywood. Yoked means that the three churches are served by one minister who splits his (or in this case, her) time between the three.

One last note--the wind never stopped blowing. You can get a taste of the weather we experienced by looking at the sky in each of the five photos.

The Two Thousand Mile Sunday Drive--Day Four

Look at that face -
Just look at it,
Look at that fabulous face of yours.
I knew first look I took at it,
This was the face that the world adores.

Look at those eyes -
As wise and as deep as the sea.
Look at that nose -
It shows what a nose should be.

--Leslie Bricusse & Anthony Newley

To hear Barbara Streisand sing a portion of "Look at that Face," click here.

After breakfast at the Hotel, we loaded up the kids and headed east on I-90 toward Rapid City. Rapid City calls itself the Presidential City and has statues of various US presidents on almost every downtown corner. Of course this is based on its proximity to Mount Rushmore. A brief visit to Best Buy allowed me to buy a charger for my Nikon's battery (with adaptable plates to accept virtually every battery Nikon has ever put in a digital camera). We didn't spend any extra time visiting the city, however, as we really wanted to get to Rushmore. The news report on the previous evening had noted that because of the storms we had driven through, the monument was closed to the public on Monday. Tuesday's sky was bright and clear without a single cloud visible, so we were hoping that we'd be able to see the carved granite up close and personal.

There is so much traffic between Rapid City and Rushmore, that most of the way is a divided four-lane road. The last few miles, however, are two lane leading to a parking area where we had to pay $10 to park the beast. Our Golden Eagle pass was no help as there is no admission fee, per se, just a fee to park in a privately owned facility. Of course we really didn't need to park and walk. The mountain and its carving is visible for quite a ways. But the newly constructed viewing area was interesting in its own right--not only for the fact that the approach to the mountain has been changed. If you look at my photo of the faces, you'll see Washington looking straight out at us, while the other three are at an angle. The view used by the state of South Dakota, however, is more what I remember from previous trips to Rushmore. Washington is facing at an angle and Roosevelt and Jefferson are more "head on." I guess it's just another example of nothing being permanent but change.

Taken 10/6/09 at Mount Rushmore, South Dakota

After a respectful amount of time out in the cold air, we climbed back in the truck and drove on through the Black Hills, up hill and down, past lots of different tourist traps, as my father would have called them. At Pactola Lake, we stopped to let the critters do their business, and once again, Major got away from us. While I tried to head him off, dragging three other dogs with me, Kevin ran after him and was soon able to grab him.

Lake Pactola, South Dakota
Taken 10/6/09

Back in the truck, we drove on to Deadwood, which, while having many interesting historical buildings, looks nothing like the town in the tv show. While Kevin dropped some money on a blackjack table at Cadillac Jack's Casino, I walked around town getting a few photos.

From Deadwood we headed back to Spearfish, this time driving north on US 85 to Belle Fourche where we stopped for lunch. I told Kevin not to have any dessert, as there were great milkshakes waiting for us at Crow Buttes. I did ask our waitress if the general store at that particular wide spot in the road still served shakes, but she didn't know what I was talking about. She must not ever drive north from Belle Fourche because right at the north end of town was a billboard advertising the Crow Buttes Mercantile.

Belle Fourche (pronounced Foosh, btw), is the eastern end of a cattle trail out of southern Montana. The story of the area was told in a 1972 John Wayne movie, The Cowboys, as Kevin and our restaurant menu told me. It is also the town closest to the geographical center of the United States--a place I visited two years ago.

A little less than an hour north of town, we crossed the county line from Butte to Harding County and stopped at Crow Buttes. I'm pleased to note that the great milkshake I had two years ago on the 6,000 Mile Sunday Drive was replicated on this trip. The store, its gas pumps, rv hookup sites and living quarters are for sale, should any of you wish to buy a job out in the middle of nowhere.

The Crow Buttes (and US Highway 85)
Harding County, South Dakota
Taken 10/6/09

Crow Buttes is the site of a tragic event in native american history. A sign erected by the Butte County Historical Society tells of a battle in 1822 between the Sioux and the Crow. The Sioux attacked a Crow Camp, and when the Crow men fled to the hills to gain a better vantage point, the Sioux raped the Crow women. The Crow men, having no water, died of thirst on the hills which the Sioux had encircled. Karma being what it is, the Sioux attackers died of a fever they contracted from the Crow. Truly a no-win situation.

Harding County is the northwestern most county in South Dakota and we soon passed into Bowman County, North Dakota. North of Bowman, we drove through Slope County--home of both the highest point in North Dakota (at 3600 feet it's just 400 feet higher than the valley floor where we live in Montana) and the smallest county seat in the nation. Amidon has an official population of 26 and the largest building in this village is, indeed, the Court House.

OK, It's not the Devil's Tower, but perhaps his bunion?
Taken 10/6/09 in Slope County North Dakota

We hit I-94 just west of Dickinson, and started our trip back to Montana stopping for the night at mile 1, Beach North Dakota, where, true to his vocation, Kevin parked the Beast between several larger rigs at the Flying J truck stop. We've now spent four days on the road and have stayed overnight in four different states. Tomorrow we're back in Montana. Stay tuned.

The Two Thousand Mile Sunday Drive--Day Three

The Big Horn County Court House
Taken 10/5/09 in Basin, Wyoming

Monday Monday, can't trust that day,
Monday Monday, sometimes it just turns out that way
Oh Monday morning, you gave me no warning of what was to be
Oh Monday Monday, how yould cou leave and not take me.

--John Phillips

To hear the Mamas and the Papas sing "Monday, Monday," click here.

First, a disclaimer. None of the pictures I'm sharing today will ever win any awards. They're here just to show you what kind of weather we had.

Just as Saturday and Sunday, Monday got off to a late start. Not because we loved camping in the WalMart parking lot, heaven forfend. As I noted at the end of Day Two's blog, the snow really began coming down. Every time we got out to let the dogs out, there was no evidence that we'd been out earlier--our tracks were completely filled in.

As we exercised the dogs one last time before taking to the road, Major, our newest, got free from his lead and took off. I should mention that the reason we have Major in the first place is that a friend found him running loose in an industrial parking lot and scooped him up--leaving him with us until his true owners could be located. That was several months ago now, and we consider Major our dog. But he does like to run and once he starts, he just has to go. He will not come when called. We had just about decided that Cody would be his new home, when we caught sight of him by a coffee shop across the highway from WalMart. By this time, he was very happy to get back in the truck.

We had asked several people what would be the best route from Cody to Gillette. Neither of us had driven these roads before, although as a child I'd ridden many times as my father drove from Cody to Powell and back to the Billings area. There were three options for our east bound journey: US 14 through Sheridan, US 16 through Buffalo, and there were two ways to get to Buffalo--to Greybull and then along the Bighorn River or through Meeteetse. Both roads meet at Worland, then US 16 continues east.

No one had a good answer for us, although most counseled that given the weather, the road to Sheridan would be difficult. No one told us that Powder River Pass on US 16 is almost 10,000 feet.

Ever on the quest to capture court houses, I prevailed on Kevin to try the Greybull to Worland route. The snow continued to fall intermittently as we headed east, but it was calm in Greybull when we stopped to ask where the Bighorn County Court House could be found. The man we asked answered that the court house was another eight miles down the road in the next town, Basin. Greybull was not the county seat.

The previous evening, I had captured the Park County (Wyoming) Court House, a much more stately edifice than the Park County (Montana) complex. And on Monday I was able to get the Bighorn County (Wyoming) Court House and the Washakie County Court House as well. I also shot this rose on the grounds of the Washakie County C.H. in Worland. I'm sure it wasn't quite ready for winter either.

Rose on the grounds of the Washakie County Court House
Taken 10/5/09 in Worland, Wyoming

East of Worland lies the oddly named town of Ten Sleep. I have heard of Ten Sleep for many years, but I'd never been through the town, nor had I any clue about the origin of its name. For a moment I pondered if it might be from some pioneer Dutch family, but no, apparently it refers to the route the Sioux took from the Platte River to southern Montana, and Ten Sleep was ten nights north of the Platte. Immediately after leaving Ten Sleep, the road began to climb, and we passed a sign saying that if the lights were flashing, the road would be closed seven miles ahead.

The lights were not flashing, so we drove on, passing numerous signs warning of impending road closure--but the lights were never flashing. Actually, we passed so many such signs all the way across Wyoming that we decided closed highways were a regular part of Wyoming life.

Scenery (such as it was) east of Ten Sleep, Wyoming
Taken 10/5/09

I have no idea how many miles we drove from Ten Sleep through what has to be some absolutely stunning scenery. Unfortunately, the snow was falling so thick and fast that we could barely see any of it. We will have to return sometime when the weather is more clement. What I do know is that the road continued to climb before us. We drove so long climbing the steep grade, that I began to doubt the existence of a summit or pass. We would just climb forever. And though it certainly felt that way, eventually we did reach Powder River Pass (9,666 feet), having climbed over 5,000 feet from Ten Sleep. From here it was all downhill.

I'd like to say the weather got better, but that would be a lie. I remain grateful for Kevin's skill and patience. I would have been in a panic trying to get our heavy rig up and over in those conditions. When we finally reached the bottom of the pass and drove into Buffalo, we found a city almost paralyzed by the snow. Broken tree limbs were everywhere, and the McDonalds, where we stopped to eat after not being able to get gas at Cenex ("Sorry, our pumps aren't working.") was not able to accept credit or debit cards. The heavy snow had played havoc with the computer connections around the town. For some undoubtedly unrelated reason, the ice cream machine wasn't working either.

Kevin's view of the road, US Highway 16
Taken 10/5/09 in Central Wyoming

At Douglas we picked up Interstate 90 again, and continued east toward Gillette, Sundance, and eventually Rapid City South Dakota. We continued to pass signs warning that the road could be closed, but it wasn't. Kevin drove through snow, drizzle and low clouds, but he continued on bravely through the weather. At Moorcroft, we left I-90 for US 14 headed toward Devil's Tower. I've never been near enough to the monument to actually see it, and I kept wondering if Richard Dreyfus would suddenly appear on his way to a close encounter. What can I say, the Tower is impressive, rising vertically from the rather level ground around it. Unfortunately, it was impressive but only half visible. We have to do this trip during good weather sometime.

Back to I-90 at Sundance, on past Beulah with its signs warning that this was our last chance to get low-priced Wyoming gas, and cross the border into South Dakota. Should you ever take this route, be forewarned. Gas in South Dakota is at least twenty cents less than gas in Wyoming. Also a word of warning--the price shown on signs in South Dakota is for Plus or mid grade, not regular. Regular is usually about ten cents a gallon more than Plus. As it turns out, Plus is 10% ethanol, and the good people of South Dakota want to make sure that their corn farmers are adequately employed.

Kevin insisted that tonight we would stay in a motel--good thing since none of the campgrounds we tried were open. Super 8 in Spearfish gladly took us, our four dogs and our money, and gave us a room with two beds, a shower, a hot breakfast the next day and a hot tub--well the latter was not in our room. We had to run to K-Mart and get end of season close-out swim trunks at 2.99 each. Running the dogs around the hotel in the middle of the night was the only reason to get out of bed. We both slept well.

To be continued....

Devil's Tower
Pretty impressive even under these conditions
Taken 10/5/09