Bannack, Montana

BANNACK, MONTANA

Recently we visited Bannack, Montana with Patrick. 

Click here for more on our trip to Montana. 

Gold was found in this area in 1862. 

This precipitated the first major gold rush in what later became Montana. 

“Bannack was founded in 1862 when John White discovered gold on Grasshopper Creek. As news of the gold strike spread many prospectors and businessmen rushed to Bannack hoping to strike it rich. In 1864, Bannack was named as the first Territorial Capital of Montana. Remaining in Bannack for only a short time, the Capital moved on to Virginia City. In 1863 gold had been discovered near Virginia City and at that time many prospectors left Bannack in hopes of finding the mother lode in Virginia City. However, some people stayed in Bannack and explored the use of further mining techniques. From the late 1860's to the 1930's, Bannack continued as a mining town with a fluctuating population. By the 1950's gold workings had dwindled and most folks had moved on. At that point the State of Montana declared Bannack a State Park. Today, over sixty structures remain standing, most of which can be explored.”  (Bannack State Park) The last residents left Bannack in the 1970s. 

The courthouse was later used as a hotel.

 Courthouse/hotel stairs

I was impressed with the decorative touches in many of these humble 

homes. See the vinyl border on the bookshelf. 

Methodist Church - the only church in town.

The jails. Notice the sod and grass on top of the building to the left. 

This construction technique was often used for roofs in the town. 

When it rained, the mud would drip down through the ceilings made of 

wood slats. 

This two seater outhouse has a lightbulb socket & "modern" toilet seat.

Masonic Lodge on the top floor - the Lodge is still active

School on the bottom floor - the school isn't

Joe & Patrick

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For more information on Bannack check here and here.

See previous post for location of Bannack in relation to where David, Carol & 

Patrick live. 

Great pictures here and here (be sure to click on the link towards the bottom 

of the pages so you can see all the pictures).

Visit With Montana Family

Our goal was to see David, Carol, and Patrick at least one more time before the snow starts. Between Seattle and Missoula there are four major mountain passes that can get tricky when the snow falls and blows. 

David & Carol in Missoula

Dinner at the Silk Road and dessert at the Big Dipper

Carol, David & Joe

David, Joe & Julia

Patrick lives in Polaris, Montana, about 3 hours south of Missoula. Polaris is in the middle of the Beaverhead National Forest. 

Missoula is in the upper left corner of this map.

A = Polaris    B = Jackson    C = Wisdom   D = Wise River

E = Dillion (nearest town with grocery et al)

F = Bannack (see post here)

Exploring the countryside around Polaris we encountered cows and deer on the roads and saw antelope in the fields with the cows and horses. We enjoyed stopping at all the historical markers to learn what happened in this part of the country. Lewis and Clark traveled through this area.

Patrick & Smeagol

We took the Pioneer Mountains Scenic Byway from Polaris north to Wise River. On the map at the beginning of this post it's from A to D. There is a road there but Google wouldn't let me map that road. 

Cars share the road with cattle. 

Beaverslides - You've probably seen a variety of hay baling techniques - big round bales or rectangular bales of various sizes. But have you ever seen the beaverslide method of stacking loose hay? The beaverslide was developed in this part of Montana about 1910. The resulting haystacks look like giant loaves of bread.  Patrick remembers seeing the stacks all over this area when he was first here years and years ago. Now most farmers have gone to round or rectangular baling techniques.

Check out these videos to see how the process works.

Beaverslide - loose haying with horse drawn equipment

Beaverslide - loose haying with tractor & truck

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See post here for our trip to Bannack, a ghost town. 

Reflections On Being A Redhead

Every once in a while redheads make the news. A recent article caused me to reflect on my life as a redhead. 

My father William and his two brothers, Richard and David, were redheads. Their father, Caryl, and one of his two brothers had red hair. We don't know about hair color in the earlier generations, so we're not sure where the red hair came from. 

All redheads

 1957  Melissa, David, Dick, Bill, Jane

Tom, Susan

Jan

All three of Dick's and Connie's children have red hair. All four of Bill's and Mary's children have red hair. David's and Dorothy's three children emerged with brown hair. There are two redheads among Bill's, Dick's, and David's 10 grandchildren.  The next generation is still arriving, 12 so far - a few of them have red hair. 

As far as I remember we were the only family of redheads in London, Ohio. I do remember one other person with red hair. After reading quite a few articles to prepare this post, I think his red hair was a form of albinism in people of African descent.

1952 or 1953 -  Bill, Jan, Mary, Susan, Julia & Tom 

In junior high I did a genetics project for the science fair. I bred mice  (kept in metal bins on the kitchen counter - thank you Mom) to demonstrate Mendel's law of genetics. Then I charted our family to show how a recessive gene, red hair, had apparently become dominant, at least for a few generations. 

With our red hair - Did we get teased? Yes, but most people get teased about something. 

Do we have freckles? Yes, some of us more than others. Through the years I've remarked that the only way I'd get a tan would be for my freckles to run together. I've just learned that the medical term for freckles is ephelides.  Along with freckles I now have age spots. These are related to a history of sun exposure. Freckles and age spots - lucky me!

Do we sunburn? You bet we did and still do! Mom spent summers with us at the pool. Her beautiful tan was never matched by her lobster red, sunburned children. Some of us remember contests to see who could peel off the largest piece of blistered, sunburned skin.  The smell and feel of Noxzema on a sunburn are vivid summer memories. Digression - According to this article in Advertising Age, Noxzema was developed as a sunburn remedy and then morphed into a facial cleanser and make-up remover. We used at lot of Noxzema at North Oak Street. 

My recollection is that I expected to get one good sunburn at the beginning of the summer. That would hurt - sometimes quite a bit. Then I'd be OK the rest of the summer. I remember a few sunburns so severe that I could hardly move - not a pleasant experience. These were the days before sunscreen and worries about skin cancer. Hopefully we'll be able to dodge that bullet in our later years. I'm trying to make up for past ignorance by liberal use of sunscreen, sunhats, and sunshirts. I may need to rethink this strategy for all but the summer month(s) in our new home in the Pacific Northwest. I've read that my fair skin maximizes my ability to get Vitamin D in lowlight conditions. 

When Joe and I were missionaries in the Bahamas, little children were often fascinated with our white skin. One little girl touched my arm and said, "You have sprinkles on your skin!" She'd never seen freckles before. 

As I was typing this, I remembered my sister Susan sending me a quote - "A face without freckles is like a sky without stars." Digression - I googled to find the source of the quote. Evidently the phrase comes from a song by Natasha Bedingfield. The phrase even has its own Facebook page. 

I didn't always appreciate my red hair. Over the years I've learned to embrace it and love it. Fortunately that happened long enough ago that I could enjoy it before it became sprinkled with gray. 

Now most people wouldn't call me a redhead because my hair looks brown and gray - unless I'm in the sun, and then the red shows up. Dad's hair never turned gray, it just got browner as he aged.

One more story - Joe said my red hair was a big plus for him. Recognizing people has always been difficult for him. Redheads are easier to remember and  find in a crowd. 

1951 or early 1952 - Tom, Julia, Susan & Jan with Grandmother MildredF

(The original photographer almost cut Tom out of the picture)

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See the wikipedia article here about redheads. Worldwide, redheads are a very small group. Redheads are celebrated in numerous books and websites. 

"Yearning For The Living God" by F. Enzio Busche

"F. Enzio Busche ... was born in Germany in 1930, three years before Hitler's rise to power. Fifteen years later, when World War II ended, Enzio was a prisoner of war, having been drafted into the German army at age fourteen. The war left Enzio with many questions: Is there a God? What is the purpose of Life? What happens after death? In time, he learned the answers. Yearning for the Living God is a collection of Elder Busche's experiences — both before and after his conversion — and an account of the life-changing awakening that can come to all who search for truth in this world." (amazon.com)

A friend recommended this book and said it was inspirational. She was right. 

It was interesting to read about Germans’ reactions to Hitler and why so many welcomed his leadership initially. After experiencing war at a young age, Busche tried to make sense of what was going on around him. He searched for the Living God. He began to get answers or at least inklings of the direction to take. 

Busche's journey started out being very self centered and then blossomed into a journey focused on Christ, others, and service. He served and served and served, and loved and loved and loved. 

F. Enzio Busche worked hard for insights and spiritual experiences. Fervent prayer, deep faith, humility, sacrifice, and diligent obedience mark his journey and are great examples for all of us. 

This book is a wonderful reminder of the importance of recording our life stories in detail. It is especially important to record and hand down the spiritual experiences that have shaped our lives. 

Elder Busche inspires me to be more focused and fervent in prayer, be better, serve more, and love more. 

Goodreads reviews

Deseret Book reviews

Much More Than A Potholder

Isn't it amazing how a seemingly insignificant object can instantly take you back in time and transport you to a totally different place?

My cousin and her husband visited us recently. When Ruth walked into our home, she spotted this potholder on the kitchen counter and immediately had a flashback.

She talked about her family visiting ours in London, Ohio. When they were at our house, she made potholders similar to this one.

This led to more stories about her family's visits to London. Ruth's father was in the US Foreign Service and her family lived all over the world. London, Ohio, where her father grew up, was very different from the global community in which Ruth spent her childhood. 

I notice that many potholder sets now include something that looks like a crochet hook. That's probably much safer than the long metal hook used in my childhood days and pictured in these images. 

These potholders are thick and sturdy - a very useful and long lasting gift a young person can give to loved ones.  

What takes you back in time and to a different place?

Image credits

loom & hook image here 

loom, hook & loops here

Future Shaped By Daily Activities

The future is shaped by the accumulation of all our daily activities 

and disciplined efforts.

Seek spiritual experiences every day

Find ways to daily serve others

Work productively every day with purpose and balance*

My days and weeks feel much better when I consciously serve, work productively and seek spiritual experiences. With these efforts I can become a person who is filling the measure of my creation. 

*Craig C. Christensen, entire article here