Big Sky Blog

Looking for a place to rent in Montana? Then check out MTHousingSearch.com and see if you can find what you want. There are over 3,000 listings and they are in English and Spanish so this should make it easier to find a place.

“The Last Best Place,” a phrase long used and cherished by Montanans to describe their sprawling, scenic state, will soon be protected forever, a U.S. senator says, and anyone will be able to use it without fear of running afoul of trademark law.

Read the rest of the article here.

August 17, 1940

Just before midnight, a massive earthquake, measuring 7.5 on the Richter Scale, strikes the area north and west of Yellowstone National Park. A mountain slide wipes out a campground, killing twenty-nine people. The great rock slide blocks the Madison River, forming what is now called Quake Lake.
There is also extensive damage in the Hebgen Lake area.

From Montana Dateline by Ellis Roberts Parry.

August 16, 1940

The Bob Marshall Wilderness Area is established by an act of the United States Congress. This pristine wilderness area comprised of over one million acres in northwestern Montana is named in honor of Bob Marshall, a major advocate for wilderness preservation. Marshall, noted for his hiking exploits where he sometimes walks up to forty miles a day, dies of a heart condition in 1939 at the age of thirty-eight.

August 16, 1963

Lones Wigger Jr., a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army, wins the first of his fifty-eight national championships in competitive shooting when he wins the small-bore rifle competition at Camp Perry, Ohio. Wigger, a native of Carter, northeast of Great Falls, is the greatest competitive marksman in American history. He wins Olympic gold medals at Tokyo in 1964 and Munich in 1972.

From Montana Dateline by Ellis Roberts Parry.

August 15, 1865

Conrad Kohrs purchases John Grant’s ranch in the Deer Lodge Valley. The Grant-Kohrs Ranch is now a popular tourist attraction in Deer Lodge, where it serves as a national working-ranch museum.

From Montana Dateline by Ellis Roberts Parry.

Just did some “pruning” of the Big Sky Blogroll - removing deleted or inactive blogs. The general rule on what qualifies as “inactive” is usually six months or longer without an entry. Others have been deleted by the owners, and therefore removed from the blogroll. Thanks to Randy at the Billings Free Press for helping me out! But on a more positive note, there are some recent additions to the roster; here’s a few of them:

- Manly Thoughts: yep, genuine manly thoughts from the manly man behind the Manly Man Candle Company. There - did I work the word “man” in enough?

- The Travels of Nancy Chalmers: including some great pix!
-
Eat/Drink Great Falls: from Epicuria comes an honest account of her culinary adventures in Great Falls.

- Problem Bear: among the recent topics are paper wasps, Seeley Lake, and poetry.

- Running On Empty: the near-daily journal of a runner, with occasional pix.

- Livingston Weekly: find out what’s going on in (duh) Livingston!

As always, please let me know of any new blogs in Montana…and remember, the Big Sky Blogroll is always open if you’re looking for some “Last, Best Place” blogging!

KULR-8 in Billings is reporting that Vice President Dick Cheney was in Billings today on his way to the Big Horn River to fish for trout.

Wyoming native Cheney knows where the best fishing is, Montana!

If you’ve ever enjoyed the best steak in the world at the Highwood Bar, tucked between Belt and Fort Benton, this will come as sad news: Jack Earl “Piano Jack” Myllymaki, the man who pounded the keys at the Highwood Bar, has passed away at the too-early age of 57. The Trib did a feature on Piano Jack not too long ago, highlighting his love of piano playing, his roots in Great Falls and Belt, and other quirks about this unique man.

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Part of the charm of the Highwood Bar was, of course, the piano-playing of Jack - hunched over the keyboard, wearing his hat, and pounding out all sorts of tunes. And I do mean pounding - he was so enthusiastic in his playing that sometimes you had to nearly yell to talk with someone sitting right next to you. And I mean that in a good way. Here’s Piano Jack, doing what he did so well:

Jack, thanks for being part of a unique experience. You will be missed. My condolences to the family, friends, co-workers, and admirers of Jack’s music.

August 1, 1867
The first issue of Montana’s first daily newspaper, the Helena Daily Herald, is published.

August 1, 1868
Utilizing newly enacted homestead laws, David Carpenter files for the first homestead entry in Montana Territory at the Helena office.

August 1, 1903
[Former Billings native] Calamity Jane dies from the effects of years of hard living and alcoholism at Camp Terry, South Dakota. She is about fifty-two years old, give or take a year or two. She is buried next to Wild Bill Hickok in Deadwood according to her wishes.

August 1, 1928
The first commercial air flight in Montana begins with service between Great Falls and Salt Lake City.

August 1, 1994
Billings Mustangs right hander Jason Robbins pitches the first perfect game in Pioneer League history as the Mustangs defeat the Medicine Hat Blue Jays 5-0 before three thousand fans at Cobb Field in Billings.

From Montana Dateline by Ellis Roberts Parry.

Randy’s Billings Free Press continues to improve — he’s done a great job with it. He’s got a great layout/design, fresh content, images, tags, the whole thing. If you live in Billings - or will be visiting - you owe it to yourself to both read the Billings Free Press AND add it to your blogroll (or bookmarks).