׉?4ׁB!בCט(u׉׉ 7cassandra://50Uk9YKvwwb4fUIBG0GWu-yL8ZK6EgXvMQxFCsczZ5g~`׉ 7cassandra://LkEUSGJcft6JZ9RfWfu-tUkaHdVDg_ryYf22IysDypw͒k`s׉ 7cassandra://uwHIXHPKyeJl68AwK_wc1dPIP9fWJ7iv59tbYgP9cA8+`׉ 7cassandra://Ptzw-Ww131k5yoB5Jiu8Q2hn25deD9f3t7bm97YCPSQ͠]aZppXJeט(u׈frJנaZppXJjģ 9ׁH#https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ׁ ׁ Ј׈EaZppXJR׉EMAY 2021 Ghost Towns and History of Montana Newsletter From the Lewistown Furniture Co. May 25, 1909 T H E W E L L S H O T E L As so many old buildings still survive in this great state of ours, I often hear people say, “If only those walls could talk!” We may never get all the tales and tribulations out of those walls but thankfully, now and then, a tidbit or two has been left behind for us to enjoy. Through family members, newspaper articles and the general “grapevine”, those walls do get a chance to tell their story. It was a bitter cold, snowy March 17th in 1898 when Mr. and Mrs. Wells opened the doors to their grand hotel in Garnet with a celebratory ball. John and Winifred waited on tables themselves and served supper to over 180 guests in the dining room which was decorated with flags and green bunting. The guests were more than impressed with the fashionable hotel; carved moldings, stained glass, painted wallpaper and chandeliers throughout the three-story building showed that Mrs. Wells indeed believed in luxury. She designed this hotel after one she owned in nearby Beartown. The music would play on all through the night and the party would continue for the next three days. The Wells Hotel by Jolene Ewert-Hintz https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ John Kilkelly Wells travelled the world before landing in the gold fields of Nevada and California. He would follow the gold to Idaho and then on to Montana, arriving in Bannock in the summer of 1865. Winifred came to Montana in 1868. The two would marry in 1871. John and Winifred grew their family substantially with nine children. John was quite a businessman; he operated a butcher shop in Beartown and a hotel in Yreka all while continuing to mine. In 1898, John was elected Granite County Assessor. ׉ 7cassandra://uwHIXHPKyeJl68AwK_wc1dPIP9fWJ7iv59tbYgP9cA8+`aZppXJSaZppXJR(בCט(u׉׉ 7cassandra://McE3u2sUPXvNOKYFYSzHR595SFRfBEuNwsj8lqjgCkg`׉ 7cassandra://zjPr-au3NepKbzIQAn6dAhjlBFYcPJg7AZ1482Zub7U͔`s׉ 7cassandra://oPIyu-1HaoyXGQkghLt8B_hFroFcXuOYN72bJMEl0go*=`׉ 7cassandra://Va3Rs2n2cdpohkSK1FuupuKunhSzDCaTBtryeIGAdiAtT͠]aZppXJkט(u׉׉ 7cassandra://eYPXOSWc63Wv1MzuoJXmAi6_WYyzb5d-3U-LXR5NRdo.?`׉ 7cassandra://PpWXJOQYJS1QEiplfPJ500EKHPdf97JFmNoGDcfwN10͐`s׉ 7cassandra://Q-pc3CBnhPCqDvwc4bYNDqMWV5Lp2dfBs4Bpz4uZjl4(`׉ 7cassandra://gVlNZBLsdlAkjOW7ltLye-pT_SN-tXeCvQzp9kZ9eSw ͠]aZppXJlנaZppXJh ?9׉H0http://ellenbaumler.blogspot.com/p/my-books.htmlGׁ ׁ rנaZppXJiɁ&9׉Hhttps://mhs.mt.gov/ShpoGׁ ׁ rנaZppXJs : 9ׁH%http://ellenbaumler.blogspot.com/p/myׁ ׁ Ј׉E CP 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 Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz The Wells Hotel would see its first wedding in the fall of 1898. John and Winifred’s oldest daughter, Winnie Josephina married Andrew Ryan, a local miner. This would serve as Garnet’s first wedding as well. The hotel would also host its share of dances including the Grand Masquerade and the Hard Times Ball. One popular event 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. Women would gather in the ladies’ parlor to share secrets. Two stoves kept the downstairs toasty while the heat would rise to warm the rooms above. For those miners who couldn’t afford accommodations, the third floor was available to lay out a bed roll with dividers on the floor to separate sleeping spaces. Sky lights allowed the men to wish upon a star for the next big strike. Guests would come and go but after a couple years the Wells would lease the building to Thomas Kilpatrick who was a former conductor for the Northern Pacific Railway. He would move his family in and make a home. Due to ill health the Wells would later sell to Charles Blaisdell and Charles Judson who in turn would sell it to Frank Davey who had also purchased their general store. John would move on to Deer Lodge where he bought a house and worked as a guard at the state prison. He suffered from Bright’s Disease and passed away in 1907. Winifred would hold out a bit longer in Garnet staying until 1910 when she moved to Drummond to live with her daughter Edna. She passed away in 1916. Meanwhile, Davey would rename the hotel after himself. When the hotel closed in the 1930s, Davey took up residence in the kitchen and still offered a room or two to an occasional guest but, the hotel lost its elaborate charm as mushrooms grew out of the still-made beds in unkept rooms. When Davey passed on in 1947, the hotel would now be host to an auction to sell her wares. The famed hotel then sat empty with only memories of finer days. Weather and vandals both took their toll on the old gal, but her dignity would be saved when Garnet became a state park, and she is once again able to open her doors to visitors from all around. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz ׉ 7cassandra://oPIyu-1HaoyXGQkghLt8B_hFroFcXuOYN72bJMEl0go*=`aZppXJV׉E SP 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 Reed and Bowles The Reed and Bowles Trading Post outside Lewistown is a little-known gem well worth a visit. The oldest standing building in the area, the post originally stood about a mile and a half southeast of its present location. It was part of a short-lived post called Fort Sherman intended to serve a large Crow reservation, but by 1874 the plans for the reservation had fallen through. Construction of the Carroll Trail, a freighting route between Carroll on the Missouri River and Helena, prompted Alonzo S. Reed and John Bowles—a notorious pair—to purchase the post, dismantle it, and move it to its present site along Spring Creek. Photo courtesy of Montana State Historic Preservation Office The post served traffic along the trail between 1875 and 1880 and catered to the many tribes passing through. Major Reed—so called from his brief stint as Milk River Indian agent from which he was fired—was the kingpin and Bowles was his assistant. Reed reputedly settled disputes with gunfire and planted his victims in the burial ground across the river. Bowles supposedly even sold the bones of his father-in-law, the Crow leader Long Horse, to an Irish ornithologist. The pair was well known for brutality toward their wives, drunken sprees, and trading liquor with the Indians, a violation of federal law. Reed and Bowles sold a wicked brew of ethanol laced with plug tobacco and red pepper. During the five years the post operated, visitors included American naturalist George Bird Grinnell, trader Pike Landusky, “Liver Eating” Johnson, and the Nez Perces, who stopped there briefly to rest in 1877 during their tragic flight from the U.S. Army. –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 Copper City, Montana Discovered by early placer miner Al Nichols in 1864. Although gold, silver, copper and iron were all found in the area, none were of a large quantity. The town suffered from a lack of water and the remote area made it hard to get equipment into. Ownership has changed hands a few times but nothing substantial has been developed. Abandoned since the 1930's, today only a couple of old buildings mark the spot. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz ׉ 7cassandra://Q-pc3CBnhPCqDvwc4bYNDqMWV5Lp2dfBs4Bpz4uZjl4(`aZppXJWaZppXJV(בCט(u׉׉ 7cassandra://Ll033EhkzEaZhUcigrEJZoIfwReQEOztHbYqeGNlmv8.`׉ 7cassandra://EHzw9LN8RXeMR3Txmn0jn-GBkejX8aJQdOC2wOGn9BY͈`s׉ 7cassandra://2byjJW37cpsgP8d4vvIGIrk6D3XfwJiLSCopAAF1w64%`׉ 7cassandra://q-lwd4WNEI3yZN6YPwDhWhLO2cZn6zS7j6i1RTWdlPs͠]aZppXJtט(u׉׉ 7cassandra://g4svCWCh9VBTftwTpR1GrI7gWS4GQM5XIoGKUB9vfiMv]`׉ 7cassandra://-GV-PoJVTOt69SqBK1eGzSMGFFMNiMbvZm3EuLWKe8wx`s׉ 7cassandra://i7iAeDpeusTqEiyzItb6D1PbFFxJ2rAjKBsfsaBL2mo#`׉ 7cassandra://ik-PzoVh2KWj-LYKkaMpRH2ik4xwXUEtdldJ0eA4Iq8 l͠]aZppXJuנaZppXJnG#̡9׉H~https://www.amazon.com/WHAT-THINGS-ARE-MADE-Dependency/dp/1609107640/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1617329882&sr=1-1Gׁ ׁ rנaZppXJo]5@9׉HFhttps://www.amazon.com/Lost-Butte-Montana-Richard-Gibson/dp/1609495942Gׁ ׁ rנaZppXJpDY9׉H!http://buttehistory.blogspot.com/Gׁ ׁ rנaZppXJqDr+9׉H'http://butte-anacondanhld.blogspot.com/Gׁ ׁ rנaZppXJrDy9׉H5https://www.verdigrisproject.org/butte-americas-storyGׁ ׁ rנaZppXJ|Du9ׁH&https://www.verdigrisproject.org/butteׁ ׁ ЈנaZppXJ{Dv9ׁH'http://butte-anacondanhld.blogspot.com/ׁ ׁ ЈנaZppXJzD]9ׁH!http://buttehistory.blogspot.com/ׁ ׁ Ј׉E 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 The Story of the First Legal Execution in Montana according to Judge Hiram Knowles, an early pioneer of Montana In 1863 a man was tried and convicted on the crime of murder at Bannack, in Judge Buchett’s court. He was sentenced to be hung. He made an unsuccessful attempt to escape. The next morning the judge entered the court room and found the condemned man there under the charge of a miners’ sheriff, Henry Plummer. The judge advanced and, throwing a leg over the corner of his table, pulled out a plug of Common tobacco and biting off a chew, said, calling the prisoner by his given name : “Your time has come! You will be hung in three hours.” The prisoner expressed a desire for a longer time in which to prepare for the sad event. “No” said the judge, “you can’t be trusted. You tried to escape.” The prisoner then asked if there was a Catholic in the town. He was told of Uncle Jerry Sullivan, a very kind and respected citizen. Uncle Jerry, upon receiving this information, lost no time in visiting his coreligionist, who told him of his sad condition. He wished to be accorded the rights of his church before death. Uncle Jerry sought Judge Burchett and promised to have Father Ravalli there in a few days if the execution could he postponed. The judge insisted that he had no proper jail in which to confine the prisoner and that he having tried to escape, the sentence must be carried out. Sadly Uncle Jerry returned to the condemned man and told Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz him of his failure. I am not apprised of the date when the practice was inaugurated of giving a doomed man religious consolation. The ancients built as a part of the funeral obsequies of one of their heroes a pretentious funeral pyre. The religious ceremonies came after death. At a certain period of Christian religious history we find the claim made that the church could fix the status of the Soul in the life to come. The above-named prisoner believed in this power and was much dejected over the circumstances. Finally he said “Mr. Sullivan, what would you do under these circumstances?” Now Uncle Jerry, although a most excellent man, was possessed of the habit of profanity, it was simply a habit. In his usual vernacular he replied: “By God, sir, if you will kneel right down of this floor and ask God Almighty to forgive you for Christ's sake, I’ll be g—d d ----- d if I don’t believe he will do it.” Thus, with a rude sentence and uncouth religious consolation, the prisoner was executed upon the rough and temporary gallows that Henry Plummer had erected. This was the first execution in Montana. ׉ 7cassandra://2byjJW37cpsgP8d4vvIGIrk6D3XfwJiLSCopAAF1w64%`aZppXJ]׉E qP 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 Butte Brewery was established by Henry Muntzer in 1885, nine years after Butte’s first brewery, the Centennial. Beginning in the late 1890s, managers expanded production and built or re-built many of the brewery’s buildings on North Wyoming between Granite and Copper Streets. Capacity was expected to grow to 125 barrels per day in 1901, and the new malthouse was to handle 10,000 pounds per day. The brewery initially used water flowing in the stream that came out of Dublin Gulch, but by the early 1890s, that stream was filled and covered, and the brewery was on city water. The main building in the photo here was constructed in the late 1890s and included beer cellars in the basement of the 2-story section, with the fermenting floor on the ground level and lodge rooms on the second floor. The rear 3-story section held coolers, hop storage, a wash house, and the cooper shop. Multiple additional buildings covered the grounds, ranging from a bottling facility to stables. The building at left (224-226 N. Wyoming) with the decorative cornice was the Brewery Saloon, with the brewer’s residence above. Later that second-floor space became a hand-ball court. By 1910, T.J. Nerny was President. He got his start with the Citizens Brewery of Chicago in the 1890s, and came to Butte by about 1905. His home in 1910, when he was President of the Butte Brewery, was at 301 N. Alabama, and John Harrington, the brewery’s SecretaryTreasurer, lived up the block at 318 N Alabama. In 1917, with statewide Prohibition coming in 1919, the brewery promoted its Eureka Beer as “Liquid food for temperate people.” The Butte Brewery was the only one in Butte that survived Prohibition, by producing malted soft drinks and other beverages (using the Checo brand), but it did not survive the economic downturn that affected Butte in the 1960s and 1970s. They were out of business about 1963 and the brewery buildings were demolished soon after. Today the location is occupied by the Rodeway Inn. For 44 years, Butte did not have a brewery, until Quarry Brewing opened in 2007. Image sources: scans by Butte-Silver Bow Public Library. Brewery, from A Brief History of Butte, Montana, by Harry C. Freeman, 1901. T.J. Nerny, Vice-President Butte Brewing Company, Butte, MT, image taken from p. 107 of Cartoons and Caricatures of Men in Montana (1907) by E.A. Thomson. Reference: Steve Lozar, "1,000,000 Glasses a Day: Butte's Beer History on Tap," Montana: the Magazine of Western History 56/4 (2006): 46-55. Additional resources: Sanborn maps, city directories. -Richard Gibson Richard Gibson is a geologist. His career has ranged from analyzing kidney stones to 35 years in oil exploration. Butte's history, architecture, and people captured his interest like he thought nothing could, and have expanded his life significantly. He’s still passionate about geology, but now he’s passionate about Butte, too. His book "What Things Are Made Of" came out in March 2011; his writing blog focuses on it. The Butte History blog contains interesting stories discovered in Butte, Montana, which are documented in "Lost Butte, Montana," from The History Press. Check out more great stories from Richard by visiting his sites: http://buttehistory.blogspot.com/ http://butte-anacondanhld.blogspot.com/ https://www.verdigrisproject.org/butte-americas-story ׉ 7cassandra://i7iAeDpeusTqEiyzItb6D1PbFFxJ2rAjKBsfsaBL2mo#`aZppXJ^aZppXJ](בCט(u׉׉ 7cassandra://vYbrt63mm44vSQ4IZlZR696a0ApLOAz5Q4gSIxmgijw1`׉ 7cassandra://jam6Ov05EIY3qhT7mucoL6va-lILhurx83SA2t1fYhc͊>`s׉ 7cassandra://Y0YcB0iXPhASKRn13RLRCeZRK0fPtevpgpbqc2eOR5c(`׉ 7cassandra://SBEN6NnuU7Q4R_fbtPnpzgdNC3avRWB0XKv_5UADp9IT͠]aZppXJ}ט(u׉׉ 7cassandra://EAPCQO4mbKerf8evPNozWbqfpbnySQ19YJOsWW8uL30`׉ 7cassandra://8trzBKIINjV2oM_CXqjn2vTOeH3pfxwpDhBrGF7jzXY͋`s׉ 7cassandra://r-NZwYWijIVgGVY02B2C8xxQ2zejl9QqpeZXZz8Tnj8)`׉ 7cassandra://QiG5Qa4DqpU__9CLx3QS-BTYyBfj-OvG-rgNB11CdfE ͠]aZppXJ~נaZppXJx́A9׉H#https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/Gׁ ׁ rנaZppXJyC9׉H#https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/Gׁ ׁ rנaZppXJC9ׁH"http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ׁ ׁ Ј׉EP 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 OLD MINING CAMP OF CASTLE MAY BOOM AS RESULT OF A RECENT RICH DISCOVERY- OCT 7, 1926 By Jos. Gehrett, Editor and Publisher of the Laurel, Montana, Outlook. Ghosts rattled their bones and the practically abandoned old mining town of Castle, which had its boom in the nineties, took on sudden life recently, equal to the days when Castle was producing silver in large quantities. The old town is situated in the Castle mountains, east of White Sulphur Springs, Meagher county, where one of the richest strikes ever recorded in Montana was made recently, says the Meagher County Republican, when some of the engineering force of the Brophy interests at Castle uncovered a rich deposit in the town proper, in the rear of an old saloon at that place. The day was a rainy one, and due to the fact that they could not work in the timber, they came down to the old town, to find a piece of wide, white pine lumber, with which to make a draughting board. Moving rubbish in the back end of the building, they exposed one of the richest pay streaks yet reported. The discovery consisted of 10 gallons of Three Star Hennessey brandy in a barrel, where it had reposed since the closing of the saloon sometime shortly after 1893. It is claimed that one of the discovery party tried to keep the find secret, and maintained it should be used for strictly medicinal purposes. The voters, however, refused to be mislead a second time by that companion, and stood unanimously for a division of the resources. After a long and voluble meeting, it was decided to divvy with every man in camp, and that Whispering Johnson could keep his for medicinal or social purposes, as he should see fit, the enforcement squad willing. Caption on Photo: This picture shows old Castle in its heyday when it was producing silver in large quantities. Silver prices subsequently slumped and then the town slumped, too. Now it is mostly a setting for memories, its buildings unoccupied and falling into decay. The photograph was taken more than 30 years ago, and is reproduced through the courtesy of Mrs. C.L. Morris of Laurel, whose father, Dr. Rhoades, practiced medicine in Castle when the camp was booming. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz ׉ 7cassandra://Y0YcB0iXPhASKRn13RLRCeZRK0fPtevpgpbqc2eOR5c(`aZppXJa׉E