We've Got The County Covered
We've Got The County Covered
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South of the Border, Column No. 25 Columnist's note: A camper from Cut Bank staying in the campground just west of Whitlash, told me several weeks ago, "If you are looking for an interesting story about this area, check out the Grandview Cemetery. Everyone buried there was less than five years old." Asking around I was given the name of Sharon Lerum as a contact for information. She's a ranch wife who lives just south of the cemetery and is the volunteer caretaker for the two-acre plot. We met...
Column No. 23 Recently I went back to Chinook to help in the Lions Club's pronto pup stand during the 2019 Blaine County Fair. I'm still a member of the club and proceeds from sales of pronto pups and cheesy fries support the community work of the club. They always need help during the fair. Pronto pups are the Lions' variation of a corn dog. Someone asked, "Do you know about the hot dogs you are cooking?" I'm a relative newcomer to the area so didn't know the history of the iconic wiener so...
Column No. 22 Columnist's note: The Corps of Discovery never reached the Sweet Grass Hills. But Captain Meriwether Lewis explored much of the Marias River in southern Liberty County and recorded observations about the Sweet Grass Hills. During the expedition's westward trip in 1805 and the return trip in 1806, Captain Lewis' explorations along the river helped answer critical questions during the trip. Lewis himself named the river in June, 1805, in honor of a cousin, Maria Wood. Understanding...
Column No. 21 Columnist's note: My wife and I have been in Whitlash just over six months. After 20+ columns related to the Sweet Grass Hills I decided to write about a couple of interesting stops we've made in Montana outside the Hills during the same period. On my bucket list to visit for some time, we finally stopped in the town of Fort Shaw to see where the 1904 "world champion girls' basketball team" was launched. Since reading "Full-Court Quest...," a 2004 book about the school and the...
Column No. 20 Columnist's note: With the onset of spring in the Sweet Grass Hills there's a profusion of wildflowers along the roads and in the fields. I've always had an interest in wildflowers and decided to do a column about wildflowers in my adopted home around Whitlash. I equipped myself with a couple of well-respected wildflower guide books, did some looking on the internet for resources to help me identify wildflowers and hooked up with Bob Thompson, a third generation rancher in the...
By Steve Edwards BCJ News Columnist's comment: Before we moved to the Sweet Grass Hills several people told me, "Be sure and visit that park in southern Alberta. I think it's near Whitlash" There'd be some finger-snapping as they tried to recall the park's name, then, "It's something about 'words on rocks' and it's really fascinating." Turns out they were talking about Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park, less than an hour's drive from Whitlash. With summer now on us, my wife and I decided to spend...
South of the Border, Column No. 17 Columnist's note: Several weeks ago someone asked if I'd heard of the Sweet Grass Hills Family Camp. They explained several local people were involved and that two members of Whitlash Presbyterian Church, Jeanette and the late Irvin Brown, were the folks who initiated the family camp. The camp was a four-day event that brought families together to worship, recreate and fellowship in a casual setting. My wife and I attended a similar event in the mountains...
South of the Border, Column No. 16 Columnist's note: The topic for this week's column is from nearby Chester, a town my wife and I visit regularly for shopping. In Chester I noticed a large, brown building with a tiny sign over the door that reads "RNA Hall." I flashed back to childhood when my mom, grandma and aunt were all involved in a group called Royal Neighbors of America (RNA). I recalled being dragged to RNA meetings as a preschooler to watch the goings on at the "hall" above Hobson's...
South of the Border, Column No. 15 Columnist's note: My wife and I have lived in Whitlash since mid-December, 2018. Living only six miles from Canada our intent was to visit our northern neighbors as soon as practical. During the winter, still thinking about going to Canada, I decided I would walk there in the spring. In early May the weather finally cooperated and I "walked from Whitlash to a foreign country." Here's some of what I saw and learned about the area north of our new home and the...
Column No. 14 Columnist's note: A tractor sitting by a shed near the Whitlash Post Office drew my attention when we first moved to town. It was a Belarus, which sure sounded Russian to me. Some stickers and name plates on the tractor stated the tractor was built at a factory in Minsk, the capital city for Belarus. Belarus is an eastern European country once part of the old Soviet Union. Turns out the tractor is owned by Urban Kultgen and his son Dan. Between the two of them they own three of...
South of the Border, Column No. 13 Columnist's note: This was our first Easter in Whitlash and sunrise on this past Easter Sunday was pretty exciting. That got me thinking about a number of other interesting and stimulating Easter mornings that my wife and I have shared in the 23 prior places we've lived and celebrated the holy day. Before I share the story of Easter sunrise in Whitlash, here's brief account of a couple of other memorable Easter mornings. A freezing Easter morning on Bald Knob...
South of the Border, Column No. 12 Columnist's note: Recently Betty Ann Wolery, secretary for the Liberty County Cemetery Board, stopped me in the library in Chester and asked if I knew about the "English Boy" grave in the Whitlash Cemetery. I'd heard one story that told the English Boy was a sheepherder from England who died in a blizzard. I had never seen the grave. Betty Ann showed me the county cemetery register and a plat map of the grave sites in the Whitlash Cemetery. The first entry for...
South of the Border, Column No. 11 Columnist's note: I've had the privilege to live in many diverse locations over the years. A newcomer to an area has a unique opportunity to see a place with a 'new set of eyes.' Things and situations longtime residents may take for granted often stand out to the new arrival. Here are a few things I've found curious during the four months my wife and I have lived in Whitlash. In its basement the Whitlash Church has a cabinet full of sewing patterns During a...
Column No. 7 Columnist's note: Travelers headed north from Shelby on I-5 may have seen the 'standing elk' on the east side of the interstate just before the exit to Oilmont. The elk is in a slight depression on the edge of a grove of small trees (really the only trees next to the interstate for several miles). If travelers see the elk, the view is brief, especially at 80 mph. I first saw the elk when my wife and I were headed north to Whitlash from Shelby. About a 100 yards past the site of the...
South of the Border, Column No. 7 Columnist's note: Liberty Hall, the century-old community hall in Whitlash sitting atop a small rise, is one of the first buildings a traveler sees when approaching Whitlash in the Sweet Grass Hills. I've read several accounts of the history and role of the building in the community since the hall was completed in 1916. Nearly every version of the history of Liberty Hall recounts the many community events held there over the years and, particularly, the dances h...
Columnist's note: My wife and I moved to Whitlash in mid-December. Despite a mild start to winter, we saw little wildlife except a few sharp-tailed grouse wandering through the yard and occasional deer across the pasture. Then February hit and there was virtually no wildlife to be seen around our yard, basically we were surrounded by snow piles, drifts and blowing snow. I was really curious to see what sorts of wildlife I would see in the Sweet Grass Hills come spring. In mid March we...
Whitlash, Montana. Columnist’s note: In the narthex (entrance) of the Whitlash Presbyterian Church there is a ‘centennial quilt’ on display. The quilt commemorates the church’s hundredth anniversary celebrated in 2013 and is made of quilt blocks highlighting major milestones of the church—when the church was organized, when the present building was completed and other significant highpoints. One of the blocks (see accompanying photo) is a drawing of the church building with the year 1945 along the bottom and the “E Hanging M” brand at a to...
From Whitlash. For readers who missed it, Ground Hog Day was Saturday (February 2). That's the day the furry weather prognosticator gives an insight as to how much longer winter will last. Growing up in southern Illinois, where the woodchucks are widespread, my family made kind of a deal about the day. As kids we anticipated the day, hoping, "The ground hog doesn't see its shadow so spring will come soon." In our fifty plus years of marriage my wife and I have lived in seven different states,...
Dateline: Whitlash, Montana. In my first "South of the Border" column I wrote generally about the location of the Sweet Grass Hills (visible most days looking north from US Highway 2 from the Joplin/Chester area). More specifically the Hills are set in a line extending for about 50 miles east to west in a 10-15 mile wide band from north to south and adjacent to the national border. The various buttes/mountains/hills that make up the Sweet Grass Hills stand 3,000 feet above the surrounding...
Reporter's note: The Harlem Seed Show committee, the group that plans and stages the annual seed show, is hard at work putting the finishing touches on the upcoming three-day event. This year's show is set for Friday through Saturday, March 14-16, and will salute the seed show's 70th anniversary. It seemed proper to recognize this ag-related happening at such a significant milestone. Ron Larson was a long-time seed judge at the Harlem show and served many years as the Manager of the Montana Seed...
Whitlash, Montana. Ministers new to a church typically make an early effort to identify and contact all the church and/or family members who are living in assisted living or nursing homes. The reason is to connect with these folks who were involved with the church through the years and minister to them. These seniors may want to have Bible study, take communion, share information about what is going on in the church or simply enjoy an occasional visit with the minister. My wife has now been at...
Columnist's note: Alert readers will recall that mid-December my wife Sherry and I moved to Whitlash. For the next year Sherry will be the "pastor in residence" for the Whitlash Community Presbyterian Church. During the move our 23-year old granddaughter, Kayla Bonar, died unexpectedly in Ellensburg, Washington where she was working as a reporter for the local newspaper. Sherry and I drove to the Seattle area to be a part of the celebration of Kayla's life. Kayla was known by many locals as she...
Last week the Blaine County Library in Chinook held its 27th Annual Hassle-Free Christmas program. The event offers simple to make holiday decorating tips, holiday music and a Christmas-time story. At the end of the event guests are invited to try a variety of treats prepared by the library staff and library trustees. Library Director Valerie Frank has been involved with the program for 25 of the 27-year run for the pre-holiday event. She said, "this year's turnout seemed to be one of the...
Betty Billmayer, one of the primary organizers of this year's Community Thanksgiving dinner in Chinook, wrote of last week's holiday gathering, "It was great but we couldn't have done it without all the good help. We had a great time." That seemed to sum up the reaction of the 115 diners who came to the senior center of the Thanksgiving meal at noon plus the 70 others who enjoyed carry-out meals. Other major organizers were Betty's husband, Mark, Kathy O'Brien, Jay Eslick and Larry Wisch. Wisch...
Blaine I, the ambulance crew that serves the Chinook area, started a planned 180-hour class to license new Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT). The class began the first week of November and meets two nights per week, with one weekend meeting each month. Facilitators teaching the class say the program will be completed in mid-February. The course is a combination of lectures, audio-visual presentations, text book readings and lots of skills practice. Blaine I leaders said earlier that with an...
