Anthropologist Sally Thompson to lead a Montana Conversation Workshop: From the Place of Wide Cottonwoods to St. Mary’s Mission to Fort Owen to Stevensville

Is your family connected to the settlement of Stevensville? Do you have stories that have been passed down through the years by your family about the early days of Stevensville?  Would you like those stories saved for future generations to hear? If so, please join us for a community conversation October 26 at 10:00 AM at the Stevensville Library Community Room.

Anthropologist Sally Thompson will present an overview of what we know and what we don’t know and lead a conversation to identify questions that still need some exploration about the early days of Stevensville, the oldest continuously occupied settlement in the State of Montana.

Surprisingly, some of the early history is pretty sketchy. Sally has been sleuthing through historical documents and recently discovered some illustrated journals about the area dating back to the mid-19^th century! She will bring maps and images to share and invites you to bring your own maps, stories, and photos to compare. Your stories might help fill in some gaps of history.    For example:

Do you know anyone who worked on construction of the Stevensville Cut-across Road?  Did someone in your family work on any of the ditches on lands between Fort Owen and Stevensville? Does anyone remember hearing of finding artifacts on those lands?

The Friends of Fort Owen and Montana Humanities invite the community to come together to share stories passed down through the generations. We know that many old-timers know important information that is not part of the historic record. If you are one of the knowledge keepers, or you just have an interest in local history, please join us on October 26 at 10:00m AM in the Stevensville Community Library.