Monday, September 10, 2012

Missoula - Part 2




University Main Hall
University of Montana:   Missoula is home to the Univ. of Montana.  It was founded in 1893 with an enrollment of 50 students.  It has since grown to about 14,000 and the campus is a mix of old and new architecture surrounding the central quad.

 
Ron took a leisurely stroll around the campus on a quiet Sunday afternoon for a closer look at the historic buildings and the large "M" high on Mt. Sentinel.  Although this was his first visit to the campus, he felt a sense of attachment.  His mother graduated from here in 1939, launching her career in music and art education.
Rankin Hall - Originally the first campus library - 1908

The Daly Mansion:   The huge Mustang Fire had been burning in Idaho for more than a month, since July 30.  It had grown to more than 250,000 acres and was beginning to cross the border into Montana.  Its smoke was filling the Bittrroot and Missoula Valleys.  So, what better time than now to take a drive down the valley to the town of Hamilton to pay a visit to the Daly Mansion.

Marcus Daly, one of Montana’s “Copper Kings”, was first involved in gold and silver mining in the Butte area.  One of his mines failed to find gold or silver but hit upon a wealth of copper.  At that time, Thomas Edison was inventing light bulbs and eastern cities were being electrified.  Daly correctly anticipated the future value of copper in electrical applications and established the Anaconda Mining Company, its copper smelter and the town of Anaconda.  He became rich and was earning about $17 million per year, which was a lot of money in the late 19th century.  He used some of that money to build a summer home and 22,000 acre stock farm in the Bitterroot Valley.  The home was known as “Riverside”.

The mansion occupies 24,000 sq.ft. on three levels (plus a full basement).  It has 25 bedrooms, 15 bathrooms and 7 fireplaces, plus several out-buildings and a plunge (swimming pool).

The original structure was a Victorian design.  Following Marcus Daly’s death in 1900, his wife Margaret had the home remodeled into the current Georgian Revival style and lived there.  Following her death in 1941, most of the furniture was sold at auction and the home was boarded up.  It sat vacant for 46 years.
 
It was amazing to learn that, during that time, there was virtually no vandalism and very little deterioration of the structure or its remaining furnishings such as curtains, wallpaper, carpets, etc.  The inlaid hardwood flooring, mohogany woodwork and pocket doors are still there and have been restored.  Also, many of the people who purchased the original furniture and artworks at auction have since returned those items.  [We weren't allowed to take photos inside the home.]
 
Stairway to the rear yard (west side)
Front Yard of Daly Mansion
 

St. Mary’s Mission:  Shining Shirt, a Salish medicine man and prophet predicted, “Fair-skinned men wearing long black robes will teach us a new way of praying and a new moral law.  The Black Robes will bring peace, but their arrival will mean the beginning of the end of all the people who inhabit this land…” 
The “black robes” were Catholic Jesuits, led by Father Pierre DeSmet.  They came, they made friends with the local Indians, and they built St. Mary’s Mission, the first Christian church in the Northwest Territory.  It was built in 1841 in what is now the small town of Stevensville.


Father Ravalli's Grave
Father Anthony Ravalli was among the missionaries who served here.  He was Montana’s first physician, surgeon and pharmacist.  He was also an architect, artist, sculptor and engineer and Ravalli County was named for him.  We visited his grave in the small cemetery behind the mission.







Travelers’ Rest:   A few miles south of Missoula, where Highway 12 leads westward to Lolo Pass, is Traveler’s Rest State Park.  For thousands of years, this location had been a cross-roads (trails) and gathering place for several Indian tribes, including the Spokane, Pend ’Oreille, Flathead and Salish.  In 1805 and 1806, members of the Lewis and Clark Expedition camped here as they searched for easy routes over the mountains.  The Indians helped them and showed them the way.  Following extensive research, it was determined that this is the only archaeologically verified Lewis and Clark campsite in the World.
Site of the only archaeologically verified Lewis & Clark Encampment

Missoula is a very nice community with interesting history and lots to do and see.  It wouldn't be a bad place to live.  Unfortunately, we came here during a period of severe forest fires.  While the University campus is "smoke free", the Missoula Valley certainly isn't . . . at least not this summer.    Hopefully, the air will be cleaner during future visits.
Smoke from the Mustang Fire - Bitterroot Valley and Mountains - September 2012

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