Phillips County News - One Nation, Under God

Museum Notes Oct 21 Hunting season is upon us! I think Ernest Hemingway described the emotion associated with bird hunting when he said “I think they were all made to shoot because if they were not why did they give them that whirr of wings that...

St. Paul’s Indian Mission was a topic of discussion at the PC Museum this week. The story of its beginning and continuing story arrived with items from Jay and Lynn Contway. Here is the history as it was presented to us. On May 1, 1886, Reverand...

It’s great to see the Hi-Line Racing events bringing visitors from near and far to our community. Dodson may have had the honor of having the first big races in our county. After a baseball game in 1917, the Enterprise reports the car races began....

Grain harvest in Phillips County is well underway. Local farmers are smiling with the yields they are experiencing. In August of 1912, it was reported that John Hardin, a well-known farmer, and rancher, had been highly successful in raising winter...

Hang in there Phillips County! We are making history. Years from now that popular saying “Do you remember… will apply to the COVID pandemic. The Phillips County Museum has its door open and we are welcoming visitors. Our facility is large, and...

Does the name “Beavertown” sound familiar? It was one of the booming “h” towns of yesteryear. Located near Beaver Creek (from which, it presumably, was named) it was the nearest town for homesteaders on the Saco divide and the ranches located...

Surprises walk through our front door every week. This week’s surprise item was an Ingram’s Milkweed Cream jar. It was found by Ian Simanton. Curious about milkweed's facial cream properties started me on a fascinating journey. I was amazed at...

This week we have the story of Johnny Ritch another Phillips County character. Johnny rode into the town of Landusky in the glory days of the mining camp. During his first visit to Landusky, he lost his hat and cigarettes and came to several days...

Last week I introduced you to Snakehead Gilbert and this week we meet another “character” that lived in Phillips County. Dum Dum Bill was the nickname that stuck to him. Dum Dum Bill lived in Landusky during the early days. He was known as a...

What would Snakehead Gilbert have thought? The March 1959 issue of the PCN “electrified” the county when it reported that the last ranch was soon to be hooked into the new Big Flat REA line. The ranch they reported on was the old Long X Ranch....

Behind the Phillips County Museum stands a log cabin. The cabin has been a part of our complex for many years but was recently renovated and now depicts a miner’s cabin. The cabin was originally from the Zortman area and was rescued by the BLM and...

This week is Florence Nightingale’s' birthday and it's also National Hospital Week. Our hospitals bring us not only healing but also hope. Phillips County doctors and nurses bring us high-quality health care locally. In the early 1920s, our area...

Greetings everyone. With a hint of joy and a hint of worry, the Phillips County Museum is now open! It has been an odd experience to view so few people on the streets of Malta. It was quite unsettling at first. But I think the view I miss the most...

Museum Notes November 20th History tells us that our Thanksgiving celebrations started at the same time as the birth of our nation. Since that time Americans have celebrated Thanksgiving amid wars, famine, moon launches, demonstrations, football...

In a normal week (who has normal weeks anymore) how many bridges do you cross? On my way to town, I cross several bridges and my assumption is that they will not collapse. In 1964 Ingwald Solberg was crossing the Beaver Creek bridge with a truck...

The PC Museum archives constantly cough up unusual books and paper items. My find this week was a book on the military and trading posts/forts in Montana. The trading posts in Montana helped to open our area to exploration. Bakers Post sprouted up in...

Walking through our doors this week was a 1948 Malta High School Annual called “The Prairie Wind”. Inside the annual I found many of the student activities were similar to 2019 student activities. However, I did find a new club that was formed...

Dobson offers $100 for First Baby. History was made on December 14, 1951, at 6:21 a.m. in Malta. The first child was born in the Malta hospital which began operation on December 10th. As promised Pete Dobson presented the mother with a $100 prize...

Fifty years – what an accomplishment! Hats (cowboy hats of course) Off to the present Milk River Wagon participants and to all those that have participated in the last 50 years. When a group of Phillips County residents conceived the idea of a...

Let’s travel to southern Phillips County and visit about the intersection of U.S. 191 and Montana 66. Or as commonly known throughout Phillips County as the “DY”. Early Montana history tells the story of a trail that was used by the Metis. The...

A fun time was had by ALL. The Fort Peck Theatre hosted “Pinocchio” at the PC Museum this week. A wonderful turnout of over 175 adults and kids. A talented group of actors kept our audience spellbound with their dramatic clothes and actions. The...

It’s almost harvest time in Phillips County. Local farmers are busy cleaning granaries and preparing for this year’s crops. Historically, horses and small tractors did much of the work, now we have a large tractor and GPS units to help the...

Phillips County August 1921. Under the supervision of Miss Florence Richardson, PC Nurse, 16 children received medical attention in the basement of the Library! (Yes, I did mean library). Miss Richardson has endeavored for the past year to bring...