News & Updates

23rd annual John White Series ready to roll

For 23 years, the Northwest Montana History Museum has organized presentations on the many facets of Montana history for its John White Series.

John White Series talks last year focused on bears, motorcycle adventuring, indigenous foods, and Meriwether Lewis’s mom.

The talks go deep on aspects of Montana life and history and give reason to gather in winter with friends, family, and others who share curiosity for our state and its people. Reserve your space early to avoid disappointment (talks almost always sell out) by ordering the series online here or individual talks at the links below. You also can make reservations by stopping by or contacting the museum.

2 p.m. Jan. 5 Jack Gladstone on “C.M. Russell: Heritage and Legacy“
2 p.m. Jan. 19 Sally Thompson on “Northwest Montana Stories and How They Shape Our Lives“
2 p.m. Feb. 2 Aspen and Cameron Decker on “Our Belongings: Sqelixʷ (Salish) Art and Toolmaking“
2 p.m. Feb. 16 Denny Olson on “Glacier National Park: The Little-known Stories Behind the Grandeur“

The John White Series pays tribute to beloved former staff members John Whites Sr. and Jr. of Central School. The 1894 schoolhouse is Kalispell’s oldest public building and home to Northwest Montana’s premier history museum, which draws thousands annually for exhibits and events.

The John White Series is a fundraiser for the nonprofit Northwest Montana History Museum and its mission to preserve and present regional history.

Details: 2 p.m. Sundays, Jan. 5 and 19 and Feb. 2 and 16, 2025; social time in Hollensteiner-Stahl Hall afterward; Northwest Montana History Museum, 124 Second Ave. E., Kalispell, MT 59901; 406-756-8381; nwmthistory.org

Tickets for individual talks are $15 for members, $20 for nonmembers. The four-part series costs $40 for members, $75 for nonmembers. Purchase online, come in to the museum, or contact Amy Drown or Margaret Davis at the museum.

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Save Jan. 29 to mark Chinese New Year by learning about it

Last time Mark T. Johnson came to the museum, in April 2023, the Notre Dame professor and author (who lives in Helena) came to speak on the Chinese experience in Montana. His research for his book, The Middle Kingdom under the Big Sky (shown), uncovered the lives and stories of many who came West and contributed significantly to the development of Montana. At one point Chinese residents accounted for more than a tenth of the state’s population.

During his time in Kalispell, Johnson toured Demersville Cemetery and looked at materials in the Northwest Montana History Museum archives. His findings on Flathead Valley resident Mar You became part of a talk he delivered at the Montana History Conference in Helena last year.

Now Johnson returns to bring in the Year of the Snake with a talk about Keeping Chinese Culture Alive on the Montana Frontier.

In his words, “From the earliest days of non-Native settlement of Montana, Chinese pioneers played a key role in the region’s development. Navigating life in this new land, Montana’s Chinese residents gained comfort through the continuation of their spiritual and cultural practices. Yet, publicly practicing cultural traditions invited unwanted attention from anti-Chinese forces who sought to expel the Chinese from the region. This talk details how Chinese Montanans persevered to maintain cultural continuity and togetherness through these practices while resisting tensions and threats from their detractors.”

Details TBA, but for now save Jan. 29 to celebrate with us.

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Featured artist Valentina LaPier appears Nov. 20

The artist’s reception for Valentina LaPier, whose work is currently displayed in the museum’s north changing gallery, runs 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20. Come meet the artist, see her work, and gather with us!

Click here for more on her work.

Details: Free artist’s reception runs 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20; regular museum hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.

Northwest Montana History Museum, 124 Second Ave. E., Kalispell; 406-756-8381; nwmthistory.org

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The Flathead knocks it out of the park

Congrats, Flathead Valley residents, for making the sixth Montana Antiques Appraisal Fair the biggest yet. In all, 181 people attended the fair at the Northwest Montana History Museum on Oct. 26, bringing with them more than 250 items for an expert look from appraisers Grant Zahajko (above) and Tim Gordon.

What a fun parade of people and objects made their way to the tables. Some attendees stayed the whole day just to soak up the info and sights of rarities that seldom go out in public.

Thank you to the staff at Foundation for Montana History for bringing their well-organized show to town, and for all who helped make it a success.

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Appraisers make a high-value Saturday

So far about 150 people have signed up to have up to four treasures each verbally appraised by experts as part of the Foundation for Montana History’s Montana Antiques Appraisal Fair. This is Kalispell’s turn to host this popular, unique event.

The museum has submitted a couple of items for public appraisal during the day, such as this arrow quiver from the Edo period in Japan that one of the museum’s board members found in the shed of her place in Somers.

This fundraiser for the foundation draws a range of items and people for a day of education and entertainment. There are a few afternoon slots left; sign up at https://thefoundationformontanahistory.thundertix.com/events/232678 (no firearms, chemicals, or jewelry). Otherwise, it’s free to spectate and soak in the atmosphere from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 26.

See you Saturday at the fair!

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Here comes a party for the pages

Just in time for reading season, the Northwest Montana History Museum welcomes book writers and lovers from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 17, for a program of speakers and exhibitors focused on Northwest Montana.

Featured speakers include Debra Magpie Earling, Jonathan Fetter-Vorm, Melissa Barker & Stewart Wilson, and Leslie Budewitz.

We also welcome writers and publishers to exhibit and sell their books; please submit interest to participate at nwmthistory.org/programs/northwest-montana-book-festival/. Help us present a wide range of subjects and genres by spreading the word!

Festival mission: Gather Northwest Montana readers and authors to promote, celebrate, and inspire regional writing and writers.

Thank you to Humanities Montana for the support.

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Come meet the new “Lumberjacks, Tie Hacks & River Pigs”

Join us for the grand reopening of the oldest exhibit at the Northwest Montana History Museum.

Months in the making, the wholesale renovation of the Northwest Montana History Museum’s “timber room” will be unveiled 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 18. In one of the biggest undertakings since the opening of the Kalispell: Montana’s Eden exhibit, the museum began the redo in spring of its first and oldest permanent exhibit, which had opened in 2003.

Volunteers and vendors from all over the valley, along with students from Kalispell Public Schools, worked to install a model train layout featuring the Somers tie plant and other past and present Flathead Valley landmarks. Renowned Columbia Falls muralist Clark Heyler painted the backdrop.

A new timeline of events in the history of the Northwest Montana timber industry brings our understanding up to date and includes innovative wood products made here.

Volunteers also took a deep dive into the museum’s collection to create displays of historic tools, clothing, and even what grub got served in a logging camp. Learn what it meant to have hot cakes nailed to your door if you were a camp cook.

The museum’s rich photographic archive yielded dozens of images showing the various methods of logging over 150 years, in places that many Flathead Valley residents know well. These were enlarged, printed, and mounted in the windows and along the walls.

For the Oct. 18 open house, adults in flannel will receive a free pint glass while supplies last. Kids can enter a drawing to win a wooden toy train.

We look forward to seeing you soon among Lumberjacks, Tie Hacks & River Pigs!

Details:
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 18, 2024
Northwest Montana History Museum, 124 2nd Ave. E., 406-756-8381; nwmthistory.org

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East Glacier Park artist Valentina LaPier shows “Paintings for MMIP”

Born in Browning, Valentina LaPier was raised in various places throughout the western United States, then returned to Montana in 1987.

She lives and works in East Glacier Park.

LaPier began painting as a young girl, selling her first free-form painting at the age of 14. She became a full-time artist in 1987.

She works primarily with acrylics, although her favorite medium is watercolor. She admires the works of Georges Braque, Robert Motherwell, Paul Klee, and Wassily Kandinsky, and her paintings reflect their influence.

The paintings in this exhibit, such as Yellow Parfleche (shown), were produced between 2023 and 2024 and are shown to raise awareness of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples, or MMIP.

Details: Regular museum hours run 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays; artist’s reception is 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20.

Northwest Montana History Museum, 124 Second Ave. E., Kalispell; 406-756-8381; nwmthistory.org

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Nov. 17 will be one for the books

We’ve got some big events in store this fall, starting with a new exhibit of paintings by Valentina LaPier, the grand reopening of Lumberjacks, Tie Hacks & River Pigs, the Montana Antiques Appraisal Fair, and then the first-ever Northwest Montana Book Festival, set for Nov. 17!

Check back here for more details to post soon. In the meantime, enjoy a last look at Ray Weaver’s photography (above), which comes down this week in our north changing gallery.

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