A Day of History

On our down days I like to get the little Singer sewing machine out and do some quilt piecing. And, like all things old, this Featherweight 221 got tired and quit working.  Bummer.  The Salmon quilt shop we stopped in said the motor had seized up, it's possible to fix but costly, however, come on back with your project and you can use one of our machines!  How nice - may just do that this week.  Thought we'd get another opinion about the machine and found a quilt shop about 17 miles north of us, went looking for it yesterday and couldn't find it.  Hopefully that wasn't the start of a lousy day sightseeing.

Bannack Ghost Town

We continued traveling north on route 93 and then crossed over the Continental Divide at Chief Joseph's Pass, then continued east towards Bannack State Park in Montana.  But as we traveled along the scenic forested road, we came to a national park - Big Hole National Battlefield, Nez Perce National Historical Park.  Wasn't planning on going to this because of the sadness associated with this place - many Nez Perce Indians were slaughtered while sleeping in their tents early one morning by the US Army.  Long story short - the survivors fleeing through Montana into Yellowstone, skirmishes happened, Indians getting within 40 miles of Canada and freedom when again they were surrounded, eventually Chief Joseph surrendered and they were placed on a reservation.  All because Americans wanted the land because gold was discovered.   So many treaties and promises were broken by the US, shameful and sad.

Marker where L & C Crossed Continental Divide

Bannack State Park where Bannock Ghost Town is, our next stop - we had been here 25 years ago and there has been alot of improvements.  Last time we walked on muddy paths to each home/business and I remember that there were no doors in most of the places.  Now - wood walk paths, walking interpretive guide for each place, some were locked probably due to it falling down and hazardous.  Dave remembered a double decker outhouse and we couldn't find that.  However, a great surprise was an actor that talked at 2pm in the old Methodist church who was in character of Mark Twain - looked like him, talked like him, told great stories.  Dave was in his glory - he has read many of Samuel Clemons books and knew his life story. He said that during the question and answer period, people tried to stump him but he definitely new Mark Twain and answered just as if he was indeed him.

Marker of Sacajawea Birthplace

Instead of traveling back the way we came to Bannack, we headed south then west to Lemhi Pass - over the Continental Divide - and followed the Lewis and Clark Discovery Trail up into the mountains and over.  What a great drive!  We got to the pass which is where the Discovery Corp found the headwaters of the Missouri.  And there is a Memorial there for Sacajawea, the female Indian who accompanied Lewis and Clark.  Drove through a wonderful forest - on a one lane dirt logging road - amazing we did not come across another car!  Would have been a little shaky - the side of the road went straight down!  At the bottom again we got a great surprised! Came across a marker stating Sacajawea was born here.  I was in my glory - so much history and now I know where these places are located.  Have read the journal of the Corp and am very happy we did this trip.  I had planned for us to go to Lemhi Pass one day this week, see the interpretive signs, etc., but we would have been going west to east on this path - the Corp (and us) did the east to west route.  Would not have meant the same.