The Helena National Forest—The Early Days:
a history of the forest and the people who worked and lived there
 April 12, 1906—A proclamation from President Theodore Roosevelt was issued “And whereas, the public lands, in the State of Montana, which are hereinafter indicated, are in part covered with timber, and it appears the public good would be promoted by setting apart said lands as a public reservation;”
And so begins the history of the Helena National Forest.
Author and retired Forest Service employee, Vicky MacLean, set out to simply search for pictures of old Helena National Forest ranger stations. Through contacts she made with local ranchers and homesteaders as a rangeland management specialist, a much deeper project blossomed. From discussions with the locals, and on to searches in the Helena National Forest files, the Montana Historical Society, Broadwater County Historical Society and the National Archives in Seattle, the project took on a life of its own to become the chronicle of the Helena National Forest.
Chapters include the establishment of the Big Belt, Elkhorn and Forest Reserves, ranger station facts, forest supervisors and district rangers, fire lookouts, homesteading and range management and much more. The book covers the gambit of the people who lived, worked and recreated in the Helena National Forest.
Currently, the Helena National Forest is primarily used by the public for recreational purposes. Popular activities include hiking, fishing, biking, hunting, snowmobiling, four-wheeling, and firewood gathering. At many places people can still find relics of the past that formed our history: an old cabin, a collapsed mine shaft, an old railroad trestle or the remains of an old lookout. This book will help you discover the Helena National Forest by learning about what was left behind to help tell a rich story of the past. Filled with over 100 historical photos, the book will appeal to anyone who works and plays in the Forest and appreciates the timeless importance of this land.
If you would like more information or would like to purchase a book, please call the Montana Discovery Foundation at 406-495-3711, or visit a Helena National Forest office to pick up a copy. The book retails for $16.95.
|
