Threads of Our Past

This is the first part of my new series Yesterday in Montana. Our history defines who we are and where we came from. We have a unique history that shaped the people of the past into the people of the present. It’s who we are. We come from the mountains, the plains and the waterways of our great state. We are tough. We believe that hard work brings great rewards. Life was tough for the miners, settlers, ranchers, and farmers that helped define what Montana is today.

I hope to shed a bit of light on our life that brought about what we have today and why we need to fight to keep Montana values while we grow and progress into the future.

These are just a few of the images that I have taken of Bannack over a twenty year period. Bannack was the first territorial capitol of Montana and is now a ghost town preserved by the Montana State Fish, Wildlife, and Parks system, keeping our rich history alive for future generations to come. A little history about Bannack:

“Bannack’s history began over 140 years ago, in July of 1862, when John White and fellow members of a Colorado based group of “Pikes Peakers” discovered gold along the banks of the creek. Unaware that the creek had already been named “Willard’s Creek” by Lewis and Clark, White christened the creek the “Grasshopper” because of the dense grasshopper population in the area. They camped several miles downstream from here (where Bannack is) and found gold in considerable quantities. To protect his discovery, White filed one of the first recorded mining claims in what became Montana (1889). Good news spread traveled fast and miners rushed to the Grasshopper Diggins”. The mining camp, soon to be known as Bannack, boasted a population of about 400 that fall and swelled to 3,000 in the spring.”
Excerpt from “Bannack”
Published by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks and
The Bannack Association

Projects I hope to complete: Encaustic Wax Photography series, a gallery show, a photo book of Bannack and other ghost towns in Montana, and a slideshow.