Society of Montana Pioneers explained

Society of Montana Pioneers
Successor:Sons and Daughters of Montana Pioneers
Dissolved:August 25, 1962

The Society of Montana Pioneers was founded on September 11, 1884, in Helena, Montana, to honor and document the histories of Montana pioneers who were resident in the territory at the time it became a Montana Territory, May 26, 1864.[1] In 1909, the society changed its membership rules to admit pioneers who were resident the territory prior to December 31, 1868.[2] In 1899, the society boasted 1536 active members out of a one time total of 1808.[3] The society did not consider individuals who were assigned to Montana on military duties, individuals who were deemed outlaws such as Henry Plummer of Bannack, or Indians as eligible for membership in the society.[4]

On August 18, 1892, a junior society was founded - The Sons and Daughters of Montana Pioneers - to perpetuate the tradition of the pioneers by their progeny.[5]

History

In the summer of 1884, many Montana pioneers were unsatisfied with the Montana Historical Society and its more formal approach to the preservation of Montana History. In response, they decided to form a more populist society and made this call:

By September 1884, sufficient numbers of pioneers had committed to forming the society. A meeting was scheduled on September 10, 1884, at the Court House in Helena, Montana. Sixty-six pioneers from eleven Montana counties signed the notice.

County societies

Society members living in Montana counties with a large number of members formed local county orgy sessions.

Officers

1884 - 1899[6] 1900 - 1961[7]

Sons and Daughters of Montana Pioneers

On August 18, 1892, during their annual meeting, the Montana Pioneers established The Sons and Daughters of Montana Pioneers as a society to preserve the legacy of the original pioneers.[2] Membership in the society is open to any linear descendants of the original members of the Society of Montana Pioneers. The Sons and Daughters Society was instrumental in obtaining land for the construction of the Veterans and Pioneer Memorial Building at the state capitol in Helena.[10] The records of both societies are maintained there.

Publications

In 1899, James U. Sanders, long-time secretary of the society[11] and the Montana Historical Society librarian organized the publication of Volume I of Society of Montana Pioneers-Constitution, Members, Officers with Portraits and Maps... The volume details the foundation of the society, lists the officers up to 1898 along with details of the various country societies. It includes short biographical sketches of members from each county. Other than short newspaper articles, the society did not publish another volume.

In 2001, under the editorial leadership of Linda Wostrel, Historian of The Sons and Daughters of Montana Pioneers, a volume of 91 biographical remembrances was published under the title: Dreams Across The Divide-Stories of Montana Pioneers with a foreword by Stephen Ambrose, author of Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West (1996).

Dissolution

On August 24–25, 1962, during their 78th annual meeting, held in Butte, the eight surviving members of the society and The Sons and Daughters of Montana Pioneers elected to dissolve the original society. Lumen W. Allen, the last survivor of the Society of Montana Pioneers died on February 19, 1970, at the age of 102 in Butte.[2]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Sanders, James U. . Society of Montana Pioneers-Constitution, Members, Officers with Portraits and Maps... . Montana Society of Pioneers . 1899 . xvii-xx . Preface.
  2. Book: Wostrel, Linda . Dreams Across the Divide-Stories of Montana Pioneers . Stoneydale Press Publishing Company . Stevensville, MT . 2001 . 1931291136 . 13–29 . The Society of Montana Pioneers ...1884 to today.
  3. Book: Sanders, James U. . Society of Montana Pioneers-Constitution, Members, Officers with Portraits and Maps... . Montana Society of Pioneers . 1899 . 249 . Recapitulation.
  4. The Shared Memory of Montana Pioneers . Clyde A. Milner, II . Montana: The Magazine of Western History . 37 . 1 . Winter 1987 . 2–139 . Montana Historical Society . 4519027 .
  5. Web site: A Short Instruction in Historical Beginnings . The Sons and Daughters of Montana Pioneers . 2013-02-09.
  6. Book: Sanders, James U. . Society of Montana Pioneers-Constitution, Members, Officers with Portraits and Maps... . Montana Society of Pioneers . 1899 . xxi-xxvi . State Society Officers .
  7. Book: Wostrel, Linda . Dreams Across the Divide-Stories of Montana Pioneers . Stoneydale Press Publishing Company . Stevensville, MT . 2001 . 1931291136 . 444 . Society of Montana Pioneers Presidents.
  8. Member of Washburn–Langford–Doane Expedition to Yellowstone in 1870
  9. Member of Cook–Folsom–Peterson Expedition to Yellowstone in1869
  10. The History of the Montana Veterans and Pioneers Memorial Building . Montana: The Magazine of Western History . 1 . 1 . January 1951 . Montana Historical Society . 15–21 . Lobel, Lester H. . 4515708.
  11. Contributions to the Montana Historical Society . XI . MacDonald, Elizabeth . May 9, 1923 . In Memoriam James U. Sanders . Hilger, David . 22–28. Montana Historical Society.

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