When Martin Kidston launched the Missoula Current five years ago, I was both excited and supportive. But at the same time, I’ll admit, I was skeptical. Could a small, independent, (initially) one-person-operation succeed?  Well, as time has shown – yes. Martin told me the other day the online journal was “founded on the belief that local news matters. The greater Missoula … [Read more...] about Harmon’s Histories: Montana’s earliest newspapers were fiercely independent

A trip over Marshall Grade east of Missoula has scared the socks off adults and children alike for generations. “We passed over (Marshall Grade) in a light wagon with some ladies and children, and a little girl who sat beside us clutched our hand in fright!” wrote a Weekly Missoulian reporter in 1880. Nearly 30 years later, in 1908, two young men were “returning from a … [Read more...] about Harmon’s Histories: Marshall Grade a perilous route for 150 years

It was late summer, 1920 – prohibition times, just south of the Canadian line in Lincoln County. Four Eureka residents – booze runners (two men and two women) – had a good lead, but Sheriff Frank Baney “stepped on it” and within a mile was alongside the fleeing car shouting at them to stop. They refused. So Baney fired a few shots at their front tires. Bottles began … [Read more...] about Harmon’s Histories: Sheriff Frank Baney served Lincoln County with courage, compassion

He was one of Missoula’s most prominent citizens back around the turn of the century – a successful businessman, a city councilman of several terms, an exalted ruler in the Elks lodge, a member of the Masons and the Odd Fellows. But he'll be forever remembered for that sidewalk clock on Higgins Avenue. Herman Kohn was a 22-year-old immigrant from Prague, Bohemia, when he … [Read more...] about Harmon’s Histories: Missoula jeweler Herman Kohn’s eventful life … and iconic downtown clock

The crowd was estimated at something north of 3,500 people – more than 10 times the town’s population. It was September 5, 1999. They’d come from all over to see a Guinness World’s Record broken. And they did: The world’s largest hamburger, weighing 6,040 pounds, measuring 24 feet in diameter, fried on a 576-square-foot grill. Saco, Montana had made headlines around the … [Read more...] about Harmon’s Histories: Meet the desperadoes, burger champs and athletes of Saco, Montana