In July I received an order for 16 copies of Lois' book Fifty Cents An Hour from the Valley County Historical Society in Glasgow. I decided to deliver them in person and headed for Fort Peck. It was a great ride. I stopped at the Maltana Motel in Malta, MT where Lois and I had stayed several times on our many trips to Fort Peck as she researched her book.
The Little White Church In Malta. The first thing Diana noticed in the picture was the little bird house. It's a nice church and the Pastor pulled into the driveway as I took the picture. He had a big smile on his face. I bet lots of folks shoot that same picture.
Fort Peck Dam is a four mile long pile of dirt with a road running across the top. The rock used as Rip Rap was blasted from Snake Butte about sixty miles away and carried by long trains to the Dam Site where the big railroad cars would open up and deposit the boulders on the face of the dam.
The Memorial to the 59 men who died building the dam. Lois worked for several years with Michelle Fromdahl the curator of the Interpretive Center to get this Memorial completed.
Raymond Hagen was Lois' Dad's best friend. They went to work on the dam together. He was hit from behind by a big jack and was thrown into a two hundred foot hole to the bottom of the shaft. They were working together and Raymond had just asked her Dad, "What time is it Len, time for me to go home to my wife?" Lois wrote a song about this for our program.
The presentation room where Lois and I did her Songs and Stories of the Fort Peck dam program.
Peck's Rex, the centerpiece of the dinosaur museum at the interpretive center.
More dinosaurs.
Huge floor to ceiling aquariums. That is one big fish!
More big fish swimming in the fish tank.
The center has great wildlife displays
The Power Houses have a great tour. Don't miss this if you visit Fort Peck.
Stepping in to the past.
I took a picture of Lois and her friend Michelle standing by this picture and tried to get them to raise their foot to wooden beam in the picture so it would look like they were actually stepping into the tunnel. They wouldn't do that.
I took the books the Historical Society ordered to the Pioneer Museum. What a dedicated staff they have taking care of the history of the pioneers from Northeast Montana.
This is Kitty Lou Rusher who talked on the phone with Lois for many hours during the writing and after publication of the book. She was so sure it would be a big seller that when the head of the museum said they would order 6 copies of the book, Kitty Lou said you should make that sixty because they'll sell fast. They ordered 36 books and Kitty Lou ordered 36 more on her own. She kept them in the trunk of her car and sold them whenever someone asked her about the book.
Stayed again at the Maltana Motel and met fellow travelers from Knoxville, TN the next morning. It had rained and they were uncovering their equipment. I didn't have a rain cover so I just wiped the seat off with paper towels and hit the road. They were nice folks. We had a good visit. They were heading for Glacier National Park.
The long wet road took me home.
It was a great tip. I don't suppose I'll be getting back to the dam anytime soon. Lois and I visited it many times as she wrote and researched her book. How great that it was published and was such a great success for her before the Alzheimer's Disease stole the memories and stories.
Well, til next time, Keep in the Right Lane America. Be Fantastic !
