100 Years Ago — Sept 9&16, 1926.
The Second Annual Rodeo at Big Sandy got underway with great promise in September 1926.
The rodeo opened on Sunday with fine weather and a large crowd. Manager John Hartwig carried out the first day’s program in what the newspaper described as his “usual efficient way.”
Unfortunately, Montana weather had other plans for the second day.
Continued rain forced the day’s program to be abandoned. The following morning dawned clear, but clouds soon returned, and by noon there was still uncertainty about whether the sports could be held.
Eventually, organizers decided the show would go on.
At 3 o’clock, events began with about 300 people in attendance. One added attraction proved particularly memorable: bareback riding on unbroken mules, which the newspaper reported was “most exciting at times.”
Among those coming into Big Sandy for the festivities were Mrs. Ed Bucholtz and daughters Emma and Dorothy, along with Evelyn and Dorothy Swanson, who were in town Monday.
There was new-baby news that week as well. Mr. and Mrs. Henry Mudd welcomed a nine-pound baby girl on September 4.
Tom Rada of Big Sandy won the state horseshoe championship at the State Fair. In an era when horseshoe pitching was a serious competitive event at fairs and community gatherings, bringing home a state championship was no small accomplishment.
Mrs. Verla Ray and family were Sunday visitors of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Ojola and family.
Miss Bertha Clawitter returned Monday to Great Falls after visiting her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Max Clawitter. She was employed in the Great Falls office of the Monarch Lumber Company.
75 Years Ago — Sept 13, 1951
Mrs. Gregory Henderson and her infant daughter, Linda Rae, returned home from Havre on Saturday.
Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Keller of Great Falls spent the weekend visiting home folks.
Glenn Skaalure spent the weekend at Fairfield visiting Miss Jere Lou Graves.
But Glenn’s weekend visit came just before a much more serious departure.
At about 4 o’clock Sunday afternoon, friends arrived with cake, sandwiches and salad for a farewell party for Glenn. He was preparing to leave Wednesday for Butte to be inducted into the Army.
It is one of those small notices that carries considerably more meaning when read decades later. A homemade cake, sandwiches and salad, friends stopping by on a Sunday afternoon — a simple Big Sandy farewell before a young man left home to enter military service.
And then there was a piece of news that probably drew nearly universal approval from everyone traveling south of town.
The newspaper announced:
“We’re very glad that the bad hole in the road south of Berglunds has been filled in.”
Some things about rural life, apparently, transcend generations.
50 Years Ago — Sep 9, 1976
The paper remembered Mrs. Kade King, who had been born August 4, 1905, in Grayson County, Virginia, and passed away at her home in Amarillo on August 25, 1976. She was the oldest child of Robert D. and Maude B.King’s family. The family had moved to Montana in April during her childhood and homesteaded at Eagleton. Mrs. King had been blind for many years and attended the School for the Blind in Bozeman.
Elsewhere, visits between friends and relatives continued to fill the social columns.
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Laraki of Polson and their friend, Pat Montague of Santa Barbara, spent the weekend visiting Henrietta’s family, including Thelma and Nelson Allderdice and her brother Bob and family.
The Ernest Petersons took their Red Dale camper and spent the weekend fishing at Beaver Creek Park. Monday evening, the Gary Geyer family joined the Petersons for supper.
Alan Halverson, Ann Turk and the Russ Dixon family were busy digging potatoes at the Marinus Peterson farm— the sort of September job that rarely made headlines but certainly marked the changing season.
Emma Kulbeck and Helen Rose co-hosted a birthday party at the Kulbeck home for Helen’s mother, Amiela Rapp, who was celebrating her 90th birthday. Among those helping her celebrate were Vernell Blockhus, Florus and Gail Beebe, Temperance Kessler, Dan Cavitt and children, Katherine Brewer, Grace Bitz, Ida Buchholz, Dorothy Bergland, Emily Brown, and Mr. and Mrs. John Secora and family.
Biddy Brown also celebrated a birthday with a picnic at the river. Those joining in included family and friends from the Brown, Pavlovick, Silvan, Jappe, Hoge and Hand families, making it another of those large gatherings that once regularly appeared in the community columns.
The Ray Berlinger family enjoyed a trip to Yellowstone Park before school began.
At Rosie Darlington’s, a Wednesday birthday party was held for Trina, with Racheal Darlington, Debbie and Robin Pribyl, Shannon Rutledge, and Cindy and Neil Gasvoda among those attending while their mothers visited.
The community also paused to remember J.M. Gasvoda of Corvallis, a retired Big Sandy rancher.
25 Years Ago — Sept 12, 2001
One striking photograph showed a Japanese delegation visiting Chouteau County. The group toured area farms and enjoyed lunch at the Big Sandy Senior Citizens Center.
During the visit, the delegation toured the Montana Flour and Grains facility in Fort Benton, as well as the farms of Jon Tester, Bob Quinn and Robert Boettcher.
The 2001 growing season was described as one that would be remembered for its lack of moisture — but certainly not for a lack of weeds.
Dr. A.J. Bussan, Extension weed specialist, was scheduled to discuss kochia biology, while representatives from the herbicide industry would discuss various control methods. If weather and time allowed, participants could also examine kochia-control plots near Fort Benton.
The drought was causing trouble closer to home as well — including on the Pioneer football field.
With city water unavailable for adequately watering the football field, area residents and businesses stepped forward.
People donated water, equipment, time and fuel to keep the field alive.
Those recognized for helping included Bart Bitz, Rod Courtange, Keith Danreuther, Robin Pearson, Wayne Turner and Randy Williams.
Agri Basic provided water tanks, Cenex contributed fertilizer, and Tom Hlavnicka provided access to his water supply.
Big Sandy High School also began participating in the MHSA/Wheat Montana Good Citizenship program, designed to recognize students involved in activities who demonstrated sportsmanship and character.
Student body president Matt Bitz introduced the program to fans before the Big Sandy-Blue Sky game and explained how recipients would be selected.
Shelly Graff returned home to Anchorage after an extended stay with the Robertson and Graff families in Big Sandy. Gretchen Robertson accompanied her and continued on to her home and Coast Guard duty station in Kodiak, Alaska.