Field Trip

A couple of weeks ago, my manfriend Kel and I took a little field trip to Helena where we visited a friend and checked out the Montana Historical Society. We got in for half price because one of the galleries was closed, and we also got a AAA discount. That is good because from what we saw and heard, it wasn’t really worth full price. Outside you can see some metal sculptures. I particularly liked the giant welded bison skull gracing the front lawn. It kind of reminded me of Arizona where cow skulls are considered western decoration.

Inside, we apparently went through the one open gallery backward by starting at the front of the building. It became clear as we headed in that we were supposed to start at the back and work our way forward. But by going in the wrong order, we got to see and hear the best propaganda first. Here is a nice example.

As far as propaganda that was overheard, there was a docent giving a tour to some high school kids. I don’t recall exactly what my manfriend told me she was talking about, but it apparently had something to do with bank insolvency because she assured the kids that now our money is safe and sound in banks thanks to the FDIC. Uh huh. Yeah. Sure. Right.

My manfriend also spotted historical evidence of His Holy Noodliness in a display of various brands. I think this helps establish that the Flying Spaghetti Monster was, indeed, fond of meat and was not a vegetarian.

Near the end (or what should have been the beginning) of the gallery was my favorite exhibit of all. You may recall a picture I posted a while back of a buffalo jump. This gallery contained a diorama of a buffalo jump complete with hunters and buffalo. I loved the tumbling buffalo suspended in mid-air.

Finally, we went upstairs where we saw Big Medicine, a rare white buffalo born in 1933 on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana. According to the Montana Historical Society:

White bison are extremely rare, historically appearing only once in every five million births. To many Indian peoples such animals are sacred and represent great spiritual power. Consequently, the May 3, 1933, birth of a white buffalo calf on the National Bison Range on Montana’s Flathead Indian Reservation was greeted with celebration and wonder. The birth was a crowning achievement of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes’ efforts to recover a population of bison for their reservation. Named in recognition of the sacred power attributed to white bison, “Big Medicine” held great significance for the people of Montana, both Native American and non-Indian. For this reason, in the early 1950s the Montana Historical Society made arrangements to ensure that, upon his death, Big Medicine would be moved to the state’s museum and permanently preserved for future generations. Because he had some pigmentation – blue eyes, tan hooves, and a brown topknot – Big Medicine was a white buffalo rather than a pure albino. At his prime, he weighed 1,900 pounds, stood six feet high at the hump, and measured twelve feet%, 20from the tip of his nose to the end of his tail. Although his fame spread worldwide, Big Medicine spent his entire life on the National Bison Range where he received special care that enabled him to live much longer than bison normally do. As a result, however, when he died in 1959 his hide was in poor condition, and in many places, almost hairless. Consequently, his advanced age will forever be reflected in the worn appearance of the mount.

And here is the mount:

That’s all I’ve got on the Montana Historical Society except to say that they are open on Mondays which seems to be unusual for museums in southwestern Montana.