1st Missoula Poet – Paul Cyr
Missoula’s first poet – Paul Cyr
Article from the Roundup Record-Tribune and Winnett Times, June 22, 1933.
MONTANA SONG MADE IN 1867
First Poem About State Written By Paul Cyr When Working In Butte Mines
It was intended to follow the tune of “Charming Erie,” a popular song of the day; Only copy in existence in possession of Missoula man.
“The Song of Montana,” the first poem to be written about the wild territory that later became a state, is today listed among the prized possessions of W. C. Peat, secretary of the Missoula Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Peat’s copy of the poem, the only known copy of the poem, was given to him in 1907 by Paul Cyr, author of the poem.
The poem, written in 1867 while Cyr was working in the mines at Butte, was written to be sung to the tune of “Charming Erie,” a popular song of that day. The Song of Montana was written in French, and has been translated for the Missoulian by Mrs. Louise P. Arnoldson, instructor in French at the State university as follows:
“Let us sing the muses of a pilgrim,
Of a traveler in the mountains,
Camped in a little ravine,
Along with simple country folk,
Where there’s neither milk nor wine to drink,
Nor faces to see save that of man.
“Among the miners, strangers all,
Each one performs his little task,
Few give a thought to autumn near
If there’s enough to drink and eat,
And even those who work with zeal
Do it to keep their muscles fit.
“You have to cross the western states
To see wild goats and buffalo,
The riches of our Uncle Sam
Are spread upon the prairies there
And ‘long the Mississippi banks
And on the broad Missouri shore.
“Many dangers did we face,
Crossing the river and the plain –
The Indians kept us on our guard,
At moments when least in our minds –
Even at supper, while we ate,
They came and stole our mules away.
“Dwelling near the Missouri,
In these famous mountains,
Twenty-six hundred miles from St. Louis
Where they dare to build their dykes
During the winter’s labors,
Digging in the earth and rock.
“In these mountains, reared so high,
The climate’s all heart can desire.
In January the grass still grows,
However improbable that may seem,
Nevertheless, it is the truth,
Which is very easy to verify.
“In this region that is half wild,
I swear to you, one walks on gold –
In these great mountains, veiled in clouds,
One finds much gold – gold that is pure,
And rubies, too, one finds in them,
Whose worth is also very great.
“The valleys are of beauty rare.
They teem with riches admirable.
They yield good wheat in harvest time,
And give us pasture lands as well.
The mountains give us wood and gold,
And there each one can choose his fate.”
Paul Cyr, “the first Montana poet,” was born in Grand Isle, Maine, in 1832, and received his education in the schools at Houlton, Me. In 1855, he left New England and wandered west to St. Joseph, Mo., and the following year came to what is now Helena.
From Helena, he drifted to Butte before there were more than a few rude tents and shelters to mark the site of the state’s future metropolis. He worked in the placer mines around Butte for several months, during which time he wrote his “Song of Montana.”
Leaving Butte, Cyr came to what is now Missoula and together with several other of the state’s pioneers, took up a claim on what is now known as Lacasse placer ground at Cedar creek.
In 1872, Cyr returned to Maine, leaving his claim here. However, the lure of the west pulled, and in a few months he returned to Montana and took up a homestead near Kalispell, where he taught school for a short time.
Some time later, he went to Missoula and built the little stone house which still stands on Sherwood street. A good musician, Cyr spent the last few years of his life entertaining his friends with the music of his violin, and telling them stories of his adventures in the raw, undeveloped country that he found when he first came to the west.
In 1907, then 76 years of age, Cyr moved to Boise, Idaho, to live with relatives, and the following year he died there.
During Cyr’s residence in Missoula, Mr. Peat became very well acquainted with him, and shortly before his removal to Boise, he presented Mr. Peat with two copies of his “Song of Montana.” One of the copies Mr. Peat gave to the State university for filing in the historical library of the institution, but during the period of moving from the old library building into the present structure, the University’s copy was lost, leaving the one owned by Mr. Peat the only one known to be in existence.
“The Song of Montana” so far as known, is the only poem to have been written by Cyr. He used to play on his violin melodies, that he had composed Mr. Peat stated, but never exhibited or spoke of specimens of other verse.
So far as known, Cyr’s poem is the first to be written about the Treasure State, and as such is of historical interest.