Women, Gold and Weather by Charles Schafft

Women, Gold and Weather. Flathead Country, July 3, 1875. Editor Missoulian: I desire to give you a few facts relative to the early history of our county and territory, which may be of interest to your numerous readers: Women, A former correspondent of your paper was in error concerning the Read More

The Fountain of Youth by Charles Schafft

The “Fountain of Youth” Is in the Northwest Territory of Canada. Contributed to the New North-West by “C. S.” On or about the 26th day of November, 1879, we were traveling, en route from Fort Walsh, in the Northwest Territory, to a small trading post owned by Johnny Kennedy, just Read More

Missoula County Ground Zero 1865 with Charles Schafft

Charles Schafft was the official clerk and recorder at the sanctioning of Missoula County in 1865. One of his duties was recording the affairs of tempestuous proceedings that took place at the first county meetings. It turns out that the county’s first officials were frequently not in agreement. The first Read More

Journalistic Journeying – Missoula to Victor

The following article “Journalistic Journeying,” recounts a Weekly Missoulian reporter’s Bitter Root buggy trip in the fall of 1887, from Missoula to Sweathouse Creek, near Victor, Mt. The Bitter Root railroad was being built at the time. Duane Armstrong, owner of the Missoula newspaper for nine years, had recently suffered Read More

“Missoula” by Charles Schafft

“Missoula” Editor Missoulian, Seeing that you are still in search of information in regard to “Missoula,” I venture to submit the following, which I hope will throw some light on the subject: Upon the old maps, compiled from surveys of Stevens and Mullan, the Missoula is laid down as the Read More

With Sitting Bull by Charles Schafft

In August, 1879, three of us (Johnny Kennedy, a brother of Wm. Kennedy of this town [Missoula], Robt. Campbell, late of Manitoba mounted police, and myself) found ourselves impelled by love for adventure with business in view to undertake a journey from Fort Walsh in the Cypress Hills to Woody Read More

Charles Schafft Visits Lo Lo Hot Springs

Charlie’s Ramblings [With Laughter] Lo Lo Springs, July  11, 1888. The Lo Lo Springs, which are becoming more known and appreciated each season, are situated way up in the Bitter Root mountains, near the dividing line between Idaho and Montana, in one of the most romantic spots in the Western Read More

Pirates On The Jocko by Charles Schafft

Pirates on the Jocko Reminiscence of 1865 One day in the summer of 1865 there stepped into the office of the Flathead Agency, a person in appearance half soldier and half brigand. He was a very tall man, with an educated fierce look in his eye, which was supported by Read More

Charles Schafft – Missoula’s Cheerful Pioneer

“Tall, blond, with blue eyes twinkling, he was always cheerful,” wrote Emma Magee when she furnished us a first-hand account of the crippled Missoula pioneer Charles Schafft. Emma attended a small school with her mixed blood siblings at what later became Missoula’s Hellgate Elementary in Grass Valley. At one time Read More