Missoula, Montana

July 22-23  Lolo Creek Square Dance Center and RV Park

Designed as a center for square dancing activities, this park also welcomes "non-dancers"...like us!  The sites are varied, some fairly close together, some like ours, are like stopping in a park. We are out on the edge, where we have a lovely little mowed meadow that is actually part of the wiffle golf course (?) 'Never heard of it before, but they seem to like it here.  There are also families of wild turkeys that wander the grounds. Add a few wildflowers scattered here and there for color, and a creek running along the back side of the campground and you have a near perfect place to stop for a few nights.

Only a few miles back to the east, toward Missoula proper,

Quilt in Traveler's Rest museum

 Traveler's Rest State Park, on the Bitterroot River. It sounds like an RV park doesn't it? It's actually named for the fact that Lewis and Clark's exploration party stopped here in 1805. The visitor's center has a good many artifacts from the time and what a marvelous job they have done with their displays. Many of the items are displayed in a village-like setting that's been constructed inside the building. There's also a full size teepee, a lot of hands-on materials for the kids, and well written signboards explaining the importance of pieces in the collection.The volunteer docents are very helpful, as well as knowledgeable. There's also a walking path with additional information posted along the way. It's definitely a worthwhile stop.

We visited Traveler's Rest in the morning and then later in the day we toured Fort Missoula. Wow! Where to start with the history of this fort? We only knew it was involved in the Indian wars in this area. Established as a permanent post in 1877, it never had walls. It was an "open fort", requiring troops to actively patrol the area.
In 1888 the 25th Infantry arrived at Fort Missoula. This was a regiment made up of Black Soldiers. In 1896 they were organized as the  25th Infantry Bicycle Corps, to test the potential of bicycles as military transportation.

The fort was used as a training center during WW I, and then it was nearly abandoned before it was designated the Northwest Regional Headquarters for the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1933.

We were surprised to learn that in 1941 it also served as a detention center for Italian Merchant Marines captured in WWII, as well as Japanese who were kept here along with American military personnel who were accused of crimes.   

Many of the original buildings are gone now, so the vast acreage is used to good advantage in multiple ways. Surviving buildings are all used to house permanent and rotating museum displays or other related activities. There are forestry displays, a collection of railroad cars and equipment, and a few pioneer cabins have been brought in. There's also one building remaining that was used during the Japanese internment camp era.

The fort was remodeled between 1908 and 1914 and many of the buildings remaining are from that era. The officers quarters, enlisted barracks and the hospital are currently occupied by various state and federal programs, such as the Lolo National Forest Service Supervisor's office.

 The one really unexpected touch....the Montana Iris Society has a garden here. The iris were past blooming, but here were other colorful plants making up for their absence.

Iris garden at Fort Missoula

Wow, what a day! Needless to say, our brains were full of historical information by the time we finished at the Fort,  so back to camp we went for a relaxing evening.

A few more views of the fort here.