The Wagon Tongue ______________________________________________________________________________________ Volume 2 Issue 4 Madison Valley History Association, Inc. October 2004 ______________________________________________________________________________________ From the Wagon Seat: Wow!! What beautiful fall days we are having. I really donʼt know where the summer has gone, but it went by way too fast. The MVHA kept the museum open on Sat. and Sun,1-4pm from June until September. We had a total of 45 people sign our guest book. I would like to thank all those members who volunteered at the museum, some two and three times. But there were some days when we could not find anyone to take a shift. As we look into the future,we need to have more members take a turn at the museum and we need to let everyone know that we have a museum. As we look into spring of 2005, I hope we can have a design of a building. The land has been assured to us; we are just waiting on the paper work. The fly fishing festival and our part in it was successful. We sold a few mugs, handed out our new brochures and gave a historical tour of main street Ennis. Our “Old Time Social” was a success too. I would like to thank Zoe Todd for her efforts in organizing it. Zoe Todd, Larry Love, Shirley Love, Don Neville, Neil Kent, Mary Ann Alger, and Mona Durham told the untold stores of the Madison Valley. We had help developing the skit from Allison Adams. Rachel Jones did a living history demonstra- tion of the spinning wheel. It was a great time and learning experience for the 40 or so people who attended. Donʼt miss out next year. Plan to attend!! This Oct. 14 meeting is our last meeting of this year at 7:00pm. Starting in November we will start our meetings at 4:00. Plan to attend meetings and to get involved. If we are to have a museum in Ennis, it will take help from everyone. Larry Love *************************************************************************************************************************************************** History Tidbit: (Update on M.L. Morgan from The Times, Virginia City, Montana Newspaper, November 25, 1904 Friday) Before Justice N. D. Johnson, Tuesday afternoon at two p.m., Mayseth L. Morgan of Morgan Gulch in the Madison Valley, appeared to answer to the charge of assault in the first degree upon the person of Albert P. Henrie, a sheepherder in the employ of John E. Johnson of Cherry Creek. There were no witnesses to the alleged assault, and Justice Johnson discharged the accused, who had been in durance vile since last Thursday. The complaining witness, Albert P. Henrie, stated that Morgan had pointed a gun at him during an altercation. The defendant who afforded a great deal of amusement to the spectators during his recital, said the gun was not loaded, and besides, he had given Henrie the first chance to shoot, and that when he himself raised the unloaded gun to his shoulder Henrie staggered sideways as if he had been shot. During his impassioned and yet, unintentionally humorous recital the prisoner broke off abruptly and exclaimed, “Judge, give me a chew of tobacco.” Before proceeding, the Judge handed him a plug with the remark,”It would not have taken an instant longer to say please.” After Morgan had helped himself to a generous “Chaw,” which seemed to facilitate his remarks, he continued his story. When all the testimony was before the court, S.V. Stewart, the defendantʼs attorney, moved for the discharge of the prisoner upon the grounds that the evidence adduced was insufficient to warrant binding him over to district court. County Attorney Duncan made a short statement,and then the Judge discharged the prisoner. Morgan jumped out of the chair and pirouetted toward his honor to shake hands,but the Judge smilingly remarked he would not shake hands with a man who would draw a gun upon another, even if he could not be convicted of it, which did not effect in the slightest degree the exuberant joy of the man set at liberty. Submitted by Sue Ren *************************************************************************************************************************************************** Membership dues are now due for the 2004 year. Please check the front of your newsletter near the address to see if there is a “Dues now due “sticker. If there is not a sticker, you have paid your dues! If there is a sticker and if you still consider yourself a member of the MVHA, please plan to submit your membership and support us for another year. If you have a friend or relative who would be interested in a newletter, please give a MVHA board member the name and address and a copy will be sent. You may also share this newletter and Application form if you wish. We are always welcoming interested persons to our organization. Member Application Madison Valley History Association, Inc. P.O. Box 474, Ennis, Mt. 59729 Our Mission is to develop a museum to house and preserve collections of artifacts, tapes, photographs and stories of historical importance to the Madison Valley and interpret them through display and education. Name_____________________________________________________________ Telephone__________________Mailing address____________________________ City___________________________________State___________Zip__________ Student $5.00(__)Individual $10.00(__)Family $15.00(__)Business $50.00(___)Patron $100.00(___) Madison Valley History Association, Inc. Montanaʼs First Election by Gary Forney Addresses are for Ennis unless indicted. Please With election day 2004 just ahead of us, this refer to previous issues for complete listings of 2004 seems an appropriate time to look back on the first memberships. Thank you for your membership. election held in Montana and some of the excitement New members for 2004 (since July issue) it generated. Black, Don (406)453-4719 The Territory of Montana was created by 909 Ave. E. N.W Congress in May,1864,and Sidney Edgerton was Great Falls, Montana 59404 appointed to serve as Governor. Among Edger- Curnow, Ed & Maureen (Cheney) 682-4940 tonʼs first actions was to authorize a census of the 556 BearCreek Loop Road new territory for the purpose of determining Cameron, Mt. 59720 legislative apportionment. Edgerton, however, Hayes, Joyce and Bill 682-3900 essentially disregarded the census and made his P.O. Box 1427 own apportionment when the tally revealed that Moss, Linda (Armstrong) (952)873-2953 Madison County was entitled to virtually all the 512 Maple St. So. legislative seats. Edgertonʼs motives were based Belle Plaine, Mn 56011 less upon charity than political realities. Neverthe- Thank you for your continuing membership and less, the date for the election was set for October 24, support. Dues paid for 2004 since July 2004 and the mudslinging began in earnest. newsletter publication As the political campaign began to take shape, it Hudson Family became clear there were minority factions within Betty Hudson,Wonder Ranch each of the dominant parties. Within the General Delivery Republican(or Union)Party were the far-right Radical Cameron, Mt. 59720 Republicans including Governor Edgerton and his OʼNeel, Jack and Ginny 682-3788 nephew, Wilbur F. Sanders. Similarly within the Democratic Party was a splinter faction known as the P.O. Box 1526 Copperheads. The Copperhead Democrats were Townshend, Deb and Harry 682-7571 strongly pro-Southern in their sympathies and P.O. Box 221 probably represented a number of followers equal to Cameron, Mt. 59720 the Radical Republicans. Regrettably, and Young, Frances (Clark) (907)225-3529 unnecessarily, Edgeton set a turbulent course for 3217 Timberline Ct. territorial politics by painting all Democrats with the Ketchikan, Ak 99901 same brush. ******************************************************** Edgerton accused anyone who supported the Madison Valley History Museum Democratic candidates as being traitors to the cause The Madison Valley History Museum was open this past June of the Union. Wilbur Sanders, a candidate for the through September from 1:00-4:00pm. We did have a shortage post of Territorial Delegate, warned that “if the so- of visitors and volunteers but we will do better next summer. called Democrats get into office, not even a breath of Special thanks to Zoe Todd and Larry Love for alternating the air would go untaxed...and [one] would not be able to opening and closing each week- end and Shirley Love for go [from Virginia City] to Nevada [City] without calling. This was a great time commitment for them. Thanks encountering a toll-gate.” The recently established, also to the following 24 volunteers who manned the museum. and unabashedly Republican Montana Post advised They committed alot of hours to the MVHA efforts.Bev that men should vote the Union ticket “or stay at Claassen(15 hrs), Shirley Gustafson(3),Jerry Wing(3),Smitty home.” Overstreet(21) Jim Carlson(6), Ruby Gleason(6) Mary Ann By at least one objective measurement (the federal Alger(9), Jane Rubus(9), Mona Durham(9), Neil Kent(6), census of 1870), the rhetoric of Edgerton and Ethelyn Hanni(6), Bobby Klatt(3), Lois Walsh(3), Rick Arnold(9), Sanders was greatly exaggerated. Although some Barb Pate(3),JaneBaumgartner(3) Kid Neville(3) Larry population shift may have occurred between 1864 Love(6),Alice Wright(3)Gary Forney(3),Shirley Love(6), Fred and 1870, the federal census of 1870 documents Rochez(3), Bud Angle(3) Pat Hale(3). 18,306 white males residing in Montana, of which only 1,584 were ”natives of the Confederate states.” ******************************************************************* Historian Clark Spene maintains that the History Tidbit The Madisonian April 9, 1943 Republicans could have formed a powerful alliance Naval tests were taken Friday by five high school boys-Jerry with Union Democrats had Edgerton been willing to Burgstrom, Ray Peel, Frank Vetter, Emerson and compromise. Elmer Bock. Returns on the tests were expected in June.