June 13 -- June 13 – On this day in Montana history in 1971 the Montana State Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs celebrated their 50^th Annual Convention in Great Falls. Elizabeth Hill of Great Falls was named the Woman of the Year. The Clubs motto, “We Climb” was the theme of the convention

June 12 – On this day in Montana history in 1962 a Northern Pacific passenger train packed with tourists returning from the Seattle World’s fair plummeted off the tracks and down an embankment at more than double its recommended speed 16 miles north of Missoula. One passenger was killed and another 243 were injured some critically. One official said it was travelling more than 70 miles an hour when it left the tracks.

June 11 – On this day in Montana history in 1971 people gathered on Race Unity Day to talk about problems that continue to face the state and nation today. A panel was convened in Great Falls to talk about “Race Relations in Montana.” A proclamation by city officials called for all Montanans to “focus on the most challenging issue, the race problem.”

June 10 – On this day in Montana history in 1962 the Great Falls Tribune reported a major communications breakthrough: “direct long distance dialing.” The service connected 260 Montana communities and about 74 million more in the U.S. and Canada. It reportedly cost the Northern States Telephone Company of Great Falls about $1.3 million to install it. Even the cell phone had a granddaddy!

June 7 – On this day in Montana history in 1964 Montana was reeling from what at that time was called the worst natural disaster in its recorded history. Heavy rains in early June sent rivers raging to a mile wide in some areas with homes, dams, roads and railroads washed away and more than 30 people left dead. On June 7 alone 10 inches of rain fell in Browning, Glacier National Park and Augusta. President Lyndon Johnson declared nine counties in northwest and north-central Montana federal disaster areas, and damages eventually totaled more than $62 million.

June 6 – Also on this day in 1917 a story circulated statewide about a woman from Columbus, Ohio, who sent a letter to Butte Mayor W.H. Maloney asking him to help her find a husband so she could do her part on the home front during WWI. “I want to do something for my country and at the same time for myself,” the woman wrote. “I want to be a war bride, but I want a western man for a husband, one who will ride a horse in France and distinguish himself. If possible get me a cowboy.”

June 5 – On this day in Montana history in 1917 the Billings Gazette featured a story on the great future envisioned for Rapelje. The town was being promoted by the Merchants Loan Company of Billings, and it shows how business played a major role in how Montana developed. “Good weather will see a boom at the new town of Rapelje, at the terminus of the Northern Pacific branch into Lake basin,” the paper said.