Many will be surprised to learn that two Native Americans were lynched in the Flathead Valley in 1888. And this vigilantism was just the first wave of incidents and murders that culminated in a mass execution in Missoula.
Local history buff and former reporter Rick Hull will reveal this story at the Northwest Montana Westerners gathering in Kalispell on Monday, August 19.
A report that three gold prospectors had been robbed and killed east of Libby led to a raid on a Kootenai camp outside Demersville, south of present-day Kalispell. Two of the suspected murderers were caught and, after a brief trial, hanged from a cottonwood tree across the river from the early steamboat town.
A posse then attempted to intimidate the Kootenai at their home in Dayton on the Flathead Reservation, but it backfired. A reverse invasion of Demersville by tribal warriors followed after the Kootenai chief’s son was killed in town. Buffalo Soldiers from Fort Missoula were called in to calm the situation.
Then, by chance, the murder of a lone traveler near Lakeside came to light. Finally, Missoula Sheriff Bill Houston organized a posse and forced the reservation chief to hand over the culprits. The execution of four Indians in Missoula on December 19, 1890 brought the saga to a bitter end.
Although the lynchings and murders are mentioned in local history books, the full story remains largely untold. Using a series of confusing and conflicting first-hand accounts, the speaker has pieced together a narrative of the actions and motives of those involved.
The presentation begins at 7 p.m. on the second floor of the museum, 124 2nd Ave. E. in Kalispell. Admission is $5 for the general public; members and youth under 16 are free.
