The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1917-10-07
Pioneers and Editors Join
in Honoring Stuart
and Party.
SURVIVOR RELATES
DISCOVERY STORY
A. L. Stone Delivers Address
Dedicating Monument
at Gold Creek.

At the mouth of Gold Creek, in a
twist of Hell Gate canyons narrow
length, Granville Stuart yesterday saw
a granite memorial shaft unveiled
where 50 years ago he and a party of
fellow prospectors discovered the first
true pay dirt" panned in what is now
Montana.
Half hundred members of the So
ciety Of Montana Pioneers. the Mon
tana Geographical society and the
Montana Press association participated
i'm the dedication of the James II. Mills
memorial. "Sandbar" otherwise Frank
BD Brown, historian of the pioneers
society. turned over the monument to
A. l.. Stone of the university, who rep
resented the geographical society. In
SO doing he spoke briefly In preface
to the formal addresses of Mr.. Stone
and Mr.. Stuart. which were the fea-
lures of the program.
Inscription Explains.
The inscription on the shaft ex-
plains the significance of yesterdays
ceremony:
This monument is erected to
permanently identity the gnlclf In
T~ which gold was first discovered in
the present state Of Montana on
the second day Of May, 1858, by
Granville Stuart, James Stuart,
Rccce Anderson and Thomas
Adams, prospectors.
From this historic ravine went
the report throughout the frontier
west of gold bearing gravel of
such value and magnitude that it
Immediately opened up the settle
ment of millions of acres of the
richest agricultural land in the
northern boundaries of the United
States, heretofore inhabited only
by the Indians and wild game.
Out Of the discovery made here
grew the greatest of the central
continental commonwcalths--Mon
tana.
Upon this watershed lay the
richest copper, gold and silver
quartz lode mining claims of the
Rocky mountain region.
Contributed by the daughter of a
soldier of the civil war. a frontier
: journalist. statesman and exem-
plary citizen, the Hon. James II.
Mills of Deer Lodge, a warm per-
sonal friend of the discoverers. to
commemorate the most historic
spot within the state.
MARY E. MORONY,
Cold Creek. Powell County, Mon
tana, 1916.
Thrill Of Discovery Revived.
Something of the thrill experience,
by the pioneer prospectors when the,
turned up gold in the lonely canyol
f..,,
today's ceremony by Granville Stuart
the one surviving member of the dis
covery party. He told simply an
briefly the story of that day (brigh
and sunny like yesterday SO rich i
historical Importance. He could almos
see his companions pulling pans an
shovels from their packs, he said. an
going to work at the edge of tn
stream. Standing in retrospect h
could almost feel again the wonderf,
excitement of the sudden cry:
Here it is-GOLD!''
Honor Guests at Ceremony.
At the unveiling of the monumer
were three guests of honor: Granvill
Stuart, Miss Sallie Anderson of Fol
Maginnis, Mont, daughter of Ree6
Anderson, one of the party of fol
gold prospectors. and David b. Weave
of SaXton, Pa, who was Il member I
the party that discovered gold in Il
Yellowstone valley, Emigrant canyo
in August, 1864.
Other prominent people and pionee
present included: Dean A. l.. Stol
of Missoula and Miss Charlotte Ston,
Joseph Smith II. of Deer Lodge. edit
of the Silver State; Frank d. "Sant
bar" Brown of Philipsburg; 4.
Sutherlin, Great Falls, editor of Il
Rocky Mountain Husbsndman and Il
oldest living editor In Montana: Fral
Conley of Deer Lodge; Col. Thorn
McTague of Deer Lodge; NJ. L. Hutc
ems, editor of the Missoulian. Missoul
George II. Cade, Kalispell, president
the Montana State Press associatio
Carl Bergstrand of Pioneer; J.
f'aulds OF Steyensville, editor of I
Northwest Tribune, and Col. Edgar
Paxson of Missoula, the famous Mo
tana artist who designed the mon
ment.
Smith Praises Brown.
Joseph Smith II. praised the VIC
of Frank d. Brown. to whose effo
the erection of the monument is maiI
due, and eulogized Captain Mills.