The Powder River County examiner and the Broadus independent. [volume] (Broadus, Mont.) 1919-1935, 1922-01-20

to endure the feeling akin to sliding
off the roof of high peaked building
that has been the experience of his
predecessors in travel. And for all
time will be Quoted the terror of the
tourists in approaching the Copper
city and also the delegations of other
ambitious cities whose warnings here
tofOre have been ""gO the other way
to be SAFE" Instead of sensation
such as might be expected amidships
in shooting the chutes Of Riverview
or Coney Island, the itinerant autoist
will have only gentle glide in drop
ping into Butte from the mountain
tops to the cast.
R0ughness to Depart
Furthermore, the Davis grade
promises none of the roughness so
frequently disappointing the highway
traveller, but will be as smooth as
new-laid boulevard and as comfort
ing to the nerves as a feather tick.
The natural material on hand, decom-
posed granite cut from the mountain
side on which the road is graded, in
sures a hard surface of this commend
able quality.
The admonition of good roads
boosters is that the highway be call
ed from now on the Davis grade" in
attribution to A. J. Davis, president
of the First National bank of Butte,
who first perceived the importance Of
this road to Butte and who essayed.
alone. to develop its possibilities
and spent a modest fortune in Inn
proving 1t. Others have come now to
modernize the road; but there was
none as far-sighted as Davis or with
such civic pride some years ago as
to undertake, single-handed. the i'm
provement of an arterial road leading
into the city.
Without the work done by him and
others preceding him, recognition of
the importance of the road giving
egress to the east might not have
been had as early as it was and the
improvement now being done might
have been retarded and obliged to
wait for considerable time to come
Davis self-sponsored and self-paid
road work, supported by ardent good
roads boosters of Butte, served to
crystalline community sentiment IA
vOring construction of the Davis
grade and to result this year. instead
Of in years to come. in the undertak-
ing now nearly done.
To CLEAN the early history of the
road through Pipestone hill such pio-
neers as Prof. Moore, Ed How
ell and Billy Woodward need be con-
suited. Ed Howell came in on the
road 40 years ago when it was merely
faint trail leading obliquely off the
mountain tops. Others came earlier
than that, and knew the trail as the
travel route of Indian. trapper and
lprospector. Before the Indian, big
game elected this course as the noun
tain passageway offering the least re-
sistance to progress.
Gradually the beaten track through
the wilderness widened into q wagon
road, scarcely deserving that descrip-
ton until Nelson NJ. Parsons built q
sort Of roadway down the hill from
Pipestone pass in 1855. Soon after
the road was acquired by Judge A. J.
Davis. an uncle of Mr.. Davis of Butte.
after whom the grade is now named.
and was operated as toll road. The
toll house, known az the Eighteen
Mile, because It was Is miles from
the stage depot near Silver Bow, later
became Grace station, now a point
on the Milwaukee railroad and three
miles away from its original site. In
1877 and 1878 Deer Lodge county,
under the direction of William Ows-
ley. road supervisor, built q road
known as the Hill road. ON the side
of the creek opposite the toll road,
and the collection of tolls. levied for
maintenance and upkeep. was discon-
tinued.
Name Is MisnOmer
Never could the road through Pipe
stone pass compete for the long-dis-
lance championship, for the hill Is not
as long as is commonly believed. and
the misnomer Of Eighteen Mile hill.
given 4 In the early DAYS. while Butte