This topic covers shows from a variety of organizations that have been recorded at the Museum of the Rockies.
This show is the second in a series about the Living History Farm at Museum of the Rockies, which provides visitors with an immersive, field-based learning experience of Montana’s homesteading and agricultural history. Explore the Farm, including its gardens, buildings, and activities, through this program.
Produced by Angie Weikert, Museum of the Rockies. Photo courtesy Museum of the Rockies.
The Living History Farm Gardens at the Museum of the Rockies feature heirloom plants available to homesteaders by in the 1890s. Homesteaders had access to a wonderful variety of garden products that could withstand the harsh western conditions of Montana. In this program, Living History Farm Manager Dave Kinsey, shares the history of the museum’s garden, the vegetables being planted this year, and tips for gardening in the Gallatin Valley.
This show is the first in a series about the Living History Farm at Museum of the Rockies, which provides visitors with an immersive, field-based learning experience of Montana’s homesteading and agricultural history. Explore the Farm, including its gardens, buildings, and activities, through this program.
Produced by Angie Weikert, Museum of the Rockies. Photo courtesy Museum of the Rockies.
Recently for the Extreme History Project, Professor Dale Martin from the History Department at Montana State University described the state of public transportation in Montana 100 years ago, when dozens of daily passenger trains reached almost every county in the state, carrying people, express, U.S. Mail, cans of milk, and money. His talk, entitled “The North Coast Limited, the Nightcrawler, and the Skidoo: A century of passenger trains and public transportation in Montana,” provides an overview and explanation of the many decades long decline of rail service, and intercity public transportation in general, since that time. Sponsored by the railroad enthusiasts of Montana Ntrak.
Recorded at the Museum of the Rockies on February 20, 2020.
We are accustomed to hearing great films discussed in terms of their influence on later movies, and Westerns are no exception. The makers of recent Western movies routinely discuss their works in relation to classics like The Searchers or Shane. But how, you might ask, were these filmmakers introduced to Westerns? By their grandparents? Or by someone else? In fact, the majority of filmmakers today were first introduced to the Western as an academic subject in the course of their professional training. How this influences the movies they make, and what it means for our understanding of the Western’s rich history, are just two of the topics covered in this exploration of the current state of the Western movie.
Graphic courtesy of Andrew Nelson. Click to enlarge.
Andrew Patrick Nelson is an historian of American cinema and culture, film programmer, museum curator and media commentator. He is chair of the Department of Film and Media Arts and associate professor of film studies at the University of Utah.
Recorded at the Museum of the Rockies on December 2, 2019.
Josh DeWeese is a potter. Not a Bozeman potter or a Montana potter, but a world potter. In a lecture for the Bozeman Art Museum entitled “A Life in Clay,” he tells about his history, his influences, his materials and techniques. He talks about his pots and about building kilns, each unique in what he calls the “compressed geology” of the firing process. His love for the medium animates every sentence. If you know Josh’s work, the absence of images in this recording is no impediment. If not, or you would like to see more, you can view Josh’s work online at joshdeweese.com.
Recorded at the Museum of the Rockies on November 6, 2019.
Brent Peyton came to MSU in 1986 to being his doctoral studies as a chemical engineer. He quickly became enthralled with field microbiology in Yellowstone. Professor Peyton is now the director of MSU’s Thermobiology Institute and works at the cutting edge of biological engineering, harnessing the ability of microbes to make biofuel, to clean up mining pollution, and perhaps to recycle plastic. In this Provost’s Lecture, he describes the development of his career and the areas he has worked in.
Recorded at the Museum of the Rockies on November 5, 2019.
Apsaalooke/Tsistsistas (Crow/Northern Cheyenne) artist Ben Pease stands firmly upon the ideal of education via creativity as a contemporary storyteller. Pease’s work is well known for its unique and culturally relevant style using historic photographic references while also addressing current events and issues. In the contemporary art world, indigenous artists often confront issues like cultural appropriation, exotification, racism and stereotype disguised as appreciation and oblivion. In this talk, Pease touches on these issues through stories and learnings from his own life. Following the talk, with suggestions from the audience, Pease painted over a previously created painting of Christopher Columbus, using red paint, the same color as a statue on which audience members were asked to write words that came to mind when thinking of Indians.
Recorded at the Museum of the Rockies on October 24, 2019.
Parnassius butterflies lay their eggs each year in montane meadows during mid-summer. The eggs overwinter under the deep snow, hatching into caterpillars in the spring when the snowpack melts. As temperatures increase and the duration of snow cover in our region shortens, these butterflies can serve as an ecological indicator for montane ecosystems because they are abundant, showy, and easily identified.
Dr. Diane Debinski is the Department Head and Professor of the Ecology Department at Montana State University. Dr. Debinski and her students have been studying Parnassius butterflies and the flowering plants that they use for nectar in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem for over 25 years. Hear the story of how this small white butterfly may provide a window into understanding how climate change may be affecting montane ecosystems worldwide.
Recorded at the Museum of the Rockies on October 23, 2019.
Experimental autonomous cars are increasingly found on the nation’s roads and highways. Deborah G. Johnson, an expert on the ethics of computer science and technology, discussed the issues that such development gives rise to, in her presentation at Montana State University’s annual Hausser Lecture.
Johnson addresses the question, “How should we think about safety and standards for autonomous cars?” She has written that “Answering this question is not just a matter of developing physical components that operate reliably”. “Achieving safety in autonomous cars will require reliable machines as well as reliable social behavior, practices and arrangements.”
Recorded at the Museum of the Rockies on October 1, 2019.
Christine Stanton is a Professor in the Department of Education at Montana State University. In a recent Provost’s Lecture, she tells about her research and experiences in indigenous communities, such as Lander, Wyoming, where her career began. Her term for this work is “community-centered participatory research,” which relies on indigenous mentors who are co-creators of the findings and stories that result. Stanton situates her efforts within a framework of four R’s: relationality, reciprocity, responsibility, and respect.
Recorded at the Museum of the Rockies on October 15, 2019.
Cemeteries are like outdoor museums, full of beauty, history, and symbolism. If we look closely, the art engraved on the historic headstones can give us clues to the past. In this lecture, Crystal Alegria, one of the founders of The Extreme History Project, leads us through the symbolism engraved on some of the headstones of Bozeman’s historic Sunset Hills Cemetery. She de-codes the symbolism, telling complex and fascinating stories of our town founders buried below.
Recorded at the Museum of the Rockies on September 19, 2019.
Kristen Intemann, Professor of Philosophy at Montana State University, delivered a Provost’s Lecture entitled “Believing Responsibly in an Era of Fake News, Attacks on Science, and Alternative Facts”. After first illustrating the problem with a series of recent examples, she described her family background with its educational, political, religious, and ethnic diversity. In this mix she was the child constantly asking, “Why?” As a philosopher, she sees that epistemology–how we know–intersects with ethics–how we interact with those we learn from. She described what it means to acquire knowledge responsibly, engaging with others on the basis of values such as respect and humility.
Recorded on September 17, 2019 at the Museum of the Rockies.
To best understand a community, one needs to understand the individuals that compose it. In the case of bacterial communities, such as biofilms, the bacteria are so tiny and so numerous that single cell studies in the laboratory are slow and tedious. Dr. Connie Chang, professor in MSU’s Chemical and Biological Engineering Department, is a leader in the use of “droplet-based microfluidics” to perform such studies far faster than previously possible. In this talk to the Gallatin Valley Friends of the Sciences, she introduces microfluidics methods and their advantages, and describes her work on the behavior and evolution of norovirus and influenza virus. She also mentions upcoming work on Yellowstone biofilms.
Recorded on May 15, 2019 at the Museum of the Rockies.
Dr. Jeffrey Stickler has recently completed a book with the title “Whispers of the Past and Reflections on Nature: Names in Bozeman’s Backyard, The Madison, Gallatin and Bridger Ranges”. In this presentation, he regales us with stories behind some of these local names.
Recorded on April 3, 2019 at the Museum of the Rockies as part of the Gallatin History Museum series.
Ed Saunders is a retired lieutenant colonel, U.S. Army, and combat veteran who lives in Laurel, Montana. On the centennial year of America’s victory in World War I, he tells some of the epic true stories of intrepid Montana women who served in uniform in that terrible upheaval, mostly as nurses in the Army Nurse Corps. Over 200 of these women served stateside in crowded, understaffed, diseased-filled base hospitals, and overseas in war-torn France, enduring terrible and deadly battlefield conditions. They served an indifferent federal government denying them equality with men. After the war, the women came home alone, unheralded, and mostly forgotten. They faced another battle—a battle for recognition.
Recorded on March 6, 2019 at the Museum of the Rockies as part of the Gallatin History Museum series.
Gretchen Minton, English professor and Shakespearean expert at Montana State University, describes a long, and perhaps surprising, love affair in a Provost’s Lecture entitled “Shakespeare’s Last Best Place.” Even illiterate mountain man Jim Bridger loved Shakespeare so much that he hired people to tell him Shakespeare’s stories at campfires as he broke trails in early-day Montana. So began an evolving relationship between the Bard and the Big Sky state, which continues today in Minton’s latest project.
Recorded on March 5, 2019 at the Museum of the Rockies.
Bill Stockton and Gennie DeWeese are two first-generation Montana modernist artists whose work, beginning in the 1950s, impacted contemporary art in the Big Sky state. As art historian Michele Corriel describes, their work was often overlooked because of isolation or gender. In addition to biographical background, we learn about the role and significance of place for these artists, and how it interacted with concepts of abstraction developing at the time. … Continue reading Bill Stockton and Gennie DeWeese: Montana modernists
Christopher (CJ) Carter is a Montana raised professional planner and filmmaker who has been working in the Arctic for nearly a decade. In step with Indigenous governments, communities, and organizations he has completed research, plans, and digital storytelling in the face of environmental change.
In this presentation, CJ is joined by Inuit colleagues Robert and Esau to describe the challenges that a changing Arctic brings to the rights and well-being of indigenous peoples, while offering a glimpse into inspiring practical action and leadership at play in that region and at a global level.
At one point CJ showed a short film, viewable on vimeo.com, entitled Life with Nanuuq.
Recorded on January 22, 2019 at the Museum of the Rockies.
Bozeman’s best-known architect Fred Willson (1877-1956) believed that “architecture was a form of public service; to make the things of daily life beautiful.” During his career, he did just that. His architectural vocabulary stretched from Art Deco, to Mediterranean revival, and to National Park Rustic Architecture – which became known simply as ‘Parkitecture.’ This unique architectural style, perhaps for the first time in the history of American architecture, became an accessory to nature. This presentation by Richard Brown explores the origin of Parkitecture and Fred Willson’s involvement in it.
Recorded on February 21, 2019 at the Museum of the Rockies.
Not all history is dramatic deeds; many of the most interesting insights come from learning how people carried out more mundane activities. As part of the Gallatin History Museum lecture series, MSU Professor Mary Murphy and local community historian Richard Brown shared stories and research around two recently discovered cookbooks from early Bozeman.
One of the cookbooks belonged to Emma D. Weeks Willson of Bozeman, Montana. Emma collected these recipes from friends and family and recorded them, likely beginning in 1916. Another cookbook discussed is the Montana Federation of Negro Women’s Clubs cookbook. The ways in which these two cookbooks were linked forms a fascinating tale from Bozeman history.
Recorded on February 6, 2019 at the Museum of the Rockies.