Upper Swan Valley Historical Museum

The Swan Valley retains many signs of its varied history. Old Indian trails crisscross the mountains. Remnants of trapper cabins, notched trees for marten trapping, and old phone wires strung between trees by the U.S. Forest Service to improve communication, ...

Whalen Cabin

Grandma Whalen’s Homestead Cabin

Grandma Whalen, a widow, filed to homestead in 1918 on 160 acres in the Swan Valley. Her husband Roderick, a Northern Pacific Railroad employee, had died that year in Missoula.

Mary Ann Whalen’s homestead included a ...

Smith Creek School

Many of the homesteaders in the Swan Valley came in 1916. Wanting their children to get an education in 1918, the homesteaders built three one-room schools: Elk Creek, Rumble Creek and Smith Creek Schools. Later other small schools were built.

Witchcraft Victims' Memorial

The Salem Witch Outbreak of 1692 lasted for under a year, but left a mark in history that is still prominent today. Not only is the series of events remembered in history, popular culture uses aspects of the events. Unfortunately, ...

Sarah Holten and the Accusers

Sarah Holten was one of the accusers involved in the witchcraft hysteria. One of the people she accused of wrongdoing was Rebecca Nurse. Unlike many of the other accusers, she was not a child and she was married. The accusers ...

Rebecca Nurse

The earliest women accused of witchcraft fit the typical description of a witch. Rebecca Nurse was not like those women. Nurse was a regular church member and had lived in the community for decades. By all accounts, she was well ...

Reasons behind the Salem Witch Outbreak

During the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, people truly believed in Satan’s ability to affect the human realm through witches and wizards. Witches have been around throughout history; before and after Salem. Salem is different from other instances of witchcraft, ...

Evidence used during the Salem Witch Trials

The evidence used during the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 would not be allowed in a trial today. There was no real evidence submitted against the accused. One of the primary sources of evidence was the use of spectral evidence, ...

Confessions of the Salem Witches

Throughout the witchcraft hysteria in Salem, the nature of confessions was a defining element. Before Salem, there were only around four confessions of witchcraft in the colonies. During the seven-month period in Salem, nearly fifty people confessed to practicing witchcraft. ...

Cocoanut Grove Fire

The Cocoanut Grove was a popular restaurant or supper club in Boston during the early 1900s. People went to the Grove to celebrate for various reasons. On the night of November 28, 1942, the Boston College football team planned to ...