June 4 will bring living history to Havre

By Debbie Vandeberg

Havre Area Chamber of Commerce

People will get the opportunity to learn about Havre's History by experiencing it. Havre residents will bring historical attractions to life for its fourth annual "Living History," Saturday, June 4.

Tour the grandest and once largest military post in Montana and the United States, Fort Assinniboine, on Living History. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Check out the display of hides and guns. Each hour a cannon will be fired. Old-time music will make this step back in time real. A special rate of $5 per adult and $3 for 18 and under is being offered for the day. Tours on the Black Jack touring wagon will be on the half hour.

Havre Beneath the Streets underground tours come to life on Living History Day. This day allows one to take the tour and see the Old West at its best in the Sporting Eagle Saloon. Shop at Gourley Brothers Bakery and purchase a tasty homemade pastry made fresh.

People wanting a taste of history, too, can have a meat sample from Havre's Meat Market or choose from a selection of old-fashion penny candy available to buy at Holland and Son Mercantile. Saturday's tours will start at 9 a.m. and will run every half hour and catch the last tour at 4 p.m. Appointments for tours are welcomed. A special rate of $8 a person will be offered for tours on Living History Day,

People can then head on up to the buffalo jump and take a walk back in history. The Wahkpa Chu'gn Buffalo Jump is the only one that allows people to view artifacts in their natural state. The Buffalo Jump tours will take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

A stone boiling demonstration will take place from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. next to the Interpretive Center. Tours will be given at a special reduced rate of $9 for adults, $8 for seniors and $6 for students.

H. Earl Clack Memorial Museum will participate in Havre's Living History Day with a speaker from the Hometown Humanities Project. Anne Foster will present on "Alcohol, Corsets and the Vote," a presentation on women's suffrage.

The presentation will take place in front of the museum at Holiday Village Mall at 1 p.m. The museum will be open 11 a.m to 5 p.m.

High Line Heritage Museum will host a "Tea with Mrs. Mathews" program, which will include tea and etiquette from the Victorian era, as well as cookies whose recipe comes from the Victorian/Edwardian era. The historic Mathews home, located at 124 3rd St., was constructed circa 1898 and is believed to be the second oldest single-family home in Havre. Tours will be 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.