Our View: Preservation Month worth celebrating

Havre and Hill County are celebrating Historic Preservation Month, an especially meaningful commemoration because the Hi-Line is so rich in history.

Havre and Hill County are relatively new on the scene. Most of the country was pretty well settled when Havre became a reality. But we have a rich and intriguing history.

In the early days, it was a pretty wild town, and Havre Beneath the Streets tells the story of those crazy days.

One of the nation’s largest forts was located just south of town, and its remnants remain. Fort Assinniboine is a great place to see what military life was like in the late 19th century, and, as Fort Assinniboine Preservation Association President Gary Wilson said Monday night, “It’s in our backyard.”

Hill County is named after one of the great railroad titans, and the railroad that runs through town is an important part of our history. The Frank DeRosa Railroad Museum provides people with interesting aspects of how the railroad has affected our lives in north-central Montana.

Interesting aspects of all parts of the county’s history are available at the H. Earl Clack Museum at Holiday Village Mall.

And there are other historic locations in the county and in neighboring Blaine County that local residents and tourists enjoy.

These attractions are just a few of the reasons the county ought to revel in Historic Preservation Month.

Throughout the area, interesting buildings and landmarks remain from our early days.

This should be a time to renew our commitment to preserve the interesting aspects of our history.