The Goldton at St. Pete
Newsletter

This month we are exploring Glacier National Park, located in northwest Montana. Glacier NP is a vast park renowned for its dramatic alpine scenery including towering peaks, turquoise lakes, dense forests, and numerous glaciers, which are the namesake of the park; it’s often called “The Crown of the Continent” and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, famous for its scenic Going-to-the-Sun Road and offering a variety of hiking trails through diverse ecosystems, making it a prime destination for outdoor enthusiasts.
Evidence of human use in this area dates back to over 10,000 years. By the time the first European explorers came into this region, several different tribes inhabited the area. The Blackfeet Indians controlled the vast prairies east of the mountains, while the Salish and Kootenai Indians lived in the western valleys, traveling over the mountains in search of game and to hunt the great herds of buffalo on the eastern plains.
The majority of early European explorers came to this area in search of beaver and other pelts. They were soon followed by miners and, eventually, settlers looking for land. By 1891, the completion of the Great Northern Railway sealed the area’s fate, allowing a greater number of people to enter into the heart of northwest Montana. Homesteaders settled in the valleys west of Marias Pass and soon small towns developed.
Around the turn of the century, people started to look at the land differently. For some, this place held more than minerals to mine or land to farm…they began to recognize that the area had a unique scenic beauty all to its own.
By the late 1800s, influential leaders like George Bird Grinnell, pushed for the creation of a national park. In 1910, Grinnell and others saw their efforts rewarded when President Taft signed the bill establishing Glacier as the country’s 10th national park.
Please check the activity calendar for activities featuring this national park.