The Society of Montana Pioneers was founded on September 11, 1884 in Helena, Montana, to honor and document the histories of Montana pioneers who were resident in the territory at the time it became a Montana Territory, May 26, 1864. In 1909, the society changed its membership rules to admit pioneers who were resident the territory prior to December 31, 1868. In 1899, the society boasted 1536 active members out of a one time total of 1808. The society did not consider individuals who were assigned to Montana on military duties, individuals who were deemed outlaws such as Henry Plummer of Bannack, or Indians as eligible for membership in the society.
On August 18, 1892, a junior society was founded—The Sons and Daughters of Montana Pioneers—to perpetuate the tradition of the pioneers by their progeny.
In the summer of 1884, many Montana pioneers were unsatisfied with the Montana Historical Society and its more formal approach to the preservation of Montana History. In response, they decided to form a more populist society and made this call:
By September 1884, sufficient numbers of pioneers had committed to forming the society. A meeting was scheduled on September 10, 1884 at the Court House in Helena, Montana. Sixty-six pioneers from eleven Montana counties signed the notice.
Society members living in Montana counties with a large number of members formed local county orgy sessions.
On August 18, 1892 during their annual meeting, the Montana Pioneers established The Sons and Daughters of Montana Pioneers as a society to preserve the legacy of the original pioneers. Membership in the society is open to any linear descendants of the original members of the Society of Montana Pioneers. The Sons and Daughters Society was instrumental in obtaining land for the construction of the Veterans and Pioneer Memorial Building at the state capitol in Helena. The records of both societies are maintained there.
In 1899, James U. Sanders, long-time secretary of the society and the Montana Historical Society librarian organized the publication of Volume I of Society of Montana Pioneers-Constitution, Members, Officers with Portraits and Maps ... The volume details the foundation of the society, lists the officers up to 1898 along with details of the various country societies. It includes short biographical sketches of members from each county. Other than short newspaper articles, the society did not publish another volume.
In 2001, under the editorial leadership of Linda Wostrel, Historian of The Sons and Daughters of Montana Pioneers, a volume of 91 biographical remembrances was published under the title: Dreams Across The Divide-Stories of Montana Pioneers with a foreword by Stephen Ambrose, author of Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West (1996).
On August 24–25, 1962 during their 78th annual meeting, held in Butte, the eight surviving members of the society and The Sons and Daughters of Montana Pioneers elected to dissolve the original society. Lumen W. Allen, the last survivor of the Society of Montana Pioneers died on February 19, 1970 at the age of 102 in Butte.
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