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History Events Abound During Winter & Spring
Winter was anything but ho-hum this year as folks gathered to hear stories presented at the “Working at the Mill” series sponsored by the Bonner Area History Roundtable (BAHR). With the mill closed and vacant these past months, the community had a daily reminder that Bonner’s distinction of having the longest continuously running lumber mill was over. Before the stories could vanish, BAHR set out to capture them.  
Jim Willis organized the first panel. Cal Bonnet, Glenn Smith, Rudi Miller, and Art Bailey described how the mill worked As hoped, audience members added their own stories and  lively discussion developed. The program ended but folks wanted to hear more.
The following month a second program featured not only presentations by Donna Madsen Anderson (Margaret Hotel), Glenn Smith (video of the sawmill and plywood plant), and Sue Knudsen (report on the application to make Bonner an historic landscape), but more audience presentation and displays shared by former mill workers.
The Mill series took a month long hiatus, but good history sessions continued. Kim Briggeman offered a 4 part series “When Bonner Was Young” based on the reprint A Grassroots Tribute: The Story of Bonner, Montana as part of the Bonner School adult education program.
More history programs on tap in April and May
But wait, there’s more! On Sunday, April 19 a third Mill panel will convene at St. Ann Catholic Church from 2-4 PM. As of this writing Willis Bateman and Dennis Sain  will talk about the sawmill, the  hot pond  and  working in the woods and Darl Hagey will talk about recent years at the mill. Other invited speakers have yet to confirm, and, of course, audience participation is encouraged.
Bike Walk Bus Week activities
On Wednesday, April 29, BAHR will host a Milltown History Walk as part of Bike Walk Bus Week. Meet at the Black Bridge at 6 PM and take a walk through historic Milltown with local guides. The walk will end back at the bridge at 8 PM.
A Bluff Tour will be held Saturday, May 2. Missoula participants can catch the Mountain Line at the Transfer Station at 2:45. Or meet at Bonner School at 3:15 to ride to the bluff overlook courtesy of 10,000 Waves. Tour guides Chris Brick and Mike Kustudia will provide the latest updates on the remediation, restoration, and redevelopment of the Clark Fork and Blackfoot Rivers from the panoramic overlook. The tour concludes back at the school at 5:15 so Missoula visitors can catch the Mountain Line Bus back to town. Sponsored by the Redevelopment Working Group
The good news is that the Mill series is being recorded by MCAT and shown on Bresnan Channel 11. Copies of the DVDs are also available from MCAT for $10.
Copies of A Grassroots Tribute: The Story of Bonner, Montana are available at Bonner School and the River City Grill. Price is $20.