Coin Front Side
Lincoln County’s culture and history are depicted on two sides of a commemorative coin designed by Libby artist Patty Rambo.
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Centennial plans moving ahead
by Brent Shrum, Kootenai Valley Record
April 10, 2009
Plans are moving ahead for Lincoln County’s centennial celebration, which will include commemorative coins, a centennial book, and centennial-themed events throughout the summer.
The design for the coins, by Libby artist Patty Rambo, has been finalized and sent to the Northwest Territorial Mint in Auburn, Wash., said Jeff Gruber at a meeting of the centennial committee last week. On one side, the coin shows a map of Lincoln County along with a scene depicting Lincoln County’s history. A Kootenai Indian talks with a trader in front of a teepee, a miner pans for gold, a woman in old-fashioned dress holds a baby next to a logger with a crosscut saw, and a fly fisherman casts his line.
The reverse side of the coin displays larch, fir and ponderosa pine trees flanked by a modern locomotive and a Great Northern caboose: "Again, trying to balance the past and the present," Gruber said.
The 1.5-inch diameter coins will be cast in both copper and silver varieties and marketed by the Troy Chamber of Commerce and the museums in Libby and Eureka. Prices will be $15 for the copper coins and $30 for silver. The goal is to have the coins available by June 1, Gruber said.
The approximately 100-page centennial book will be printed by Far Country Press and will be sold through the county libraries in Libby, Troy and Eureka, said Melody Condron. The book will be similar in size and format to a 1920 book detailing Lincoln County residents’ participation in World War I.
The book will provide a snapshot of life in Lincoln County in 2009 and will include a "roll of honor" listing prominent county residents, "so 100 years down the road people will see who our leaders were in the community," Condron said. "They’ll see pictures of the community and things that were going on."
Around 150 people were nominated for the roll of honor, Condron said.
Pre-orders for the book, priced at $21.95, are now being taken at the county libraries, Condron said. Proceeds will benefit the library foundation.
Throughout the summer, events such as the county fair, Troy’s Fourth of July celebration and the Kootenai River Rodeo will be incorporating a centennial theme of "Hats of to 100 Years." The Heritage Museum in Libby will be presenting a centennial display focusing on the formation of Lincoln County in 1909 and the controversy surrounding Libby’s designation as county seat.
"I’m astounded by the amount of corruption and ill feeling that I have found," said historian Mark White.
While Eureka initially won an election to pick the county seat, the decision was later overturned by the Montana Supreme Court amid apparent voting irregularities and plenty of self-interest by various parties, White said.
"The big fighting among them was over who was the more important community," White said. "It goes on to the present day."
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Editor’s Note: See the April 7, 2009 edition of the Kootenai Valley Record for the printed version of this story. The Kootenai Valley Record publishes once a week, now on Tuesday, in Libby, Montana. They are a locally owned community newspaper, located at 403 Mineral Avenue in Libby. For in-county and out-of-county subscription information, call 406-293-2424, or e-mail kvrecord@gmail.com.
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