Montana's DAR Markers . . . Honoring Where History Was Made

husband Toussaint Charbonneau as an interpreter and guide for the
Lewis and Clark Expedition. The recreational area consisted of 140
acres on both sides of the state line.
The dedication was a joint effort by the Beaverhead Chapter,
NSDAR, the Beaverhead and Lemhi Mining Associations, and the
National Forest Service. The chair of the event, B. J. Metlen, Vice
President of the Beaverhead Mining Association, introduced speakers
Archdeacon Nash (Coeur d’Alene, Idaho), Professor O.A. Dingman of
the Montana School of Mines (Butte), and Beaverhead National Forest
Supervisor Alva A. Simpson. Chairman Metlen also introduced R.F.
Hammat, Assistant Regional Forester (Missoula) who stated:
There were many heroes in this band of intrepid explorers; there was
but one heroine. Denied in life–and after–that recognition which
was due her, it is fitting that we meet here today to dedicate this spot
in honor of that heroine.
Another speaker, Dr. Grace Raymond Hebard, faculty of
University of Wyoming and a widely-recognized authority on Western
history, told of Sacajawea’s part of the “Great Expedition of
Exploration.” Mrs. J.W. Scott (Laura Tolman Scott, Armstead,
Montana), National District Chair of Historic Sites for the DAR, was
recognized for her years-long efforts to secure the famous spot’s
designation as a national monument.
And, of course, there was music—the crowd sang “America the
Beautiful” at the beginning and “All People That on Earth Do Dwell”
at the conclusion of the monument’s dedication.
In 1940, a one-mile wildflower trail was built at the Sacajawea
Memorial Area to honor Laura Tolman Scott, who was a passionate
188