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Community History along the Clark Fork and Blackfoot Rivers

Welcome to Two Rivers History.net, the virtual interpretive center devoted to exploring the rich history found at the Confluence of the Clark Fork and Blackfoot Rivers and neighboring communities of Bonner, Milltown, Piltzville, Pine Grove, and West Riverside, just east of Missoula, Montana.

The confluence is a place of national historical significance. Through brief essays, slideshows, and multimedia clips this website uncovers some of the layers of history that began with the last ice dam in the area that unleashed the Glacial Lake Missoula floods some 13,000 years ago and continues forward to present day with the restoration of Two Rivers Confluence. There's a lot of history in between and this website is devoted to telling some of the those stories, oftentimes in the voices of community members themselves.

This website is a project of the History & Culture Committee of the Milltown Superfund Redevelopment Working Group and was made possible by a grant from the Historical Museum at Fort Missoula and historic mitigation funds from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Two Rivers History.net is a work-in-progress, so bear with us. Please check back soon for new additions. And send us your thoughts, suggestions and stories.

Preserving History Today

Bonner-Milltown residents have long treasured their past. Read about more than 30 years of efforts aimed at preserving and celebrating local history.

The Bonner Mill

Bonner was a timber town from its very beginning. Read about more than 120 years of mill history in Bonner.

Meet the Communities

The confluence of the Clark Fork and Blackfoot Rivers is surrounded by several unincorporated communites. Learn more about them.

The Great Flood of 1908

Just over a century ago the Clark Fork and Blackfoot Rivers saw perhaps their greatest flood since the last ice dams burst some 13,000 years ago. Check out the slideshow and essay.

History in the News

History Roundtable Series Schedule

All programs are held from 2 - 4 p.m. at Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Bonner, 8985 Hwy 200 East

Jan. 15 - Marshall Ski Area Reunion. Reminisce about skiing at Marshall

Feb. 19 - Women Working in the Mill. Women moved out of the office and began working side by side with the men in lumber production.

Mar. 18 - Stories of the Bonner Houses. Historical stories of the Bonner houses and residents.

Walking Tour

Spend some time strolling through historic Bonner. Pick up a walking tour brochure at the Bonner Milltown History Center. If the Center is closed, you can get a brochure in the box lobby of the Bonner Post Office next door. Or, download a Walking Tour Brochure .

Milltown History Center's new guide offers a tour of the town's past Missoulian, May 9, 2011

History Center Hours

The Bonner Milltown History Center is open for business Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday afternoons, 2 - 4:30 in the Bonner Post Office Building. The mission of the History Center is to keep our local and timber heritage alive for the education and enjoyment of the public and to do that the goal is to collect oral histories, historic photographs, documents, and artifacts related to local and mill history. For more information, contact Judy Matson, 258-6335.

The gift that keeps on giving:

Do you have historic photos or videos that can be scanned and preserved at the History Center? History is more recent than you may think! How we lived in the 90's, 80's, 70's, 60's are vintage memories!

History in the News

Milltown History Center's new guide offers a tour of the town's past Missoulian, May 9, 2011

More History Inside