Lincoln County: 100 years old
File/The Western News The original courthouse where the first business was conducted had formerly been used by Libby School District for school purposes.
“Lincoln County’s first official family takes oath of office this morning in the presence of a medium-sized crowd which had gathered to witness the event.”
— The Western News, July 1, 1909
One-hundred years ago today at about 10:30 in the morning, Lincoln County set up shop in a building that had formerly been used by the school district.
The formation of the county occurred rather quickly in 1909 when it was created out of Flathead County. Libby won out over Eureka for the county seat in what was a controversial and hotly-contested issue. Over the years, residents experienced both prosperity and hardship.
In the Jan. 14, 1909 edition of the News, a story under the headline “Create a new county” appeared.
The idea seemed to be favored by Flathead County officials. Residents in the western region of the sizeable area had to travel quite a distance to conduct county business.
An early suggestion for its name was Cabinet County – in reference to the Cabinet range. Libby and Eureka were immediately identified as competing for the county seat.
“It is the opinion of some that Libby is much better situated geographically than is Eureka, which is only six miles from the international boundary line,” the Montana Daily Record reported.
Sen. Thomas Long of Kalispell introduced a bill in the legislature for the creation of Cabinet County. The proposed area of the new county included 3,595 square miles. Its assessed valuation was $4,023,000. Libby was suggested at the temporary county seat.
Sylvester S. Frost of Eureka to say the least was not pleased with Libby as the proposed county seat.
“Isn’t Eureka, with all of these natural advantages more entitled to county seat honors than the little rough mining town of Libby?” Sylvester said. “Libby can bring forth all of her argument and argue until she is exhausted, but she cannot compare to Eureka by any manner of means.”
By mid-February, officials had decided on a new name for the county. Instead of Cabinet, it was changed to Lincoln “in honor to America’s greatest president.”
On March 9, 1909, the bill creating Lincoln County was signed by the governor. Business was set to begin on July 1.
“The creation of Lincoln County, and the victory of Libby, is said by those who have attended the sessions and watched the proceedings, to be due almost entirely to the constant work and persistent lobbying of L.H. Faust of Libby. He certainly won an uphill fight,” wrote the Inter Lake in an editorial dated March 5, 1909.
Faust, incidentally, was the founder of the Western News.
When business got started on July 1, county commissioners Walter Wilder, E. Demers and Paul D. Pratt were the first to take the oath of office.
“After these had qualified, the board of commissioners began looking after the affairs of the new county in quite a fatherly sort of way,” the Western News reported.
Several officials followed by taking their oaths and business got started in the old school building.
“The building is to be used by the county for a courthouse until such time as the permanent county seat is decided by the people,” the Western News reported. “It is commodious, plenty large enough for all of the needs of the officials and when the necessary alterations are made, all of the officials will have comfortable and pleasant quarters.”
Although animosity continued between the two community candidates for county seat, Libby won out in the end.
Opinions varied on how the new county would fare on its own. But in general, most were positive about its prospects for the future.
“It is a land of high mountains and pleasant valleys, of great forests and lovely lakes. Throughout its entire length flows the majestic Kootenai, one of the least known, yet one of the greatest rivers of the state. It still is a virgin field, for all its industries are in their infancy,” wrote the Butte Inter Mountain. “Development must come in time and some day, doubtless, Lincoln County will rank with a majority of its sisters in wealth and population.”
“Doubtless this measure was worthy of success, if all reports are true, as the people living in it were compelled to travel a distance of nearly 200 miles to reach Kalispell, the county seat,” wrote the Lewiston Enterprise. “It also has a good assessment to start with, is rich in various resources, and there is no reason why it should not prosper from the start.”
“Congratulations to the residents of the newborn county of Lincoln, and may prosperity and happiness be theirs,” wrote the Whitefish Pilot. “While the new county starts out with a rather small assessed valuation, the conditions are no worse than those under which other counties in this state have been started, and if the earthly affairs of the county are properly administered, its pathway should be at least smooth.”
And the Chester Signal wrote: “If the new county proves to be anything like the man whose name it takes, it will be all right.”