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Jim Phillips' parents were planning on settling in Washington state in 1928 but on their way from Minnesota they ran out of money in Three Forks. "The people in town were so good to them that they stayed," says Diane, who met Jim in Boise. When Jim and Diane married in 1968, Diane knew she was "here to stay". "I fell in love with Three Forks immediately because of its very small size and the warmth of the community. I love all of its recreational opportunities, such as walking/biking trails,... Full story
Linzi Cazier's family just can't stay away from Three Forks. "My Great Grandpa Walter Smith's family came to Three Forks with his family from Illinois with the railroad and graduated from Three Forks High in 1929. He went to college in Dillon then came back to teach at the old Lane School," says Linzi. "He worked for the railroad a while then came back again." Linzi's Grandma graduated from Three Forks High in 1958 and married into the Cazier family, who came from Idaho to farm outside of Three... Full story
Chuck Wambeke was born in Billings, attended grade school in Butte and graduated high school at Billings Central in 1980. After high school he attended Billings Vo-Tech and went to work for a mining company as a draftsman/surveyor and traveled all over the western US. In 1984 he moved to Manhattan and enrolled at MSU. "During my junior year of college in 1987 I applied for a summer intern position at the talc mill in Three Forks where I worked for the next three years," says Chuck. In 1995 he started Industrial Automation Consulting, Inc. and d...
Somehow in all the moves with the military, Sean and Kira Gifford's paths crossed in Colorado and they married at Three Forks' Sacajawea Hotel. When Sean was no longer in active duty with the military, he and Kira moved in 2010 to Three Forks to be near family. "My grandpa graduated from Harrison High, my great-grandparents' farm in Eastern Montana is still in the family," says Kira. "Aunts and uncles live in the Gallatin Valley, a sister in Belgrade, and grandma is here in Three Forks." What...
"Everything we owned in 2 horse trailers," describes Deanna Thurston of her family's move to Three Forks June, 1990 from Nebraska, where Deanna was born and raised. Her husband, Brandon, was also from Nebraska but attended high school and Vo-Tech in Montana before returning to Nebraska to manage his grandparents' ranch. After they got married the ranch sold so the Thurstons decided to join his family still in Montana. "Brandon worked various day jobs then got on at the Trident cement plant,... Full story
Three Forks gave our family a second chance," says Candi Rumelhart. Candi and Sean met at Flathead Valley Community College in Kalispell. "Sean's great great grandparents lived in Fallon, Montana and he spent most of his childhood in Libby. My great grandparents immigrated from Canada to Polson." Candi's dad was in the military and so she moved around a lot as a child but often stayed with her grandparents in Kalispell, where her family eventually settled. "After Sean and I were married, we fell on hard times and applied for a job in Three...
He from Billings, she from Whitehall, Lance and Gayla Sieler wanted to settle in Montana. They were renting a mobile home in Churchill for eight years, looking for "the right place". "I was driving around and saw a promising For Sale sign on Price Road, but 320 acres was more than we wanted," Lance says. His boss at Darigold came up with a solution - boss would buy half, the Sielers' would buy the other half. They finished building their house right before Christmas and planned to spend... Full story
Amber Hungerford's Montana roots run deep! "My mom's maternal (3) great grandparents came from Salt Lake City in 1864 and settled in Willow Creek (Williams and Harwood's). There is a family cemetery on the hill along Highway 287 near the Williams ranch overlooking the Jefferson River. My mom's paternal great grandparents came from Pennsylvania to Pony, and then to Logan in 1933. Hence, my kids are the 7th generation to live here in the area," she says with pride. "My dad moved to Montana from...
Editor's Note: These are the first two articles in a series about how local residents made it "Home to Three Forks". Kerin McCarver married her high school sweetheart, both from Trout Creek/Thompson Falls, Montana . "Only 4 boys had cars and Frank Kemmerer owned one of them, a "41 Chevy. The boys planned an outing to Sandpoint, Idaho and he needed a date." Kerin and Frank were married and Frank served in the Navy, stationed in San Diego. "We had a hard time raising a family on $70 a month so we... Full story
I'd been to Montana before but it was summer and warm. Once every decade my parents would take my dad's two-week vacation to take us on the loop from our East Bay Area home in California to their "old stomping grounds": Tri-cities Washington area, St. Ignatius, Montana, Utah, then back across the Nevada desert. This Montana trip was different - it was December and the roads were snowy and I was meeting my future in-laws in Billings, my then fiancé, Jack's, hometown. Several cars and semis were... Full story
