Interviewer
Merle Johnston
Files
Description
Jack Ray describes owning a general store from 1916 to 1921 in Frenchtown, Montana, and how he used to travel through the valley taking orders for groceries and delivering them. He shares stories about the early families who homesteaded in the valley and visited his store, including Pete Scheffer who located his father at Six Mile, Montana, and was conscripted to fight at the Battle of the Big Hole. Ray and Philip Cyr recalls the early St. John’s Day celebrations. Ray also reminisces about the different payment methods he accepted including live animals bartered for goods. They discuss pig farming and butchering methods employed by early Frenchtown homesteaders, many of whom were French-Canadian immigrants. They also recall the early refrigeration methods of harvesting ice and storing it in an icehouse all year long. Ray and Cyr share a stories about old Frenchtown homesteaders including Solomon Trayant and Big Rocheleau, and they talks about the bootlegging that occurred in the valley. They also talk about the dances and the threshing parties that kept the community together.
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Document Type
Oral History
Subjects
Frenchtown, Montana; Jack Ray; Bourgois family; General stores, Montana; Scheffer family; Battle of the Big Hole; Nez Perce tribe; Six Mile, Montana; St. John’s Day; Immigration, Montana; French-Canadian immigrants; Ice harvesting; Solomon Trayant; Big Rocheleau; Bootlegging
Original Date
1975
Time Period
Twentieth century
Geographic Coverage
Montana
Language
eng
Original Collection
Frenchtown Historical Society Oral History Project, OH 047, Archives and Special Collections, Mansfield Library, University of Montana-Missoula
Digital Publisher
University of Montana--Missoula. Mansfield Library
Rights
Copyright to this collection is held by the interview participants and by the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, University of Montana-Missoula. Permission may be required for use. For further information please contact Archives and Special Collections: (406) 243-2053 / library.archives@umontana.edu
Oral History Number
OH 047-012, 013
Media Type
Sound; Text
Original Format
2 sound cassettes (01:30:00 min.) analog + 1 transcript (24 p.: 28 cm.)
Digital Format
audio/mp3; application/pdf
Run Time
00:58:31 minutes
Local Filename
OH_047_012_013.pdf
Citation
Ray, Jack and Cyr, Philip, "Jack Ray and Philip Cyr Interview, January 1, 1975" (1975). Frenchtown Historical Society Oral History Project. 9.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/frenchtown_oralhistory/9