The Backroads of Montana is a half-hour TV show on PBS created at the The University of Montana.  It appears in Montana at 5pm every Saturday.  Its purpose is to travel around the state, providing a segment of interest on various locations and programs in the state.

The following is a letter I wrote August 4, 2014, hoping to lure the show's producers to Roundup.  Their response received today (Aug.9, 2014) follows the letter.

Backroads of Montana
University of Montana
Missoula, MT  59812

Please consider this letter as an invitation to visit Roundup in the south central part of Montana.  We are a town about 1800 population and very typical of other small towns in the state.  At the same time, there are factors that make us unique.  What are they?  And why should you accept our invitation?

First, you can see some fascinating stories of our past displayed at, and communicated through, our Musselshell Valley Historical Museum.  From the beginning in the early 1880's, Roundup has been at the crossroads of travel.  First with Old Roundup, it was at the confluence of Halfbreed Creek and Musselshell River.  Later, the coming of the Milwaukee Railroad created New Roundup.  Later still, it has become the center of travel at the crossroads of north-south Highway 87 and east-west Highway 12.

Intriguing stories from the past include (1) naming of the town, (2) two English lords in 1884 who bought a ranch just four miles east of town and lived there 30 years, (3) the Kilby family whose two daughters began construction of the old hospital but whose son ran awry of the law and was killed just east of town near Kilby Butte, and (4) Frances Vicars whose life story included overcoming adversity which, in the end, led her to Roundup to continue the service of that hospital.  This is to name just a few stories.

One of the more spectacular displays at the Museum has to do with David Comstock.  He was a native-born, 17-year-old who built and flew his own Pietenpol airplane in 1932.  This was after he'd constructed a homemade glider at the age of 14 and found it too unstable.  (The only way to get it into the air was to be pulled by a friend's roadster down Main Street, narrowly avoiding light poles and shop windows, at 3:30 am after the Sheriff had gone to bed.)  With the Pietenpol plans, which also included a Ford Model A engine which he got from a friend across the street, David built and modified this stable aircraft, earning money for it by sweeping up popcorn at the local theater.  He became a proficient pilot (the idea for "Lone Eagle" on the side of the plane came from Charles Lindbergh's flight across the Atlantic in 1927) so much so that he not only flew himself back and forth to college in Bozeman but also made several cross-country flights.

Just as compelling is the story of that Pietenpol plane's rebirth.  After David's death in 2005, plans he'd made (and with funds he'd provided) for the plane's restoration were carried out.  As part of their education at several middle schools in Billings, five at-risk girls with the help of their instructor, Pat Kenney, took on the complete restoration of David's plane.  Each girl developed her own particular skill, such as welding, working on the motor, painting, etc.  Several took up flying lessons and one gave her parents their first-ever plane ride.  Over a year later, the work completed, the restored plane was freighted to Roundup, the wing reattached to the fuselage so it could be shown off in the July 4th parade, then placed in its permanent display in a hangar at the Musselshell Valley Historical Museum.

Roundup, unlike other communities over the years, has not found it necessary to create mythic wild west stories.  Instead, we have our own honest-to-goodness real-life accounts that began over a century ago and have continued through the years to enliven our history.  The Museum as not only been a valuable resource in that process but has also been the place to see, for example, not only David's plane but also the actual cabin in which Lord Grey de Ruthyn lived (one of the two English lords).

The second reason to accept our invitation is to note that Roundup over the years has not become a ghost town.  Although the economy took a downturn after the closing of coal mines and the demise of the Milwaukee Railroad, efforts by the community have created a current Roundup that is up-and-coming, lively, and energetic.

There have been several years of floods and fires but community efforts have gone into bringing the town back up-to-speed, retaining its uniqueness, and developing more appreciation for what we have.  In 2013, the Rounup Restoration Committee began annual April clean-up days, scheduling special pick-ups and collections of old appliances, cars, brush, and boarding up downtown windows that had been atrracting pigeons.  The Musselshell Community Foundation in cooperation with RRC invited an AmeriCorps team this summer to live and work within our community for six weeks.  They were everywhere making improvements, such as, painting downtown buildings, a church and even fire hydrants, helping both individuals and groups in cleaning up and beautifying properties, and providing "muscle" as needed.  The BUD volunteers ("Beautification Undertaken for Decades") has taken responsibility for planting trees and colorful flowers found along Main Street.  Roundup High School art department has painted silhouettes that are displayed in upstairs windows of the historical downtown Pappas and Lucas Building.

The third reason to visit is the fact that, in the little over two years I've lived here, there has been only one segment on your show I've seen that has included Roundup.  That story centered on a mail carrier who, despite the vastness of the Montana landscape and the length of the mail route, was able to maintain a personal and helpful relationship with his constituents.  Montana may be Big Sky country, but that doesn't prevent residents from interacting with each other and helping out when there is a need -- this is what I took from that program.

Maybe it's time for another visit to Roundup?  We'd love to show you around!

Sincerely,

Edith A. Sloan

The following is the response appearing by postcard today:

Dear Edith,

Thank you for your letter and an invitation to return to the Roundup area.  We'll consider it.
Thanks for watching our show!

William Marcus [narrator]
Backroads

[I'll keep you posted...Edith]