Long before the first camper crossed the river, this canyon had stories to tell — of the Crow, of gold, of homesteaders and dudes, and finally of a handful of people who imagined it as a place for the Lord's work.
Adapted from Jerkline to Jeep: A Brief History of the Upper Boulder
by Ruth Staunton & Dorothy Keur
The West Boulder River canyon dates back geological ages. Gradually gold, silver, copper, quartz and uranium were deposited in its mountains. Once the only sounds were the rush of swollen rivers, the rumble of avalanches or rock slides, birds' songs, animals' calls and the wind.
The Crow Indians lived in the canyon as early as 1700. Their drawings on cave walls document their seasonal migrations as they followed the game animals. They called the river The Big Beaver.
Prospectors discovered gold in the valley. By 1882, a year after the Indians' last resistance to the white man's take-over of their hunting lands, 1,450 mineral claims had been filed.
A stampmill was carried up the mountain trails in sections to Independence, which had a population of 400 to 500 by 1892. New sounds echoed from the valley walls — grinding machinery, coarse language, shouts of exhilaration, groans of pain, discomfort and disappointment, honky-tonk pianos and raucous songs.
The Big Beaver was renamed The Boulder. One of its tributaries was named Froze-to-Death Creek. Chippy Park did not get its name for the quick, bright-eyed chipmunks in the area, but rather for the several “soiled doves” who followed the mining camps and set up on the more accessible flat land down-canyon, enduring the hardship of the seasons in drafty, primitive cabins.
Like so many gold rush towns in Montana's history, Independence's initial excitement subsided in less than ten years when the minerals petered out. The valley took on a more genteel atmosphere. The land was divided and the first homesteaders arrived, built sturdy homes and planted gardens.
Milk cows stood knee-deep in grassy fenced meadows. Chickens clucked and roosters crowed. Children played in schoolyards. An occasional early-day motor car noisily braved the boulder-strewn road, sometimes forced to wait until herds of sheep moved to new pastures.
Green and Mary Blakely claimed and developed 283.10 acres on both sides of the river — the present-day site of Clydehurst Christian Ranch. From 1910 to 1920, a corner cubicle of the Blakely ranch house living room served as the valley's official post office.
The Blakelys sold their ranch to Mr. and Mrs. J.W. Kerwin and their son of Miles City. For a while the property was called the Kerwin Dude Ranch, later changed to The White Bear — a more exciting name to spark the interest of the eastern dudes they hoped to attract.
Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Bowen, one-time owners of Bowen's Men's Store in the Stapleton Building in Billings, worked with the Kerwins and later bought the ranch themselves, bringing it to a high level of luxury for their specially-invited wealthy Eastern guests.
The main lodge was furnished with overstuffed Lawson-style sofas and chairs. Valuable Indian rugs were on the walls and floor. A baby grand piano and an extensive library filled one end of the lounge, dominated by a massive stone fireplace. Cabins could accommodate forty guests, and the dining room served excellent meals on dishes bearing the ranch's brand, C-Lazy-S.
For recreation there was a nine-hole golf course, a swimming pool, a tennis court, shuffleboard and horses to ride. And fishing. The ranch's brochure boasted, “The stream is stocked from our own rearing ponds. We can turn ten million fish into the river each year.”
After Mr. Bowen was killed in a traffic accident in New York, Mrs. Bowen renamed the ranch Clydehurst-on-the-Boulder in his memory. She continued to operate the ranch, but with difficulty once World War II brought rationing of gas and food supplies.
In the summer of 1943, Pastor Walter J. Feely, his family and Bill Lohof, Sr. of Billings visited Clydehurst-on-the-Boulder as guests. They were impressed with its refreshing atmosphere and beautiful setting, and imagined such a place for the Lord's work. At the time, several church groups in the state were sharing the rather primitive and limited facilities of the Methodist camp at Luccock Park near Livingston.
Mr. Feely shared his vision during his many statewide radio rallies. Mr. A.F. Toavs, a well-to-do Wolf Point rancher, responded and provided the $17,000 needed to purchase the ranch. The Montana Gospel Crusade signed a note to repay it in full in ten years, and Mr. James E. Tannehill of the Federal Land Bank served as legal agent for the transfer.
Volunteer labor and a willingness to see the place used for the Lord worked miracles. Abandoned CCC buildings were purchased and moved a mile down-river for dormitories and shops. Foundations were poured, cesspools dug, plumbing repaired, roofs recovered, logs chinked, grounds landscaped and fences replaced. While the kitchen was being equipped that first summer, Mrs. Nellie Lohof cooked meals on a woodburning stove out-of-doors.
Though much more work would be needed, a great many families drove the 35 miles of gravel and bone-rattling boulders from Big Timber to attend the dedication.
At first there was no planned summer camping program, but some of the country's finest Bible expositors and evangelists spoke in the chapel — among them Bill Burcaw, Dr. Lewis Chafer, Dr. Frank Gaebelein, Dr. Harold Garner, Dr. Norman B. Harrison, Dr. H.A. Ironside, Dr. Jack Mitchell, Elmer and Morris Nelson, Dr. Merv Rosell and Dr. B.B. Sutcliffe.
During the winter months, Charlie Rasnick, an early friend of Clydehurst, built new log cabins. His presence — and the big gun he carried — quickly ended a rash of vandalism and thefts of camp property.
The mountains and mountaintops were places of rich experience with our Lord. Here may be found refreshment of spirit, mind, and body. Here children and young people may be won for Christ. Pastor Walter J. Feely, on Clydehurst's first year
When the $17,000 note came due, the Montana Gospel Crusade was unable to pay. After hours of prayer, Bill Lohof, Sr., Glen Nolte, Carrol Dahlstrom and Jesse Roybal put up $8,000 among them, borrowed the remaining $9,000 from the bank, and drove to Wolf Point to personally hand the full amount to Mr. Toavs. Only then did they learn foreclosure action had already been initiated against the camp. God had answered their prayers.
Later that year the Church of the Air purchased Clydehurst Christian Ranch from the Montana Gospel Crusade for $17,000, with the understanding that if the church ever sold Clydehurst, the Crusade would receive half of anything over that amount. In 1962 the church sold 263.617 acres to Mr. T. James Murphy for $21,000 (he later traded it to the U.S. Forest Service), and half of the $4,000 profit went to the Crusade as agreed.
Camp Directors in these years were Vince Nelson, Rod Pence, Spen and Dottie Durr, and Lee Friesen. Each year brought improvements to the program and facilities. The Camp Committee — the Pastor of Billings Bible Church, members of its Board of Elders and Deacons, and members-at-large from churches across the state — worked toward making Clydehurst one of the Northwest's finest church camps.
Early seasons brought 200 campers, and that number grew every year. The women's missionaids sewed curtains for the cabins, and professional men donated labor and materials to ready the camp for each season's opening.
The Kenneth L. Hancock estate donated 10 horses, 2 mules and all the riding and packing equipment. Mr. Phil Fortin donated funds for new bunk and bed mattresses.
Wayne and Judy Brownson were invited to be Camp Directors with the assurance it was “more or less overseeing things that needed to be done.” They agreed to try it. Wayne was twenty-three, an Eastern Montana College music graduate teaching school in Greybull, Wyoming. He'd never been a camper himself, but had helped as a bus driver and chaperone during youth camps.
The Brownsons learned quickly that a Camp Director's day begins at 5:30 a.m. and goes until midnight. Wayne kept teaching full-time in Billings, spending the school year lining up staff, speakers and supplies, then bringing the family up for ten weeks every summer.
Big Sky Youth for Christ started coming for one week. Clydehurst was moving from a “sister” outreach of Billings Bible Church toward an entity of its own, with nearly two-thirds of registered campers coming from outside the parent church — including groups and families from out of state.
Cardinal Nest No. 1 and No. 2 enlarged storage and craft space, and a new septic tank and water system were installed. More projects were already “on the books.”
Big Sky Youth for Christ brought 501 campers for three weeks. Though trends, numbers and prices had changed since 1945, the original precepts were still being adhered to.
Stories passed down from the early crews and campers
One crew boy opening camp for the season heard a noise early one morning, stepped outside his cabin opposite the lodge, and found a bull moose standing near the flagpole.
Camper Mrs. Joyce Johnson shot a moose during her stay — moose meat showed up on the menu for the next two years. Then came bear burgers, courtesy of a bear rummaging in the camp dump.
After spring high water receded, men and crew boys pulled steel-rimmed flatbed wagons into the river to form a bridge so the camp truck could reach the tepees in the meadow. “It was pretty risky stuff but we made it.”
One year the tepees were set up at Chippy Park, and campers crossed the river on rafts made of steel drums, pulled along rope cables.
Camp Nurse “Aunt Cora” prescribed mercurochrome for scrapes and cinnamon redhots for upset stomachs and homesickness. Nurse “Becky” started every day with reveille on her trumpet.
One crew boy claimed he memorized every rock in the road after driving into Big Timber for supplies “at least thirty-nine times.”
“Hi, all campers! I hope you will remember the inspiring classes where you learned the Word of God, the hikes, the campfires where we met to sing, give testimonies and hear men of God speak… May God's richest blessing and His wonderful love become more real to you with each passing day.”
Helen Kramer, EditorExcerpted from Jerkline to Jeep: A Brief History of the Upper Boulder by Ruth Staunton and Dorothy Keur. All material copyrighted 1975. Used with permission. · Back to top
