Schedule of Events - Mann GUlch 75
Parking Details for the Capitol Event:
Parking at the Capitol for this event is limited. Please consider parking in the CVS/Safeway parking lot and walking to the Capitol (the distance is one city block from the parking lot to the north lawn of the Capitol), or catching the historic Helena Trolley which will be transporting people between the Safeway/CVS parking area to the Capitol between 4-4:50 pm and following the ceremony starting at 6:15 p.m. For a full description of the speakers and musicians participating in the Capitol event, please reference the official program for the event here.
Registration for the Myrna Loy Event is CLOSED!
Saturday, August 3rd, 2024
Reception:6-7pm
Showing:
7-9pm
Myrna Loy Theater Event – In partnership with our local theater, the Myrna Loy, we plan to show PBS special, “Higgins Ridge.” The documentary outlines a fire that occurred a decade after the Mann Gulch Fire and eerily reflects similar circumstances. The crew draws upon what they had learned from the Mann Gulch Fire and how it led to a better outcome for their crew. One of the survivors of this fire will participate in a post-film discussion panel joined by other key planning committee members. Refreshments and venue for this event are sponsored courtesy of AARP.
Sunday, August 4th, 2024
10am-Noon
Location: York Community Hall, 6040 Nelson Road, Helena, Montana Seventy-five years to this day after weeks of dry weather a series of thunderstorms pelted the Big Belt Mountains with lightning. That night there are twenty-five reported possible smokes. Five of which turned out to be actual fires. Two of these grew into significant fires, the Mann Gulch Fire and the York Fire. The York Fire played a critical role in decisions made in relation to the Mann Gulch Fire. Sunday August 4, 2024 you are invited to join us as we walk site the “other fire” and discuss its implications in regard to the Mann Gulch Fire
Sunday, August 4th, 2024
2-5pm
Walking Mall Event – Montana Discovery Foundation in partnership with Ten Mile Creek Brewing will unveil a special commemorative beer. There will be other community member displays on the walking mall including smokejumpers from the Missoula base, a wreath making event, and a few demonstrations that model fire behavior alongside booths to inform community members how to harden their homes/create defensible space around their properties.
Monday, August 5th, 2024
4-7pm
Capitol Event – All partners will host a commemorative evening on the north lawn of the Montana State Capitol building. The evening will include remarks from U.S. Forest Service leadership, followed by John N. Maclean (son of Norman Maclean who wrote Young Men and Fire) as our keynote speaker. Weather and FAA clearance permitting, Miss Montana (the same plane that dropped the smokejumpers in 1949) will pass over the Capitol. We will also have wreaths set up to honor each of the men.
