Irvin Flats homesteader fitted with a hook after a 4th of July accident on Flathead Lake

We, my family including Dave, my son Wesley living in Oregon, and my granddaughter, Seeley, were all visiting my dad, George (known as Georgie as a child) at his house across from Bonner Park on Ronald St. in Missoula. It was the 4th of July, 2020. My dad fixed us some lemonade and we sat on the patio surrounded by dad's flowers. Ken, my brother, was also there.

I asked my dad what he did as a child on the 4th of July. Here's what he said: There wasn't much going on, however,  he told a story about a fellow Polson area/Irvin Flats homesteader, Cliff McBroom, and how due to a fireworks accident on Flathead Lake, lost his hand and had it replaced by a hook!! 

Here's what happened. Cliff and some others were lighting some fireworks on Flathead Lake. In those days fireworks really packed a punch and were more powerful than many modern day fireworks. Cliff was holding a firework which didn't go off completely at first so he dunked it in the lake water thinking it would douse the firework. 

Instead of the firework going out it exploded in his hand which was under water and blew his hand off!  

The doctors did surgery and his hand was fitted with a hook.

Cliff was at times known to get into some fights and you could say he had an angry streak that surfaced every now and then.  So...when he did get into a fight his opponents knew that Cliff had a hook on his one hand and that it may be used on them!

This is the story my dad told to us on the 4th of July many years after the incident. As I haven't looked into this story as far as checking newspapers or finding some relatives this account is just from my dad, an Irvin Flats homesteader, who has a very good memory!

Orville Bjorge - Garcon Gulch native featured on front page of the Missoulian for his service in World War 11

https://missoulian.com/news/local/end-of-an-era-montana-idaho-chapter-of-the-th/article_c80d3038-f561-5b59-a1e2-1c800d0569b8.html   

Hello! Fellow cowboys and girls!!

Here is an article about  a fellow homesteader, Orville Bjorge!! The article states he is from the Garcon Gulch area which is near the Irvin Flats area. It is over the hill from where our ranch house used to be. 

Here is a reference to the ranch country of my family and his - "He's 97 now, retired from a life of cattle ranching and farming on his spread between Polson and Hot Springs."

Another quote about his family is - " Bjorge won't make it to Jakers on Saturday. He's living at an extended care home near the Flathead River in Polson, not far from the ranch his father homesteaded in 1910 on Garcon Gulch, between Hot Springs and Polson."

I called my dad, George, and he said he remembered the Bjorge family. There was some distance between the two homesteads so he did not know them well. My dad didn't know for instance that Orville had gone into the service. He said that the Bjorge family did most of their shopping in Hot Springs rather than in Polson.

Montana Homesteader Heritage would like to thank Orville for his service in WW 11. The article relays the story of his service - he was right in the thick of things that's for sure. Thank you, Orville!!

A salute to some veterans in the Halverson family tree!

Montana Homesteader Heritage (Jeanne Halverson Joscelyn) would like to acknowledge some of the veterans in our Halverson family tree on this Veterans Day 2019. 

As I'm just getting to know who is exactly in the Halverson family tree as a result of Ancestry DNA and my cousin Carol Damlos from Chicago who wrote to me a couple of years ago :).  mhh doesn't know all of the veterans in our family so apologies for any veterans not mentioned here. 

The veteran I know about the most is my great-uncle Ed Halverson from Chicago. Ed is the brother of George Henry Halverson, my great-grandfather on my father's side. If mhh remembers correctly Ed served in WW11.

Also, mhh would like to acknowledge our second cousin who died in WW11, Robert Sogge (I'm not sure if I have the correct Sogge name). He is the cousin of my grandfather, Harold and the second cousin of my father, George Ted Halverson.

mmh is quite sure there are names I haven't mentioned and apologize again for this oversight.

Again, mmh salutes our veterans in the Halverson ancestry.

Georgie, and Ed Halverson (visiting from Chicago) and George below

My great-grandfather George Henry Halverson's family photo in Chicago from our cousin Carol

The Gustave Halverson Family in Chicago  - George is my great-grandfather

Our cousin Carol (Ed's granddaughter) sent me this wonderful picture of my great-grandfather's(George) family before he moved to Montana. My great-great grandfather(Gustave) immigrated to Chicago from Norway with his wife, Allethe.

Surprise! A phone call from a Chicago relative of the Halverson's, Carol Damlos!

A couple of weeks ago my father received a call from a Halverson relative in Chicago! My father, George Halverson, gave Carol my number and I later returned her call and we had a great conversation.

It seemed surreal to actually be talking to a Chicago relative as for so many years I had just heard stories of our Halverson Chicago family.

It was such a joy to talk to Carol. She filled me in on so many things I did not know about my great-grandfather's(George Henry Halverson) family.

Sadly, Carol's mother, Laverne Halverson Damlos,  passed away not too long ago. Her mother had suffered a stroke prior to her passing away.  The family was going through her belongings and found a box of pictures and letters left to Laverne after her father (Edwin Halverson) had died. The family found pictures of a ranch in Montana and some letters from Montana and other memorabilia such as a post card from George to his mother from San Francisco I in 1908,

Carol filled me in on a lot of the Halverson family history. She told me that Gustav Halverson (Edwin and George's and their many sisters' father) had immigrated to America by way of a steamship. from Norway.The ship stopped in New York and then Gustav traveled to Chicago. His wife, Althea(not sure of the spelling at this time) followed Gustav later sailing on another steamship and meeting up with him in Chicago. This is my understanding - I may be mistaken on some of the details.

I have always wondered where in Norway my Halverson relatives lived. Carol told me it was Oslo! I've heard of Oslo all my life and never knew this was the city of my ancestors. Carol told me that Oslo used to have a different name, however, I've forgotten what it was only that it started with a "C".

I can't write all of the interesting things about the Halversons that Carol told me about for lack of time, however, I plan on writing more about our conversation soon.

One last very interesting bit of info - our Halverson name was spelled differently in Norway! It was spelled: Halvorsen. The spelling was changed when the family came to America as I understand.

Thanks to my second(or third - not sure on this) cousin Carol for calling me and filling me about our Halverson family in Chicago. I am so thrilled as are my other family members to learn more about our Halverson family history!

Note: I have never been to Chicago, however, I know that Harold, my grandfather(whom I've never met) and my father, George(Georgie) did travel to Chicago. My father remembers quite a lot about his trip to Chicago when he was about 8 years old. My grandma Lilly, remembers that Harold went to stay with the Chicago relatives for about 3 months and he came back quite a bit heavier than he left - ha. Maybe because he got to relax a little bit more than he did on the ranch where he no doubt had a lot of chores.

Joyce Carole Carlyle - Missoulian obituary for a long time Irvin Flats friend and classmate of Georgie Halverson

Click on the link below to read the obituary of Joyce Wigfield Carlyle. Joyce was a classmate of Georgie Halversons at the Green Mountain School, the little one-room country school on Irvine Flats. The Wigfields, John and Beulah, and their two daughters, Joan and Joyce, were friends of the Halversons for many years.  The homesteaders did a lot together and were a close-knit community of farmers/ranchers.



My grandmother, Lilly, has fond memories of playing cards with several couples, with John and Beulah being one of them.



Joyce Carole Carlyle