Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
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Electricity is our invisible lifeline. We rely on it for light, heat, food preservation, cooking, and our water supply. However, when an outage shifts from hours to days, inconvenience rapidly becomes an emergency. The widespread power outage in December served as a critical test for Jefferson County and much of Montana. As the year closes, it is the perfect time to evaluate and refine our approach to emergency preparedness. Maintaining situational awareness is the cornerstone of any emergency. During the outage, Jefferson County utilized its...
Ron and Karen Swink bring fine wines from California to Western and Southwestern Montana. Whitehall is one of 40 certified communities that will share $331,000 for the fiscal year. Whitehall Chamber receives a $5,000 state grant. WHS Creative Leader of the Week: NICOLE JANACARO. Willingness to whatever is asked of her on the WHS student council has earned senior Nicole Janacaro honors this week. Nicole was selected by council advisor LeeAnn Gallagher. She is the daughter of Mark and Rhonda...
As 2025 closes out, Montana Free Press reporters are reflecting on the work they’ve done over the course of the year — and what they expect to be writing about heading into 2026. When people ask what I report on for Montana Free Press, I have a stock answer: water, wildlife, energy, climate, land use and public land management. It’s a chaotic beat in a normal year: I might chase down judicial orders on Endangered Species Act litigation one day, wade through energy utility filings the next and close out the week by reporting on a proposal to pu...
Holiday hosting is a fun way to welcome loved ones. Opportunities to host abound between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day, and savvy hosts know how useful an expansive culinary repertoire can be during a time of year when it's common to enjoy home-cooked meals with loved ones. Simple but flavorful meals are a holiday host's best friend. Such meals, which include the following recipe for "Stuffed Shells With Spinach and Ricotta" from Lines+Angles, give hosts more time to mingle but still ensure a...
KEEPING TRADITION: Pati McLaughlin (center) and her caroling crew have caroled around town and to Meadowlark Manor since 2018. On Saturday, December 20th, the singers braved the wind and weather to sing a few classics to the residents....
HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS: The Whitehall Garden Club decorated the Main Street Green with both holiday home gnomes and nativity scenes earlier this month. Thankfully, JUDY CHADWICK and MONIQUE MORRIS snapped some photos before the homes had to be scurried into the Star Theatre due to high winds. The scenes are available to view inside the theatre....
True Love is at it again this holiday season – and paying more than ever. According to PNC’s Christmas Price Index (CPI), the final price tag to buy all of the gifts in the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas” comes to $51,476.12 this year, headlined by drastic increases in the price of gold and the famed partridge’s Pear Tree. For more than 40 years, PNC has tracked the price of the birds, entertainers, and other gifts that comprise the classic holiday song as part of its Christmas Price Index, a light-hearted take on the Bureau of Labor Sta...
We’re getting close to Christmas with presents, trees, and lights. The outside decorations will brighten up dark nights. Ornaments of old and new are hanging from the tree. The manger scene is lit up for all the world to see. The lists are growing longer for those to come to eat. And wish lists that were inches are measured now in feet. The magic of the season is seen within the eyes Of people from around the world of every shape and size. Spending time with loved ones should always top the l...
Game wardens with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks are seeking information on a pictograph panel that was vandalized at Missouri Headwaters State Park. The graffiti was discovered this month at a popular destination for park visitors that contains a visible pictograph consisting of a human figure in solid red. An initial assessment of the vandalism indicates a person likely used a paintbrush to paint over a portion of the existing pictograph and made about 10 markings in other areas of the...
Katie Frankman of Cardwell, Montana, was named to the Spring 2025 Dean’s List at Berry College. The Dean’s List honors students who posted an academic average of 3.5 or better on a 4.0 scale while carrying a class load of at least 12 hours during the semester. Nationally recognized for academic excellence and as an outstanding educational value, Berry is an independent, coeducational, comprehensive liberal arts college of approximately 2,200 students. For more than a century, the college has offered an exceptional education that balances int...
On Dec. 4, the Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission set the 2026 and 2027 hunting regulations. In doing so, it made a variety of changes to address concerns about nonresident hunting pressure and mule deer numbers. “The commission’s action was a culmination of a lengthy process that started this past summer with public meetings around the state,” said Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Director Christy Clark. “Both the commission and FWP heard a lot of input from hunters, landowners, and the public. This input was critical in the final regulat...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks will hold a public hearing on Jan. 20 at 10 a.m. to consider an amendment to the previous Wildlife Habitat Improvement Program (WHIP) rule. The amendment reflects changes to the program following approval of House Bill 932 during the 2025 legislative session. The changes in HB 932 revise WHIP from a solely noxious weed management-focused program to one that also includes FWP grants to partners for proposed projects that improve, conserve, and maintain terrestrial and aquatic habitat, resulting in conservation g...
December 1925. Another year was ending; a quarter of a century almost completed. Christmas was a big deal around the world, even if most front-page news did not reflect it. There was plenty of positive news that might have been considered early Christmas presents. L.P. Yates, a farmer from Fishtail, Montana, in Stillwater County, was crowned the winner at the International Grain and Hay show in Chicago for his Marquis wheat. Many other Montana farmers won top honors for their Durum wheat....
Rockin' the Rockies gets rocked into court. Rock'n roll will never die, and neither, apparently, will the legal battles between Rockin' the Rockies and Jefferson County. At the same time, Rockin' the Rockies is being hauled into court by county authorities, as it appears a rockin' show at the same concert site is in store for 2001. But the 2001 concert will be called Rockin' the Rivers and will be managed by a new group of concert promoters. WHS Creative Leader of the Week: JAMIE SCHMIDT....
School is out, and families are gathering for the holidays. What to do with everyone after the presents are open? One idea is to have a movie night or several movie nights with DVDs from the Whitehall Community Library. This fall, we received hundreds of new and older DVDs via donations, including many PBS, Ken Burns, Acorn, and other favorites, which are now in the collection. The staff still has three boxes left to add, but most are out and ready to go. There are American History series,...
A little indulgence is par for the course come the holiday season. That’s especially true in relation to baked goods, which find their way into entertaining areas at office parties, family gatherings, and school functions. Treats are indeed part of what makes the holiday season a special time of year. This year, families can whip up this Lines+Angles recipe for “Chocolate Christmas Cupcakes” to make the holiday season a little more flavorful. INGREDIENTS: (Makes 12 Cupcakes) For the cakes...
What a wonderful Christmas time at the Whitehall Community Library! We were full to the brim with children waiting to see Santa, picking out new clothes to face the harsh winter conditions, enjoying cookies and candy, and making all sorts of Christmas decorations to take home. There are so many people to thank for making it all possible, but I will try. Thank you to the Whitehall Community Library staff, volunteers, the Friends of the Library, and Santa for making sure everyone got to the...
3 Rivers tower brings digital service to the Whitehall area: that small red flashing light you see low in the sky southwest of Whitehall is not an airplane. It's a 250-foot tower built by 3 Rivers Wireless to bring digital wireless telephone service to the Whitehall area. WHS Creative Leader of the Week: NIKKI CHOQUETTE. Receiving honors this week is Junior Nikki Choquette. Choir director Sandi Mabbott nominated Nkkiie for her strong performance in choir. Nikki is also the choir president. She...
Whitehall FFA would like to wish the community a warm winter season and a Merry Christmas! We have been extra diligent this year in spreading Christmas Cheer to our community members as well as the Children of Logan's Health Children's Hospital in Kalispell. We have had a successful fall and the start of the winter competition season, and we hope for more success as the winter season progresses and into the spring season! Thank you to the Whitehall Community for all the support you have given...
The hunting and trapping season may be winding down, but the time for gear prep is just beginning. If you’re looking for the perfect gift for the outdoors enthusiast in your life, consider these categories of gear that proved invaluable in the field this past season. 1. High-Dexterity, Hybrid Gloves: When the air is cold but you’re still moving, a bulky glove can be a liability. One of the best gear additions this year was a hybrid-style glove that offers an excellent balance of warmth, weather resistance and finger dexterity. Key feature...
It's time to vote for your favorite Whitehall Ledger Photo of the Year! Vote now! Visit the Ledger's Facebook photo album entitled 2025 Photos of the Week (https://bit.ly/4p8h5Y6) and start voting! Likes/loves will be tallied, and a winner will be announced in the first paper of 2025! These are photos your neighbors, friends, and family submitted over the course of 2025, and they are beautiful! With over 50 weeks of photos to choose from, finding a winner is always hard - unless you vote! The photo with the most likes by January 1, 2026, will...
If you are living with diabetes, you are in the company of a multitude of others. Nine percent of adults in Montana are diagnosed with diabetes, and even more of our fellow Montanans, 34 percent, are thought to have pre-diabetes. Receiving a diabetes, or prediabetes diagnosis, does not necessarily mean that you have been given the knowledge or tools to manage this new condition. The number of Montanans with diabetes who have taken part in a diabetes education program is less than 50 percent. Of those with prediabetes, few have taken part in...
Experienced caregivers (two adults and three Jefferson High School students) are now taking sign-ups to watch 25 kids on Saturday, December 20th, from noon to 6 PM, to give parents the opportunity to catch a break from the holiday madness or get those last-minute Christmas presents found! Of the 25 children, five of those can be ages 0 to 3; please provide diaper bag, bottles, food and a portable crib. Cookies, Crackers, Bananas and Juice included, but no meal; hours are between lunch and dinner. It will be a day of crafts, bilingual games,...
