The Whitehall Ledger - Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana

Jim Stearns has been a proud member of the Whitehall community for 15 years, but his ties to Whitehall go back far longer.

Jim was born in Butte, Montana in 1947 due to Harlowtown not having a hospital. His parents, Hal and Jean Stearns, purchased the Harlowtown Times and Jim was raised in the newspaper business. Through his work at the paper he was able to learn unique skills like reading backwards, upside down, backwards upside down, and upside down backwards.

Jim would often visit his grandparents, Joe and Cora Kountz, at their ranch only 4 miles southeast of Whitehall. He worked har...