[1940s HOME MOVIE TRIP TO GLACIER NATIONAL PARK, MONTANA]

Genre: home movie

Year Published: 1940s

Description: This silent, color home movie was shot by an unknown American who visited Glacier National Park, and who added wonderfully descriptive title cards to their movie. Glacier National Park (founded 1910) encompasses a 1500 square mile area that includes 60 glaciers on high mountain peaks. The footage begins at East Glacier Park Train Station and is followed by various clips of the Swiss-style chalets and cabins found at different camp grounds, stunning lakes, and wild, rugged nature along the way from East Glacier to Inside Circle Trail. The film likely dates to the mid to late 1940s. Film opens, text illuminating history/ founding of Glacier National Park (0:08). Text page, entrances to the park at Belton on Western Side and Glacier Park on the Eastern Side (0:09). Log building, East Glacier Park Station (0:18). Glacier Park Hotel/ Lodge built in Swiss-chalet style (est.1912-13) located outside park boundary, but connected by trail, first lodge located near train station; Mountain backdrop (0:26). Close-up details flora and fauna, multicolored flowers (0:33). Native American tipis dot hotel property, likely replicas (0:41). Lake McDonald near the western park entrance - pair seen in row boat rowing across lake, alpine trees line water’s edge (0:43). Various scenes along Going-to-the-Sun Road, crossing Logan Pass from Lake McDonald to Going-to-the-Sun Chalets on St. Mary’s Lake (0:59). Sun illuminates Heavens Peak (1:06). Man uses shovel to clear path through 50 ft. of snow along Logan Pass, some men and women wait on the side until path cleared (1:24). Camera pans Garden Wall / Highline trailhead at top of Logan Pass - Garden Wall is one of Glacier's prominent features, a geologic ridge called an arête, formed by passing glaciers (1:45). Small waterfall, water flows down rocky ridge (2:42). Brown bear, two cubs approach 1930s-era automobile parked on side of road (2:49). Blackfoot Glacier (largest glacier at about 3 square miles and most “picturesque”)(3:02). Going-to-the-Sun campsite along St. Mary’s Lake, chalets, group of women in hiking outfits pose on rail lining the water’s edge (3:18). St. Mary’s Falls (3:52). Mount Gould, Grinnell Point and Mount Wilbur reflect in the clear, calm waters of Swiftcurrent Lake (4:09). Quote by James William Whilt, Glacier guide and poet, shot of Whilt in cowboy hat smoking a pipe (4:36). (Whilt [1878 - 1967] was a cowboy poet known as "The Poet of the Rockies".) Many Glacier Hotel along Swiftcurrent Lake; Guests ride in on horses (4:55). Granite Park Chalet (5:17). Scenes along trail from Granite Park to Fifty-Mountain Camp on horseback - wild bear grass, deer (5:25). Goat Haunt Camp on Waterton Lake (6:18). Lake Janet (6:39). Hole-in-the-Wall Camp, horses rest and play in grass, wild flowers wave in wind, group eats picnic lunch (7:10). More wild deer (8:20). Group sits around campfire at dusk (8:50). Climbing over Indian Pass on horseback (9:19). Hanging Valley (9:44). Crosley Lake Camp, trekkers swim in cold glacial waters, white tents and tipis pitched in grass field (9:52). Dawn Mist Falls (10:41). Ptarmigan Pass (10:57). Group sits for another picnic, most wearing cowboy hats and long overcoats, feed wild marmots (11:26). Hand-drawn map of Inside Circle Trail: Going-to-Sun Chalet, Red Eagle Camp, Triple Divide, Cut-Bank Chalet, Cutbank Pass (11:55). Two-Medicine Lake and Rising Wolf Mountain (12:02). Chalets along lake coast (12:38). Lake-of-the-Seven-Winds on Cut Bank Pass, group crosses lake on horseback (12:54). Triple Divide Peak (“Roof of North America”), waters divide and flow to Gulf of Mexico, Hudson Bay, Pacific Ocean - group of trekkers on horseback make their way up Triple Divide Pass (13:34). Red Eagle Camp on Red Eagle Lake, wild marmots try and eat some of the trekkers’ pancake breakfast (14:32). Virginia Falls (15:37). Filmmakers poses with horse “Question Annie” (15:50). Cowboy poses on horseback, close-up details of reigns and spurs on back of cowboy boots (16:01). Closing quote, film ends (16:32).

Complete Record: This silent, color home movie was shot by an unknown American who visited Glacier National Park, and who added wonderfully descriptive title cards to their movie. Glacier National Park (founded 1910) encompasses a 1500 square mile area that includes 60 glaciers on high mountain peaks. The footage begins at East Glacier Park Train Station and is followed by various clips of the Swiss-style chalets and cabins found at different camp grounds, stunning lakes, and wild, rugged nature along the way from East Glacier to Inside Circle Trail. The film likely dates to the mid to late 1940s. Film opens, text illuminating history/ founding of Glacier National Park (0:08). Text page, entrances to the park at Belton on Western Side and Glacier Park on the Eastern Side (0:09). Log building, East Glacier Park Station (0:18). Glacier Park Hotel/ Lodge built in Swiss-chalet style (est.1912-13) located outside park boundary, but connected by trail, first lodge located near train station; Mountain backdrop (0:26). Close-up details flora and fauna, multicolored flowers (0:33). Native American tipis dot hotel property, likely replicas (0:41). Lake McDonald near the western park entrance - pair seen in row boat rowing across lake, alpine trees line water’s edge (0:43). Various scenes along Going-to-the-Sun Road, crossing Logan Pass from Lake McDonald to Going-to-the-Sun Chalets on St. Mary’s Lake (0:59). Sun illuminates Heavens Peak (1:06). Man uses shovel to clear path through 50 ft. of snow along Logan Pass, some men and women wait on the side until path cleared (1:24). Camera pans Garden Wall / Highline trailhead at top of Logan Pass - Garden Wall is one of Glacier's prominent features, a geologic ridge called an arête, formed by passing glaciers (1:45). Small waterfall, water flows down rocky ridge (2:42). Brown bear, two cubs approach 1930s-era automobile parked on side of road (2:49). Blackfoot Glacier (largest glacier at about 3 square miles and most “picturesque”)(3:02). Going-to-the-Sun campsite along St. Mary’s Lake, chalets, group of women in hiking outfits pose on rail lining the water’s edge (3:18). St. Mary’s Falls (3:52). Mount Gould, Grinnell Point and Mount Wilbur reflect in the clear, calm waters of Swiftcurrent Lake (4:09). Quote by James William Whilt, Glacier guide and poet, shot of Whilt in cowboy hat smoking a pipe (4:36). (Whilt [1878 - 1967] was a cowboy poet known as "The Poet of the Rockies".) Many Glacier Hotel along Swiftcurrent Lake; Guests ride in on horses (4:55). Granite Park Chalet (5:17). Scenes along trail from Granite Park to Fifty-Mountain Camp on horseback - wild bear grass, deer (5:25). Goat Haunt Camp on Waterton Lake (6:18). Lake Janet (6:39). Hole-in-the-Wall Camp, horses rest and play in grass, wild flowers wave in wind, group eats picnic lunch (7:10). More wild deer (8:20). Group sits around campfire at dusk (8:50). Climbing over Indian Pass on horseback (9:19). Hanging Valley (9:44). Crosley Lake Camp, trekkers swim in cold glacial waters, white tents and tipis pitched in grass field (9:52). Dawn Mist Falls (10:41). Ptarmigan Pass (10:57). Group sits for another picnic, most wearing cowboy hats and long overcoats, feed wild marmots (11:26). Hand-drawn map of Inside Circle Trail: Going-to-Sun Chalet, Red Eagle Camp, Triple Divide, Cut-Bank Chalet, Cutbank Pass (11:55). Two-Medicine Lake and Rising Wolf Mountain (12:02). Chalets along lake coast (12:38). Lake-of-the-Seven-Winds on Cut Bank Pass, group crosses lake on horseback (12:54). Triple Divide Peak (“Roof of North America”), waters divide and flow to Gulf of Mexico, Hudson Bay, Pacific Ocean - group of trekkers on horseback make their way up Triple Divide Pass (13:34). Red Eagle Camp on Red Eagle Lake, wild marmots try and eat some of the trekkers’ pancake breakfast (14:32). Virginia Falls (15:37). Filmmakers poses with horse “Question Annie” (15:50). Cowboy poses on horseback, close-up details of reigns and spurs on back of cowboy boots (16:01). Closing quote, film ends (16:32).