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Kalispell In The Year of Its Incorporation

Rare and highly detailed map and promotional pamphlet promoting Northwestern Montana, focused on Flathead County and the Kalispell area.

The map includes an early plan of Kalispell.

Kalispell and the Flathead Valley

The Flathead Valley in northwestern Montana has a rich history that begins with its first European exploration in the late 18th century, likely by surveyor Peter Fidler of the Hudson’s Bay Company. Before European contact, the valley was home to the Salish, Kootenai, and Pend d’Oreilles tribes, who had long used the land for seasonal hunting, fishing, and gathering.  

The first significant wave of non-Native settlement began in the 1870s. In 1884, a short-lived settlement called Ashley was founded in the area that is now Kalispell. Just three years later, the town of Demersville was established along the Flathead River. Demersville quickly became the largest settlement in the region, with bustling businesses catering to miners and settlers. However, the fate of Demersville changed when the Great Northern Railroad decided to bypass it. As a result, the town was abandoned as its inhabitants moved the short distance to a new townsite named Kalispell, established by railroad interests.

The foundation of Kalispell is directly tied to the expansion of the Great Northern Railroad, which was building a transcontinental line in the late 19th century. In 1891, the railroad identified a need for a divisional point in the Flathead Valley, and Charles Edward Conrad, a prominent businessman and banker from Fort Benton, Montana, played a key role in founding the town. Conrad, along with three other members of the Great Northern board of directors, formed the Kalispell Townsite Company, and by the spring of 1891, the town had been platted, with lots quickly selling. The town was named after the local Kalispel (Salish) tribe, with an additional "L" added to the name. Kalispell, which means "flat land above the lake," was officially incorporated as a city in 1892.

Kalispell's early prosperity was driven by the arrival of the Great Northern Railroad, which brought settlers, tourists, and business opportunities. The first locomotive arrived in Kalispell on New Year’s Day, 1892, marking the beginning of the town’s role as a regional transportation hub. The town’s growth was swift, with new businesses and industries such as sawmills, flour mills, and agricultural ventures establishing Kalispell as the trade center of the Flathead Valley. Charles Conrad himself contributed to this growth by building the Conrad Mansion in 1895.

Although Kalispell was initially founded as a railroad town, its role as a rail hub was relatively short-lived. In 1904, the Great Northern Railway relocated its main line north to Whitefish, making that town the new divisional point. Many railroad employees followed the company to Whitefish, but Kalispell continued to thrive. By that time, Kalispell had already established itself as the commercial and financial center of the region, having been chosen as the county seat of Flathead County in 1893.  

Rarity

The pamphlet is very rare. 

OCLC locates 2 examples of the first edition (Huntington Library and Yale).

The pamphlet was reissued again in 1894 and 1895, both of which are exceedingly rare.

We note a single example in a dealer catalog list in RBH (Ebserstadt, Catalog #132-464, 1953) and no records at auction.