Big Timber Lions Club

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Big Timber Lions Club History

In the fall of 1925, a group came to town, sponsored by the Billings Lions Club. They succeeded in signing up 28 members and the organizaional meeting was held on December 2, 1925. No one could travel by road at that time due to the weather, but two trains traveled each direction in those days and that meant that eight members of the Billings Lions Club could attend. Even the District Governor could make it from Forsyth.

The original officers and directors were: D.V. Higbe, President; J.A. Lowry, Vice President; Ross Shaver, Secretary; A.H. Arneson, Treasurer; C.A. Caulkins, Lion Tamer and J.W. Hruza, Tail Twister, directors Charles Campbel, J.J. Lacklen, J.A. Trower C.F. Ullman. J.A. Lowry would be Doug Lowry’s grandfather.

Their first project was to promote better roads as at that time all roads were dirt (and mud). The road west of town crossed the Yellowstone at Springdale and went up the Convict Grade to Livingston and then on to Bozeman. To the east, the road went to Reed Point, crossed the Yellowstone there and then north, then east the Springtime, on the Columbus and Billings. The road north of Reed Point was heavy gumbo and presented travelers with many problems. You always figured on staying overnight at your destination due to road conditions. Any road improvements at that time were the responsibility of the Counties, not the State and Federal government. The Lions managed to talk the County into improving the roads east and west.

Next was the north-south road, which at that time was little more than a trail. Clubs from Big Timber, Harlowton and Lewistown got together and planned a road from Cooke City, through the Boulder Valley and on north to Canada. The project became political, and since more votes could be secured from counties to the east; it ended up that the Red Lodge-Cooke City road was built instead.

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