The West Old & New Vol. III Issue IV April 2014 | Page 18

Hot Springs, Montana is at the edge of the Flathead
Indian Reservation and borders the eastern edge of
the Cabinet Wilderness area. It maintains a population of over 500 people and has been known for over
a hundred years for the natural healing geothermal
water that flows year round from artesian wells
across the small village.
In 1998 Leo Harties, an artist of many genre’s, saw
the potential for a mural on a long wall in the downtown area of the small town. He rallied artists,
brushes and paint and over time with the help of
many hands it came to life. This summer he plans to
have a major restoration and finishing effort take
place.
To the visitor the mural might seem a lot of activity
with no direction, but to the trained eye of the people who have lived here for a long time, it is a beautifully woven compilation of the people who have
brought the town alive over a long period of time.
Musicians, dogs, cars and scenes from the area
chronicle the hundred years since the homesteaders
moved onto the reservation in 1910.

The West Old & New Page 18