Era of frontier explorers brought to life

THOMPSON FALLS – Fire trucks rolled down Main Street and black powder from flintlock firearms filled the air as Thompson Falls celebrated David Thompson Days over the course of this weekend.

Events ran from Friday, July 4 to Saturday, July 5 as the seat of Sanders County celebrated the famous British-Canadian explorer who set up trading posts and mapped the area in the early years of the 19th century.

Celebrations for the annual event included a heritage parade in the morning down Main Street, followed by a historic fur trader camp held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in PPL Park.

“The camp offers so many different things to learn about,” Jennifer Fielder, event coordinator for David Thompson Days, said.

To start off the day Atl Atl lessons were held from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. at Ainsworth Field.

The spear throwing lessons focused on how to use the ancient sling/spear throwing system used to revolutionize the practice of hunting centuries ago.

As the morning progressed all manners of vehicles, horses and fur traders assembled at Gallatin Street for their procession through town.

Led by the American Legion color guard, the annual parade celebrated the complete history of Thompson Falls.

Some members of the procession were dressed in buckskin to commemorate the first settlers of the region, who followed Thompson once he set up a string of trading posts in the western portion of the Rocky Mountains.

A period canoe and a flag of the North West Company accompanied the fur traders in the parade.

The company was a British fur trading organization based out of Montreal, Quebec and was responsible for exploring and initiating settlements in major swaths of western Canada and the northwestern United States.

“It is really neat to actually be able to see the history of the region,” Fielder said.

Once the parade concluded, those dressed as fur traders and explorers made their way to PPL Park to open the afternoon fur trading camp.

The camp took visitors back in time 200 years, providing a taste of the experiences encountered by Thompson in his first foray into the Montana wilderness.

The thud of tomahawks slamming into wood and the din of flint striking home to produce sparks filled the air as visitors were taken on a journey back in time.

Workshops were offered on contemporary fur trading methods, the art of making fire with flint and steel, tomahawk throwing lessons, live music of the era and a display on flintlock rifle operations.

Individuals who looked as if they would fit right in during the era of David Thompson ran the workshops.

Sporting all manners of rugged outfits, characteristic of the time before trading posts were a regular feature in this portion of the nation, the re-enactors completed the image of life in Thompson Falls 200 years ago.

Lloyd Priest demonstrated hunting techniques with his modern reproduction of a Pennsylvania Rifle.

Epitomizing the era with a backcountry Phrygian cap and the rugged outfit of a 19th century frontiersman, Priest worked methodically to produce rounds for and clean his rifle.

After demonstrating how hunters from days gone by would melt down lead and cast them into bullets, he loaded his muzzleloader with a cork round for safety purposes.

Though the ordinance was harmless the weapon still produced an impressive discharge scattering nearby waterfowl and a few dogs who had wandered too close to the demonstration.  

Priest’s firearm featured a 38-inch barrel, weighed a little over seven pounds and fired .50 caliber rounds.

“These rifles were used to hunt all sorts of game in the era of David Thompson,” Priest said.

Priest noted moose and grizzly bears were the only animals, which the gun struggled to bring down, and period hunters often went out in groups when hunting the big game of the region.

The modern rifleman went on to explain the importance of the Pennsylvania Rifles.

Popularized by American hunters and militiamen throughout the 18th century, the muzzle loading long rifle was a major advancement in firearms technology.

The flintlock firearms were one of the first guns to feature rifled barreling, greatly improving the weapon’s accuracy and making it a much more effective hunting tool than the smooth bore muskets produced in Europe.

The youngest members of David Thompson Days were kept busy with periodic distributions of candy and other sweets.

Several times throughout the afternoon, Mike Tomell, took a break from his fire-starting workshop to launch a candy cannon.

Children would gather around as the fuse was set and as soon as the small cannon fired, young kids would run every which way in hopes of grabbing a sweet treat.

The candy wasn’t the only draw for younger visitors as the opportunity to throw a tomahawk and create fire using rudimentary tools proved impossible to resist.