New phone app promotes Mineral County tourism

Historical, geological, and point-of-interest gems can be found throughout Mineral County. Have you ever wondered about Glacial Lake Missoula and the ice age floods that carved out the Clark Fork Valley? Or wanted to know where the route of the Hiawatha was located? Did you know there was a historical cemetery in DeBorgia?

These are some of the locations found on a new smartphone app. It’s a collaborative effort between the Missoula-based Historical Research Associates (HRA), the Bitterroot Economic Development District and Mineral County. The app will help promote tourism and economic development in Mineral County. HRA worked to integrate information about historical locations in the county into its Next Exit History smartphone app, which is a free download for iPhones and Android devices.

The company has been working on the app for three years. It features more than 60,000 historical sites around the world. It allows travelers the chance to become their own tour guides and explore areas they are visiting.

The Next Exit History includes a feature called Backpacks, which is a collection of historical sites packaged together based on location or theme that can be downloaded and available on or offline through the app. It includes information about the Savenac Nursery, the Mullan Road, the 1910 Fires and more.

The Mineral County Historical Society received over $40,000 in digital tourism marketing funds from the Montana Office of Tourism and Business Development for the project. The Historical Society invites the public to their Mineral County Historical Society and Museum Digital Initiative Celebration on Thursday, January 21 from 3 to 4 p.m. at the St. Regis Community Center. The app can be found online at mineralmthistory.com.