Havre, MT

We rose early in order to beat the heat when bicycling from Harlem to Havre, Montana. Mosquitoes, misplaced items that required backtracking to fetch, a flat tire, and bypassing around construction kept us on our toes and limited our ride to 45 miles. As it turned out, this was fortuitous as it allowed us to delve deeper into Havre's rich and varied history and avoid an oppressively hot day.

The shortcut to Havre, Montana

 With less than 80 miles under his belt Monte managed to get his first flat tire!







Originally named Bull Hook Siding, a name derived from Indian folklore, it was not until later that the town was renamed Havre.  With the coming of the railroad, Bull Hook Siding prospered and a group of citizens took it upon themselves to rename the city.  Since most of the citizens were French they chose a French name: Le Havre (the harbor) after the name of a city in France from which one of the members came.

Famous for its "underworld," the result of a fire, much activity occurred and resided beneath the streets of Havre.

 
 Early day photo of Havre before the town burned to the ground. Apparently some cowboys, upset with one of the saloons, threw a Molotov cocktail into the saloon but fire spread and consume 60 other buildings. Only the basements were left and this is how the underground city got its start. In many respects it was described as a den of iniquity with quite a list of colorful characters and exploits beyond imagination.

  There was even an underground house of ill repute. Each bed had a number above it. I would suspect the clients would comment to the effect of something like "I'll have a number three today. "



 In amongst all of the illegal activities there were legal activities as well. Meat markets, bakeries, and even a pharmacy and barbershop.

 Underground dentist office

 Long bone and fracture operating table

bakery

meat market

Part of the railroad display

Monte Cherry, my new riding partner, and I took advantage of this lull in activity to take a tour "Havre Under the Streets."  It was here that we met a group of young ladies visiting from Australia and partaking in the tour.



 These three ladies were on the tour with us as we visited Havre Beneath The Streets. Two of the ladies are visiting from Australia; one of the ladies, originally from Australia, ended up marrying a Yank and resides here now.




 


 

 It was here that the 10th Cavalry Regiment...Buffalo Soldiers first appeared and became famous for their skirmishes with the indigenous natives. Led by Lieutenant Blackjack Pershing, this unit was composed of African-American soldiers under white officers. Gen. Pershing later went on to command all US forces during World War I.

Margie Deppmei

 The daughter of Frank DeRosa, who was instrumental in getting "Havre Beneath the Streets" spotlighted as a point of interest and establishing the Railroad Museum in Havre, Montana. A bit shy about having her picture taken but very proud of the work that her father did. From a railroad family, she grew up in Havre, Montana, and said it was indeed a wonderful place to reside.