In the heart of Montana’s Garnet Mountains is a small cemetery. Over a century ago, this was a mining area with towns such as Garnet and Coloma bustling with stores, saloons, mines, houses, and more saloons. Today this is an area of public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management.
Five miners were buried in the Sand Park Cemetery between 1898 and 1914. According to the information sign:
“Little more is known that their names and year of death. Most of the other hard-rock-era miners who had family and means chose to be buried in ‘consecrated ground’ in metropolitan areas like Missoula or Deer Lodge.”
Public Lands
Public lands belong to the people—all of the people, whether rich or poor. At the federal level, public lands are managed by the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, the Forest Service, the Corps of Engineers, and other agencies. Many conservatives oppose the idea of public lands and seek to have them privatized. As a part of our heritage, public lands must remain public and open to all.
More from this series:
Public Lands: The Swan River Nature Trail (Photo Diary)
Public Lands: A Dam Day Use Area (Photo Diary)
Public Lands: A Small Urban Park (Photo Diary)
Public Lands: The Beach at South Beach State Park (Photo Diary)
Public Lands: An Oriental Garden (Photo Diary)
Public Lands: Cape Arago State Park (Photo Diary)
Glacier Park: The Lake McDonald Ranger Station (Photo Diary)