Holt Heritage Center

Help Us Preserve a Montana Masterpiece!

Montana history just got a whole lot bigger at the Holt Heritage Center. Legendary Montana artist Les Peters captured the untamed spirit of our heritage in a breathtaking, jaw-dropping oil painting that spans an incredible 87 feet. Completed in 1955 for the Florence Hotel's iconic Bitterroot Room, this masterpiece beautifully depicts the abundance of undisturbed wildlife and pristine landscapes of the Bitterroot Range. After spending decades stewarding Missoula's history on the walls of the airport terminal, this historic treasure officially found its new permanent home here at the Holt Heritage Center when it was generously donated on April 14, 2026.

But a frontier treasure this big needs a little "trail maintenance" before we can share it with the world.

What We Are Raising Money For

We are launching this campaign to raise $10,000 to ready this incredible mural for its next chapter and safely display it to the public. Decades of display and transit mean we must invest in its long-term preservation. Your 100% tax-deductible contribution will directly fund two critical objectives:

1. Restore the Magic: Decades of exposure and wear require meticulous, careful restoration work to bring the oil paint and massive panels back to pristine, gallery-quality condition.

2. Build the Display Foundation: We must construct custom, heavy-duty moveable stands so these massive 6-foot by 10-foot panels can be safely supported, displayed, and enjoyed by visitors of all generations.

How You Can Help

Every dollar brings us closer to putting this piece of Montana's soul back on display. You can back this project in a few ways:

Thank you for helping us protect our shared history and keep the untamed spirit of Montana alive!

Phase 1 is officially COMPLETE! Thanks to an incredible community effort and generous matching donations, we raised the initial $50,000 required to physically move the last original building of the Lolo townsite. The Old Lolo School has officially been moved to its permanent home on the museum grounds of the Holt Heritage Center (next to the Lolo Creek Steak House)!

Right now, the building is being unhooked from the truck, jacked up, and placed on temporary cribbing.

Now, we need your help to plant its roots. Welcome to Phase 2.

While the school is safely on site, it cannot stay on temporary blocks forever. We need to raise an additional $50,000 to design, engineer, and build a permanent foundation and proper community approach so it can safely welcome visitors for generations to come.

How Your Donation Helps Phase 2:

100% of your donation goes directly toward the preservation of the school building, specifically funding:

All donations are tax-deductible and go directly to the project. Ramona Holt is coordinating the efforts, so feel free to check in with her at the Holt Heritage Center!

Prefer to donate by mail?

You may send checks directly to:

Holt Heritage Center

PO Box 129

Lolo, MT 59847

Thank you for being a part of moving history, and thank you for helping us give the Old Lolo School a firm foundation for the future!

An Epic Feat of Frontier Endurance

Long before Charles M. Russell became Montana’s legendary "Cowboy Artist," his family’s Western saga began with an unbelievable act of grit. Around 1805, Charlie’s ancestors were heading west when a horse injury left them stranded. Refusing to back down, Joseph Russell eventually hired a ferry to cross the mile-wide, treacherous currents of the Mississippi River into St. Louis. Instead of paying to haul his horse on board, Joseph swam the animal the entire mile alongside the boat, keeping a steady hand beneath its head to clear the water ! A massive crowd of stunned onlookers gathered on the riverbank, shouting and placing bets on whether the horse would survive. The horse made it. That gritty endurance secured the land that became Oak Hill—a sprawling, beautiful plantation. Decades later, Oak Hill became the playground for a young, untamable Charlie Russell. He spent his boyhood regular truanting from school to sketch steamboats, riding his pony wild-west fashion through the family coal diggings, and irking the household by carving animal figures out of laundry soap and beeswax .

A Century Hidden in the Shadows

In the late 19th century, Charlie painted a beautiful, deeply sentimental watercolor of his boyhood home: Russell Homestead, Oak Hill, St. Louis, Missouri. It features the sweeping curved driveway, towering black walnut trees, and the multi-winged family home . Because Charlie painted this as a deeply personal gift directly for his older brother, Silas Russell, it was never intended for a public gallery. It remained a closely guarded family heirloom, completely hidden from public eyes for nearly a century. Now, through an extraordinary circle of fate, the Wells family estate has uniquely offered this unwritten chapter of Western art history to the Holt Heritage Center right here in Lolo !

How Your Donation Helps "Bring Charlie Home"

We must raise $35,000 to fund the final purchase/acquisition of this masterpiece and secure its permanent conservation. 100% of your tax-deductible contribution goes directly toward protecting this piece of history for the public trust.

Choose Your Giving Trail:

Thank you for helping us bring a piece of Charlie Russell’s heart and soul back to the country he loved!