Presenter traces Montana hot‑springs history from Native use to modern resorts

Jeff, a geothermal energy consultant and author speaking at a History Buffs Club program in Missoula, summarized the geological causes and social history of Montana’s hot springs and described how the sites evolved from Native ceremonial and therapeutic uses into commercial resorts and modern tourism destinations.

He told the audience that Montana’s western valleys host most of the state’s springs because “meteoric water goes down deep along the cracks to areas of high temperature” and later returns to the surface along faults. “We’re within 2 hours of Missoula, we have about about 10 hot springs that you can go to,” Jeff said, noting both natural wilderness springs and developed resort pools.

Jeff said hot‑water flows and temperatures vary widely across the state. He cited Bozeman Hot Springs as an example of a developed geothermal well that produces “about 2,000 gallons a minute, about a 115 degrees Fahrenheit.” He contrasted that with a field near Poplar on the North Dakota border where water reached “almost 300 degrees Fahrenheit,” and with Lost Trail Hot Springs,…