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, which he said is about 95 degrees and sometimes requires a greenhouse cover in winter to retain heat.

Why the topic matters: Jeff framed hot springs as a continuing local resource for recreation, therapy and small business. He traced uses from Native Americans—who treated springs as neutral or communal places and used them for bathing and healing—to early European visitors such as Lewis and Clark, who visited Lolo Hot Springs in 1805–1806 and later stopped at Jackson Hot Springs.

The presentation reviewed the late‑19th and early‑20th century resort era when entrepreneurs and railroad access prompted construction of large hotels and bathhouses in places such as Broadwater (Helena), Boulder Hot Springs, Chico Hot Springs, Hunter’s Hot Springs and Corwin/Corwin‑area resorts. Jeff described common features of those resorts—indoor natatoria with exhaust stacks, solariums, and elaborate lobbies—and noted recurring vulnerabilities: wooden construction, winter moisture damage and repeated fires. He said Broadwater was damaged by a 1935 Helena earthquake, and he recounted a 1959 earthquake near Hebgen Lake that, he said, stopped flow to a resort well, allowed methane to leak into the well, and led to a fire that destroyed the resort.

Jeff also described noncommercial and civic uses across decades: WPA stonework and federal support for projects such as the Sleeping Buffalo (formerly built with WPA labor); a mid‑20th‑century Camp Aqua project tied to polio relief and children’s treatment; and historic bottling operations that were later curtailed after state tests found radioactivity in some water sources.

The presenter traced how costs and ownership have shifted in recent years. He said some properties have been refurbished by private investors and corporations, while other springs remain low‑cost public options. “It used to be you could soak almost anywhere in Montana for $5 for all day,” he said; more recently he reported day‑soak fees of $20 or more at some Montana resorts and $50–$60 in parts of Colorado, noting operators cite large reinvestment costs.

Audience members asked follow‑ups during a brief Q&A. When an audience member asked about Sleeping Child, Jeff responded that it is “a kind of a high end bed and breakfast” with rates he described as around $2,000 a night and that it has been marketed for corporate retreats and getaways. When another attendee asked about a purple map dot indicating a Hot Springs in Sheridan County, Jeff said the map point may mark a hot water well or an old oil well site rather than an organized public resort. He also noted that some private owners—he named a recent purchaser of Hunter’s Hot Springs as Russell Gordy—have discussed redevelopment but that public access or redevelopment plans are not always public or guaranteed.

Jeff closed by recommending reference materials for visitors: guidebooks and the Montana Hot Springs Facebook page for current conditions and access notes. He emphasized that many formerly “secret” springs are now publicly documented online, and that access, ownership and safety vary widely.

The program combined geological explanation, historical examples and contemporary observations; no formal recommendations or policy actions were proposed or taken at the session.