en an Elkhorn tradition for over 30 years. That tradition came to an abrupt end on Sunday, Nov. 27, the last day of hunting season when someone unknown to the residents of Elkhorn started the large wood pile on fire.
Elkhorn consists of many old structures so burning wood waste in the summer, in town is not safe. Owners of the Elkhorn mine property have allowed the residents to utilize a piece of property below town to stack wood for a New Years’ bonfire when burning presents less risk. In return, Elkhorn residents spend hours stacking the wood, keeping the area clean and picking up left over nails and pieces of metal in the spring to get ready for the next year.
Bud Smith (a long time Elkhorn resident who is now deceased) would start the fire at midnight on New Year’s Eve to help ring in the New Year. Fireworks were also lit off and the warmth of the fire and excitement of the fireworks provided good memories for friends and families in Elkhorn. Bud’s advancing age came with health problems so younger residents took over and moved the start time up. They either had trouble staying awake until midnight or more likely needed several hours to even get the fire started. How Bud and the older generation could start the fire so quickly and manage everything so effortlessly is one of life’s many mysteries.
Whoever started the fire didn’t stay around to make sure the edges were burned, monitor the fire or clean up after the fire. If you have any idea who may have started the fire, please let John Smith know. You can call him at 406-431-2907. We would like to know who started the fire and why it was started. This may help us decide whether to continue the tradition in the future or just to end it. There were a lot of people planning to attend this year to celebrate the end of COVID and the beginning of the new year.
-John Smith
