Conferences, Workshops, and Special Events
50th Annual Montana History Conference
Get ready for Building on the Past, the 50th annual Montana History Conference, September 28-30, 2023 at the Delta Hotels Colonial in Helena – the same location as the first conference in 1974. MTHS librarian Harriet Meloy, archivist Brian Cockhill, and the Council to Preserve Montana History organized the first Montana History Conference, naming it Montana and the West: New Directions. Then, as now, the conference endeavored to explore underrepresented facets of regional history and to recognize that the past is a continuum—not a dividing line—and its people, events, successes, and failures perpetually impact our present and future.
We’ll be building on 49 years of gatherings to talk about Montana history with a stellar line-up of workshops, tours, lectures, and discussions, including:
Keynote Lectures by Pulitzer-Prize winning author Elizabeth Fenn on the history of the early West; Apsáalooke curator, writer, and cultural consultant Nina Sanders on her recent exhibit Apsáalooke Women and Warriors at Chicago’s Field Museum; retired MTHS curator Kirby Lambert on 50 things he knows about Montana history; MSU Billings professor of history Emily Arendt on the 1977 Montana Women’s International Year Conference; and University of Notre Dame associate clinical professor Mark Johnson on the changing status of Chinese women in Montana, 1860s to 1950s.
Workshops for educators, writers, and historic preservationists
Tours of the new MT Heritage Center (under construction), Made in Montana historic sites, Sieben Ranch, Fort Harrison, and the Last Chance Pow Wow
Concurrent sessions on Indian Education for All, dark history, architecture, public health, African American history, conservation, agriculture, renaming landmarks, Helena history, Montana heroes you don’t know, film censorship, F. Scott Fitzgerald, women’s history, communism, and more!
Browse the full conference schedule and register online today!
Hotel Information
Be sure to ask for the MT History Conference rate.
Delta Colonial Hotel, $160/night plus tax, Phone: (406) 443-2100
La Quinta Inn, $116/night plus tax, Phone: (406) 449-4000
Student Poster Proposals
MTHS invites proposals for student poster presentations at the Montana History Conference. Selected presenters receive complimentary registration and a $300 travel expense reimbursement. To submit a proposal, see the Call for Student Poster Proposals.
If you missed our previous History Conferences, you can find the past conference programs or listen to session recordings here.
Educator Workshops
2023-24 Monday Meet-Ups (Online)
Join colleagues on the second Monday of the month, September-November and January-March, from 4:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. for a series of online sharing sessions around a variety of social studies topics. These sessions will NOT be recorded. Attend all six sessions to earn six renewal units or attend individual sessions to earn one renewal unit each. Find more information on our Professional Development page.
Additional Online Professional Development
Find archived professional development, which can be taken for renewal credits, on our Professional Development page. Offerings include a guided tour of MTHS's Educator Resources and two lecture series: Montana History in 9 Easy Lessons and the Montana History in 9 MORE Easy Lessons.
Bring a Montana Teacher Leader to Your Community!
Take advantage of our extraordinary Teacher Leaders in History program. Eleven elementary and middle school teachers from across the state, who have received training on the Montana Historical Society resources and are versed in best practices for history education, are available to provide professional development. Looking for a presenter at your school? Learn more.
