Groups from Gallatin Canyon, Madison Valley meet for inaugural gathering after convening for 100 years in separate valleys
By Leslie Kilgore EBS CONTRIBUTOR
On Sept. 28, 1927, a group of women who lived in Gallatin Canyon met for the first time at the home of a rancher’s wife on Buck Creek, to form an unprecedented club for ranching wives in the area.
Back then, ranches had no electricity or telephones and families only traveled to Bozeman two or three times a year. Some returned to Bozeman for the winter, but many remained and endured cold harsh winters on their own, isolated from most other families.
Seeking friendships, the women on these ranches formed the Gallatin Canyon Women’s Club, which remains an active and thriving organization today, meeting throughout the year in Big Sky and its surrounding areas.
Recently, members of GCWC gathered at the Jack Creek Preserve on Jack Creek Road to meet the members of the Madison Valley Women’s Club, a similar organization that was formed in 1920 to support women ranchers in the Ennis area.
Over the past 100 years, the two clubs have never gathered, making this a significant and historical event for the area.
“We decided to meet in the middle, at the Jack Creek Preserve,” said Jane McCarthy, president of GCWC. “It was the suggestion of Barbara Gillespie, a member of both clubs for many years. She’s lived in Big Sky and now in McAllister.”
McCarthy said more than 70 women met at Jack Creek Preserve to learn the history of both clubs, make new and renewed acquaintances, and enjoy each other’s company while playing cornhole, throwing axes, hiking around the preserve and sharing a potluck lunch.
“Members just hung out and visited with stories and history from both sides of the mountain,” McCarthy said. “Many women had heard of each other but had never met.”
The two key speakers during the gathering were GCWC member Joan Traylor and MCWC member Shirley Storeymasson.
Traylor spoke of the club’s history, scholarships, support of the Big Sky library and the Crail Creek Ranch renovation, and other community projects and fundraising efforts. Storeymasson, a member of GCWC for 65 years at 91 years old, recounted anecdotes from the past six decades of the club and its philanthropic efforts in Ennis and beyond.
“We have very similar beginnings, and both focus on community support,” McCarthy said. “It was way too long [overdue] to actually meet, spend time together and learn about both our clubs’ focuses.”
McCarthy added that both clubs began by offering social gatherings for women in two secluded rural areas while also extending fundraising support in each community for the schools, local nonprofit organizations, libraries and more.
“The clubs had never met due to the mountains and the accessibility between the two groups,” McCarthy said.
As GVWC begins to plan for its centennial celebration in 2027, McCarthy mentioned that membership is at an all-time high, particularly after COVID when numbers dipped significantly due to only having Zoom meetings online.
Many younger women in the community are now getting involved and want to continue the tradition of philanthropic support and keeping historical records, which McCarthy thinks will revitalize the club. Furthermore, both GCWC and MVWC hope to continue this new tradition of an annual or bi-annual gathering.
“We hope to do this again, with both clubs visiting our respective hometowns and continuing this important connection,” McCarthy said.
