Grant to help fund Matt King House roof

The Upper Blackfoot Valley Historical Society received a grant from the Lincoln Valley Community Foundation in January to continue reconstruction of the Matt King house.

The Lincoln Valley Community Foundation is run through the Montana Community Foundation, and grants are issued to local nonprofits.

The $8,800 grant award to the UBVHS will be used to complete the roof on the Matt King house. Any grant funds leftover after the roof is completed will be utilized to complete other parts of the Matt King project, such as putting in windows and finishing the interior.

The Matt King project has faced delays over the last two years. In the fall of 2019, an early snowfall stopped worked in September, while COVID concerns slowed work through 2020. Board members at the last UBVHS meeting expressed optimism that the reconstruction of the house will be completed during 2021.

In addition to the Matt King house, the UBVHS maintains several other historic buildings, including several on Hi-Country property west of Lincoln. Some of these buildings were damaged slightly during the recent wind storm, although one building, Stoner's Cabin, saw notable damage. The building, which had primarily been used for storage, had existing structural issues.

Board members discussed the future of the building, which may have to be taken down.

The Lincoln Valley Community Foundation endowment fund was established by the Lincoln Valley Chamber of Commerce in 1996 and was administered locally for about three years before it was handed off to the Helena Area Community Foundation. The Montana Community Foundation now handles the fund for Lincoln.