Farewell To The Scout Cabin

On May 14, 2016 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., community members are invited to a Farewell to the Scout Cabin at the MonDak Heritage Center located at 120 3rd Avenue SE in Sidney. Lunch will be served to attendees, and visitors will have the opportunity to walk through the Scout Cabin, make purchases from items within the structure, as well as view a history of the Scout Cabin that will be on display.

The Scout Cabin was built in 1934 through volunteer labor. The land was purchased at a tax sale and the logs on the front of the Scout Cabin were donated by Fred Estes and came from an old barn on his property. The construction of the stone fireplace inside was supervised by Riley Banta. The Scout Cabin was the third such cabin used by Girl Scouts in Montana.

The original Scout Cabin consisted of a front room with fireplace and a small kitchen behind. In 1942, a long addition was added to the back of the building to provide additional meeting space. During the years, the location served many purposes including at least two daycare facilities that rented the space to make it self-sufficient.

A group of concerned citizens, the Community Youth and Historic Site Facility Corporation, took over the facility in 1978 and offered use of the building to scouting groups, religious groups and other community clubs. In 1992, they donated the cabin to the MonDak Heritage Center.

The removal of the Scout Cabin from the lot next to the MonDak Heritage Center has been discussed for over five years by the MonDak Historical and Arts Society Board, as well as with the Richland County Commissioners and concerned community members. The building has not been used for 15 years, and is no longer suitable for use as a storage location.

The MonDak Heritage Center’s Executive Director Kim Simmonds and Education Coordinator Jessica Newman have been working to gather plans and begin to raise money to build an education wing on the site of the Scout Cabin. The addition would not only add a larger classroom space for Newman and her burgeoning education program, but would also provide an additional space for outside classes, such as senior aerobics, tai chi or yoga, or groups to have meetings in their own private space.

Since Newman came on board last May, the education program has boomed at the MonDak. Classes offered at the museum went up from less than five per month to an average of 15 per month, in addition to the educational outreach Newman provides. With the volume of classes being provided, and the number of community meetings that take place at the museum, an education wing will provide much needed space for the Center.

The Scout Cabin will be commemorated on the site with a plaque and the use of the rock that currently leads up to the front door and is used within on the fireplace. Funds raised through the sale of items within the Scout Cabin will be put in an account to help fund the new education wing. Photographs and histories will also be recorded during the clean-up, the farewell event and during the removal to document the complete history of building. Removal of the building is tentatively planned for later this year.

For more information please contact Kim at the MonDak Heritage Center, [email protected].