Lee Rostad | The House of Bair, Sheep, Cadillacs and Chippendale
Published: August 19, 2010
Author and historian Lee Rostad, a longtime friend of sisters Marguerite and Alberta Bair, tells the story of one of Montana’s most remarkable families in her new book, The House of Bair.
Rostad details Charlie Bair’s astonishing financial success in ranching, mining, oil and real estate that enabled the family to build a dynasty in the small ranching community of Martinsdale. She also reminisces with deep affection about the two sisters.
When Alberta, the last of the family, died in 1993, the state lost “a vibrant woman who embodied so much Montana history,” writes Rostad. “Gone was this dynamic character with her red hats, her vodkas, her mink coat, her 13 beaus, her white Cadillac.”
The Bairs left behind a legacy of philanthropy and, displayed in their ranch house, a vast and invaluable collection of Indian artifacts, Western art and priceless antiques.
The sisters also left their home as a museum to the people of Montana – a seemingly simple request that ultimately divided friends, sparked lawsuits and made national headlines. Rostad details the community’s fight to save the ranch museum and uphold the wishes of these beloved and colorful figures in Montana’s history.
Rostad and her husband, Phil, ranch in the northern foothills of the Crazy Mountains. She’s written several books, including an early memoir of the Bair family, Fourteen Cents and Seven Green Apples, and her most recent, Grace Stone Coates, Her Life in Letters, which was a finalist for the 2004 Willa Literary Awards.
“Lee Rostad has brought us a warm account of the Bair family and their place in Montana history, based on meticulous research and the reminiscences of a close friend,” writes author and scholar Mary Clearman Blew.
The book was published by Rostad and produced by Sweetgrass Books, Helena, MT; it sells for $18.95 softcover.