by Kira Stoops
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| The M Trail in all its glory. |
The whitewashed M at the mouth of Bridger Canyon seems to
symbolize Bozeman itself, welcoming travelers from a western perch at 7,000
feet and looming peacefully over the entire town. Technically, however, the
huge letter stands for Montana State University, and was bought by the hard
labor of the enterprising class of 1918.
In the fall of 1915,
MSU sophomores pledged to create a monument to the university. Drawing up a
proposal and wrangling a U.S. Forest Service permit, the students earned a day
off of class, and 60 young men trudged up Mount Baldy to kickstart the project.
In one day, they carefully drew outlines for the 240’ x 160’ letter, pried
rocks from the hillside, and carried them by hand to fill in the site. When the
snows cleared in spring of ’16, they returned to whitewash their masterpiece.
From then on,
whitewashing the M became a ritual for MSU freshmen. An honorary society of
seven senior men called the Septemviri was established in ’20 to safeguard campus
traditions. Alongside a sophomore unit called the Fangs, the two societies
prohibited freshman from dating until the M had received its annual coat of
lime.
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| Repainting the M has become an MSU tradition. |
A women’s
counterpart to the Fangs emerged, the Spurs, and eventually the two groups joined
into one: the Fangs and Spurs. (This past year, they changed names once more to
the more descriptive and humdrum “Student Alumni Association”.) Over time, the
Fangs and Spurs, alongside various athletic groups, gradually accepted the
responsibility for the upkeep of the M, returning annually to re-lime the
letter and collect trash along its two approach trails.
Still, by the late
90s, the M needed more than another coat of paint. Led by the late Torlief
Aasheim (former director of Montana Cooperative Extension Service and graduate
of ’37), university employees, alumni, and community members organized a major
restoration of the landmark. They raised $100,000, promptly redesigning and
paving the trail’s parking lot, replacing fallen rock, and repairing and
improving the trails.
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| The M offers spectacular views of the valley only miles from the city. |
Since then, a new tradition launched at the renovated M. In honor of the first
football game of the season in 2007, the Spurs and Fangs lit candles outlining the M,
letting the symbol glow into the night. The
candle ceremony seems to honor a caption from the 1918 MSU yearbook: "May
the 'M' stand long as a symbol of our loyalty to Montana State and a reminder
of what a united class can accomplish."
Want to learn more about the M Trail? Visit Outside Bozeman's guide to the trail.
