The Montour Project is a collection of interviews conducted by Madeline Buckendorf in 1985-86 for the Idaho State Historical. Society and the Bureau of Reclamation. Ten residents of Montour related the rise and fall of the former town site. Montour, Idaho, like many towns in southwest Idaho, experienced a sudden initial burst of activity and growth. In the early 1860's the Marsh-Ireton Ranch was established as a stage and mail stop along the freight road to the Boise Basin. The area was settled around 1900 -- farmers tried to raise crops without the benefit of irrigation. The early farmers failed in their endeavors. With the coming of the railroad in 1911, the Montour business district and town were platted. The small town had. aspirations of becoming the county seat for Boise County, but in 1915 Montour was incorporated into Gem County with Emmett as the county seat. Montour boasted a small handful of businesses, including a hotel, bank, general store, service station, livery barn, and flour mill county seat. Montour boasted a small handful of businesses, including a hotel, bank, general store, service station, livery barn, and flour mill.

The new highway bypassed Montour in 1941. Trucks had taken over as the preferred method of transportation. The town was no longer useful or necessary as a railhead. By 1946 Montour had become a ghost town. Montour had its own elementary school and Montour High School had drawn students in from Sweet and Horseshoe Bend. But in 1946 the schools were consolidated with Emmett. Families continued to live in Montour in order to farm and raise livestock. Still, business in the area died down. The last store closed in 1968.

The oral histories in this collection recorded a vast array of opinions about Montour. Lois Gifford Amyx loved the land and the people that lived there. "Everybody was friends with everybody... And I think everybody that lived here in the valley lived here because they liked it, and liked the people" (Lois Amyx interview, OH 759). Montour was a paradise for children at play; there were endless opportunities for outdoor fun. During her interview in May 1986 she recognized that the town had problems, but she recounted strong, positive memories of her life there.

While some residents had fond memories of Montour, others saw it as a mistake from the start. Resident John Curtis said in his November 1985 interview that, "it was never meant to be... The only reason it ever was here was because transportation was bad enough that these little communities had to be sort of self-sufficient. And as soon as transportation got better, why these little communities just disappeared. It's happened to Montour, Sweet and Ola" (John Curtis interview, OH 760). People had always gone to Emmett for medical attention, and there was no fire or police protection.

In the 1970s ice jams along the backwaters of the Black Canyon Dam flooded many farms and properties, forcing people from their homes. The change in the level of the water table started in the 1930s. Eventually the river filled with silt, causing the destructive ice jams. Residents wanted the Bureau of Reclamation to take better control of the water situation. The Montour Flood Committee formed to take action against the Bureau. Residents continued to tangle fruitlessly with the Bureau, but most eventually sold their land to the agency and moved away. Some residents only sold portions of their land and still lived in the area at the time of the interviews. Montour has since been turned into a 1,100 acre wildlife refuge and camping area.