The Historical Museum at St. Gertrude has been collecting stories for a third volume of the 150 year books since the first two volumes were published in 2012.  At 365 pages, Volume 3 is finished and on sale at the Museum Gift Shop.  
Like the first two volumes, the stories are individuals’ personal recollections and have been published as submitted.  The stories submitted are intriguing such as why the Berklands decided to establish their sawmill in Cottonwood.  They wrote: 
 “In early spring 1950, William and Olga, along with their son, Bill and daughter-in-law Jean, drove from their home in Big Bay, Michigan, searching for suitable land in the Northwest to build a sawmill. They looked at sites in Montana, Washington, Oregon, and in southern Idaho. William thought he had found the perfect spot in Montana to move their operations. 
 However, on the way home from a search in southern Idaho, they stopped at a restaurant/café in Cottonwood and happened to sit close to the Prioress from St. Gertrude’s Monastery, sixty-five-year-old Sister Mary Eugenia Schallberger, who was a go-getter, born in Lungern, Switzerland. Olga struck up a conversation with her, as she always did with everyone she met. During the conversation, William mentioned he had found timber leases in Montana which he felt were plentiful. By the end of the conversation, Mother Superior promised the Berklunds that if they would start their operation in Cottonwood, so that the locals would have additional work available, she would allow the mill to take all the timber they needed from the Butte to get the mill started right away. Olga made the decision, and convinced William it was a wise one, to transfer the mill to Cottonwood. 
Some of the Big Bay, Michigan mill employees who followed them in a caravan of autos to Cottonwood were Pete and Alma Hutter, Andy Lurwig, Art Chaffee, Julius Kitcher, and Ray Carlson.” 
The book can be bought online at www.stgertrudes.org and click on the “shop” tab, or you can pick one up at the gift shop.  This is a fundraiser for the museum.  Thank you to all who submitted stories.